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A review by plantladyreader
The Eyes of the Queen, Volume 1 by Oliver Clements
4.0
This was such a great read!
Historical fiction meets thriller meets the makings of the future James Bond, all had me devouring this book in a matter of days!
Dr James Dee has a surprising relationship with Queen Elizabeth, one not many people understand, including Francis Walsingham, her head of security detail. Dee is a curious man, having many skills in the sciences, astronomy, astrology and spiritualism, and it makes him invaluable to the Queen's aid. While Walsingham is defending Queen Elizabeth's life against the uprising of Catholicism and Queen Mary of the Scots trying to take over the throne, he ends up requiring the unique skills that Dee can bring to the table.
I really enjoyed this book for a number of reasons. The historical side of it was really well done - the uprising of the Catholics and their revolt against the Christian monarchy was richly detailed and very horrifying; the characters were really enjoyable, as were the different relationships between them; Queen Mary was a wonderful villain to root against the whole time, and her tricks of communicating outside her prison cells to her accomplices was very creative; and finally the ending came together in a way that was enjoyable but not too neat - we're still left with some questions, some ill-feelings and the sense that there is more to come from this story!
Overall, very well done. If you're a fan of sixteenth century historical fiction, I would definitely check this one out!
4.5
Historical fiction meets thriller meets the makings of the future James Bond, all had me devouring this book in a matter of days!
Dr James Dee has a surprising relationship with Queen Elizabeth, one not many people understand, including Francis Walsingham, her head of security detail. Dee is a curious man, having many skills in the sciences, astronomy, astrology and spiritualism, and it makes him invaluable to the Queen's aid. While Walsingham is defending Queen Elizabeth's life against the uprising of Catholicism and Queen Mary of the Scots trying to take over the throne, he ends up requiring the unique skills that Dee can bring to the table.
I really enjoyed this book for a number of reasons. The historical side of it was really well done - the uprising of the Catholics and their revolt against the Christian monarchy was richly detailed and very horrifying; the characters were really enjoyable, as were the different relationships between them; Queen Mary was a wonderful villain to root against the whole time, and her tricks of communicating outside her prison cells to her accomplices was very creative; and finally the ending came together in a way that was enjoyable but not too neat - we're still left with some questions, some ill-feelings and the sense that there is more to come from this story!
Overall, very well done. If you're a fan of sixteenth century historical fiction, I would definitely check this one out!
4.5