Product Description

England, 1536. Home to the greatest, most glittering court in English history. But beneath the dazzling facade lies treachery...Elizabeth Tudor is daughter to Henry VIII, the most powerful king England has ever known. She is destined to ascend the throne, and deferred to as the King's heiress, but that all changes when her mother Anne Boleyn - Henry's great passion and folly - is executed for treason. Elizabeth 's life alters in a heartbeat. A pawn in the savage game of Tudor power politics, she is disinherited, declared a bastard, and left with only her quick wits to rely on for her very existence. But Elizabeth is determined to survive, to foil those who want to destroy her, or who are determined to use her as a puppet for their own lethal ambition, and to reclaim her birthright...

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3405 in Books
• Published on: 2009-06-04
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 496 pages

Daily Express
'This novel takes us into a very plausible and frightening 16th-century world... Can Elizabeth survive? Well, you know the answer but this Tudor thriller is so exciting that you find yourself amazed that she did.'

Publishers Weekly
'The author lends a refreshing perspective to well-known characters and events... [An] entertaining look into the rarely explored life of one of England's most fascinating characters.'

Booklist (starred review)
'[A] compelling, even irresistible read... Weir offers an exceptionally perceptive as well as imaginative interpretation of the most significant monarch in English history.'

Customer Reviews

Another great read!
I loved Weir's first novel 'The innocent traitor' so much and I couldn't wait for her next. She didn't let me down, 'The lady Elizabeth' was a wonderful read. It details Elizabeth's life from early childhood all the way up to becoming queen. Weir makes the reader really feel for the situations Elizabeth encounters, from her curiousity about the mother she never knew, the key relationships with the women in her life, her tender love for her family, her time in the tower and under house arrest and her first love. Just some of the elements within this book.

I enjoyed the novel just as much as innocent traitor and couldn't put it down until I had finished. It focuses on her life before she reigned and what made her the queen she was. Not everything is included but it does highlight many points and ponders over theories which can't be proved or completely disproved. By doing this Weir allows us to look at Elizabeth in a less than perfect way, which makes her very likeable and appealing.

I would recommand this book to anyone. It's an interesting, heart warming, tearful, exciting and enjoyable read. The story of Elizabeth is an extremely well known one but Weir manages to tell it in a refreshing and entertaining manner.

A fantastic read
If you are interest in Elizabeth I in any capacity, then this is the book for you. I stumbled across Alison Weir's book on Lady Jane Grey, and was transfixed, so was delighted when The Lady Elizabeth came out. The book takes you through Elizabeth's childhood, her teenage years, until the moment that she becomes queen. It is both fascinating and compelling and I would recommend it to anyone who has any interest in this period, but more importantly for bringing to life Elizabeth I's amazing and intriguing personality. A fantastic, higly recommended read!

Hmmm
I read 'Lady Elizabeth' recently and unlike all the other reviews here it left me cold. I must admit to not usually choosing to read historical novels and so have little to compare it to in terms of peer comparison.

Whilst the portrayal of Elizabeth as a teenager and feisty young woman was good, and showed well the intertangled web of relationships in which she was involved, Alison Weir's characterisation of the young Elizabeth, I feel, was somewhat clumsy. She seemed desperate to emphasise the childs precociousness and in doing so lost sense of her innocence (except where sexual matters were concerned) as a young girl.

Her writing throughout the book remained very literal, showing little fiction writing skill of using inference and deduction to intrigue the reader and let him or her draw their own conclusions by leaving clues through characters actions and speech.

Despite it being referred to in the authors note in the back of the book, the speech throughout the book veered from authentic Tudor phrasing to more modern variations, which often made for uncomfortable reading.

However, her true skill throughout the book lay in her conjuring up colourful and authentic historic images, which she did well, her 'history' cannot be doubted, although I would question her decision to include Anne Boleyn's ghost which had no place in the book and felt entirely incongruent with what she was trying to achieve.

A useful book in terms of bringing history to life but not one I would read for reading pleasure.