The Other Queen | Philippa Gregory | Three interesting historical figures, but one misstep after...

The Other Queen | Philippa Gregory | Other Queen just doesn't measure up

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The Other Queen

	The Other Queen Philippa Gregory Simon & Schuster Audio, 2008 average customer review:based on 54 reviews view larger image
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Two women competing for a man's heart

Two queens fighting to the death for dominance

The untold story of Mary Queen of Scots

New York Times bestselling author Philippa Gregory presents a new and unique view of one of history's most intriguing, romantic, and maddening heroines. Biographers often neglect the captive years of Mary Queen of Scots, who trusted Queen Elizabeth's promise of sanctuary when she fled from rebels in Scotland and then found herself imprisoned as the "guest" of George Talbot, Earl of Shrewsbury and his indomitable wife, Bess of Hardwick.

The newly married couple welcome the doomed queen into their home, certain that serving as her hosts and jailors will bring them an advantage in the cutthroat world of the Elizabethan court. To their horror, they find that the task will bankrupt them, and as their home becomes the epicenter of intrigue and rebellion against Elizabeth, their loyalty to each other and to their sovereign comes into question. If Mary succeeded in seducing the Earl, or if the great spy master William Cecil linked them to the growing conspiracy to free Mary from her illegal imprisonment, they will all face the headsman.

Heralded as "the queen of royal fiction" by USA Today, Philippa Gregory uses new research and her passion for historical accuracy to place a well-known heroine in a completely new story full of suspense, passion, and political intrigue. The Other Queen is the result of her determination to present a story worthy of this extraordinary heroine.

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Three interesting historical figures, but one misstep after another.

Philippa Gregory has done it again-- she brings Tudor England to life once more, this time telling the opposite side of the story that occurred in her novel "The Virgin's Lover," that of Mary Stewart, Queen of Scotts. She paints the beautiful young queen as a sympathetic figure and a model of the Catholic monarchs of the age. The novel takes place from Mary's point of view, as well as from George and Bess, Earls of Shrewsbury, her "jailers" that held her while Elizabeth I decided her fate.

Gregory makes several great insights throughout the story-- William Cecil, one of Elizabeth's advisors, becomes something of an opportunistic villain, much as she began his characterization in "The Virgin's Lover." Elizabeth's desire to release Mary and her simultaneous fear of her is an interesting dynamic. And as always, Gregory's research is impeccable and very accurate.

However, Gregory also made several missteps in this novel. The three-view narrative should have offered an opportunity to delve deeper into every scene of the book, but instead she ends up repeating herself. For instance, if has Mary telling us, before she meets an English Duke, that she hopes to seduce him, she will then have George telling us how he fears Mary's seductive powers, and then Bess telling us how she knows intuitively that Mary must rely on her seductive powers to sway this duke. That's pretty much what too much of this novel boils down to: Mary is seductive, charming, and uber-Catholic; George is chastely in love with Mary but will never turn his back on Elizabeth because of his Talbot honor; Bess is a self-made woman who has become hardened by Elizabeth's treachery. Instead of fleshing out the characters from the multiple viewpoint mechanism, they fall back and become 2-dimensional. Too much of the action is also left off the page-- most of the book is the characters talking about themselves and worrying about things that don't end up happening. Essentially, they're all just waiting for Mary to die.

Nevertheless, Mary, Queen of Scotts is eternally fascinating, and a great pick on Gregory's part. I wish she had chosen to write about Mary's earlier life, which was hinted at throughout the novel and seemed much more intriguing than her captive life... maybe she is saving that for a future book?

Of course, Gregory never fails to deliver a good read. If you want a good introduction to her Tudor novels, however, I suggest "The Other Boleyn Girl" and "The Virgin's Lover" before you tackle her later books, such as this and "The Boleyn Inheritance."

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Other Queen just doesn't measure up

Philippa Gregory is a masterful author, and I really did enjoy reading The Other Queen because of Gregory's style. However, it is not in the same league as the very exciting and event-filled The Other Bolyn Sister, which I have read half a dozen times and can never seem to put down. I had been looking forward to reading The Other Queen, largely due to the fact that so much less has been written about Mary and I wanted to see how Gregory handled the subject. Sadly, the book becomes quite tedious. Very little action occurs, just the same perspectives voiced over and over. Perhaps Gregory chose too narrow of a time frame. I was disappointed by the way she handled Mary, Queen of Scots.

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My first Gregory book...can't wait for more

I enjoyed this book. I liked how the story is told by three different people, and three points of view. Bess, a countess who cares for money more than anything else, her husband, George Talbot, who falls in love with The Other Queen (Mary of Scots) and Queen Mary, who is imprisoned by her cousin Elizabeth.
I read other feedback and lots that read other Gregory books found this one to be lacking, however, as my first book, I enjoyed the perspectives, the points of view, and some history of how Queen Elizabeth handled her cousin of Scotland.
I would have loved to have had a little more history intertwined, but this book was just a snapshot of Queen Elizabeth's reign, and Queen Mary's imprisonment.
I can't wait for more.

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

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