- Hardcover: 320 pages
- Publisher: Orion; 1st edition edition (21 Sep 1998)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0752807277
- ISBN-13: 978-0752807270
- Product Dimensions: 21.8 x 14.5 x 3.3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,627,577 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Product Description
Continuing the adventures of Ursula Blanchard, lady in waiting and undercover spy at the court of Queen Elizabeth I. The country seems to be flourishing under Elizabethan rule, but Ursula's strange double life shows us the cracks in this robust facade. The novel opens as Ursula is taught the secrets of lockpicking; soon she is sent to use these and other skills at Lockhill, a household suspected of disloyalty. New tapestries purporting to be antiques; coins that are lighter than they ought to be; strange bird like contraptions and boxes that play tunes - nothing seems quite as it should be at Lockhill. And as Ursula begins to piece together the clues, she realises that there could be terrifying consequences for the country... But although she is devoted to her Queen, Ursula is not now an entirely free agent. She has given her heart to Matthew De La Roche, a catholic. And when her husband turns out to have a connection with Lockhill, she is confronted with a very 20th century dilemma, which should come 1st, her career or her emotions? And should she save her beloved husband, or herself and her country? The weave of period detail, mystery plot and pacing with a Great heroine and a real emotional dilemma results in a novel thats a rich tapestry of Elizabethan England and a cracking good read.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
In this, the second adventure for Mistress Ursula Blanchard, lady in waiting and intelligencer for the Virgin Queen, Ursula is sent to the home of a well-known but hitherto quiet Catholic family in Oxfordshire, where in her last mystery, she briefly enjoyed hospitality.
The home of the Masons is chaotic, with a harrassed wife Ann to eccentric scholar and inventor Leonard along with a dusty priest Dr Crichton, who tries and fails to keep the elder boys' spirits in check. Ursula has left behind life at court and her little daughter Meg and also gone against her heart's desire to be reconciled to her recusant husband Matthew, currently in exile in France for his Catholic plots (of which Ursula foiled one and had to choose between her husband and her queen/country). Ostensibly there to help Ann tutor her girls in embroidery and dancing, Ursula, with the aid of her faithful servants Fran Dale and Roger Brockley, must find out what's afoot at the Mason household, which led to one of William Cecil's spies being murdered, apparently a plot involving the ever-threatening Mary Stuart and a bid to put her on Elizabeth's throne. There are plenty of puzzling things going on - faked tapestries adorning the walls, blueprint sketches of crazy inventions including a flying contraption and hidden invoices in ripped doublets. But can she work out what it all means before her enemies send her the way of William Cecil's other spy?
The story is good overall, though a little slow in places, and rather long-winded at the end. But still worth a read, with a nice little play on words twist to finish.
The home of the Masons is chaotic, with a harrassed wife Ann to eccentric scholar and inventor Leonard along with a dusty priest Dr Crichton, who tries and fails to keep the elder boys' spirits in check. Ursula has left behind life at court and her little daughter Meg and also gone against her heart's desire to be reconciled to her recusant husband Matthew, currently in exile in France for his Catholic plots (of which Ursula foiled one and had to choose between her husband and her queen/country). Ostensibly there to help Ann tutor her girls in embroidery and dancing, Ursula, with the aid of her faithful servants Fran Dale and Roger Brockley, must find out what's afoot at the Mason household, which led to one of William Cecil's spies being murdered, apparently a plot involving the ever-threatening Mary Stuart and a bid to put her on Elizabeth's throne. There are plenty of puzzling things going on - faked tapestries adorning the walls, blueprint sketches of crazy inventions including a flying contraption and hidden invoices in ripped doublets. But can she work out what it all means before her enemies send her the way of William Cecil's other spy?
The story is good overall, though a little slow in places, and rather long-winded at the end. But still worth a read, with a nice little play on words twist to finish.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
11 reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Not as good as the first, but still a good story
16 Jun 2000
Format:Mass Market Paperback
I quickly bought this second book of Fiona Buckley's after reading the first book, "To Shield the Queen". Although I didn't find this one quite as intriguing as the first, it was a quick-moving, fun, interesting story. Although it helps if you have read the first novel before reading this one so that you will understand who all the characters and their relationships are, it is not required. This was one that definitely kept me guessing until the end. And again, Ms. Buckley's fictional account of historical events is creative and fun to read.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
A pleasant read, with elements that puzzle.
1 Oct 2005
Format:Mass Market Paperback
This is a good book, not great, but good. The main character, Ursula, is a sprited young woman who is a lady in waiting at court, a spy for the queen, a mother of a six year old girl, a widow due to a smallpox outbreak, and wife of a catholic traitor living in exile in France. All of these elments would seem to make her either far-fetched or highly entertaining. Yet, you'd be amazed at how quickly you will tire of her adventures. Her relationship with the queen is an odd mix of distant and inproper intimacy. Her initial assigment in spying is utterly vague to the point of confusion. So often we are wondering just what is she trying to ascertain. So much of the book is Ursula following hunches that the reader is left ignorant of. Subtle witty exchanges lose there fizzle because you don't know the underlying meaning. And regretfully you never will. Many of the characters in the novel are quite charming, though undeveloped, and enter and exit in the strangest and at times grusome ways. Others such as the daughter are never heard from at all ,yet there mere mention is supposed to pull at our heartstrings.
The author would have been better served by writing in 3rd person. Then leaving the reader in the dark in so many ways would have so much more excusable. Do not read this book if you are particular about the history in your historical fiction, at times Ursula is very 21st century. Her "atenna is alerted" at one point and a young boys face is described as being "marred by acne".
The author would have been better served by writing in 3rd person. Then leaving the reader in the dark in so many ways would have so much more excusable. Do not read this book if you are particular about the history in your historical fiction, at times Ursula is very 21st century. Her "atenna is alerted" at one point and a young boys face is described as being "marred by acne".
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
A good read
30 Mar 2000
Format:Mass Market Paperback
I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone that likes a good mystery. From what I know of English history, it is not only historically accurate but also plausible.
It is a story about Ursula Blanchard, a Lady in Waiting to the young Elizabeth I of England. The story is set during the beginning of Elizabeth's reign. Mary, Queen of Scots, Elizabeth's cousin and a Catholic, wants to return to England from France, take over the English throne and return England to the "true religion." There are plots afoot to discredit Elizabeth and set the stage for Mary's return. Ursula Blanchard is requested to spy on the Leonard family, who are Catholics that she happens to be friends with, resulting in all sorts of unexpected twists and turns in the plot. The man that had been spying on the family previously has been found dead under suspicious circumstances. The thinking is that because she is a woman no one will suspect Ursula of being a spy. However, there are those that apparently know what she is and they are loyal to Mary. Her intense loyalty to the Protestant Queen Elizabeth is also tested by the fact that her husband, a French Catholic that she loves dearly, demands that she join him in France or the marriage is over. The Queen will not let her go until the plot against her is found out and routed. This is court intrigue at it's best, and a pretty good read. I think I'll have to read some other works by this author.
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