Lorelie L. (artgal36) reviewed on 11/27/2006 + 471 more book reviews

Love, Politics, Murder and Betrayal.

In Fatal Majesty, critically acclaimed novelist Reay Tannahill immerses readers in the tragedy of Mary, Queen of Scots-but this is not a conventional retelling of a fascinating yet familiar tale.
Eighteen-year-old Mary returns from the sophisticated French court to claim her throne in cold, backward Scotland. A gloomy reception proves least among the naive young monarch's challenges: her arrival provides the opportunity for smoldering vendettas to explode and for intricate conspiracies to form and then unravel. Intrigue besets her on every side. Mary's self-righteous brother, James, seeks to rule in her place; her brilliant Secretary of State, Lethington, dedicates his energies to placing the Stuarts on the throne of England; and her cousin, Elizabeth I, dazzling and unscrupulous, fears Mary as a threat to her crown and to her life.
Mingling a poet's passion with a historian's insight, Tannahill chronicles an era of easy violence, desperate action, and grand conspiracy. In this book, masterful characterization combines with lightning pace and classic plotting to deliver a tragic romantic saga with all the complexity of a major political thriller.

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