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Type of bind: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 823.92
EAN num: 9780345495358
ISBN number: 0345495357
Label: Ballantine Books
Manufacturer: Ballantine Books
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 496
Printing Date: April 29, 2008
Publishing house: Ballantine Books
Release Date: April 29, 2008
Sale Popularity Level: 2343
Studio: Ballantine Books
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Product Description:
Following the tremendous sucess of her very first novel, Innocent Traitor, which recounted the riveting tale of the doomed Lady Jane Grey, acclaimed historian and New York Times bestselling author Alison Weir turns her masterly storytelling skills to the early life of young Elizabeth Tudor, who would grow up to become England’s most intriguing and powerful queen.
Even at age two, Elizabeth is keenly aware that people in the court of her father, King Henry VIII, have stopped referring to her as “Lady Princess” and now call her “the Lady Elizabeth.” Before she is three, she learns of the tragic fate that has befallen her mother, the enigmatic and seductive Anne Boleyn, and that she herself has been declared illegitimate, an injustice that will haunt her.
What comes subsequent is a succession of stepmothers, bringing with them glimpses of love, fleeting security, tempestuous conflict, and tragedy. The death of her father puts the teenage Elizabeth in greater peril, leaving her at the mercy of ambitious and unscrupulous men. Like her mother two decades earlier she is imprisoned in the Tower of London–and fears she will also meet her mother’s grisly end. Power-driven politics, private scandal and public gossip, a disputed succession, and the grievous example of her sister, “Bloody” Queen Mary, all cement Elizabeth’s resolve in matters of statecraft and love, and set the stage for her transformation into the iconic Virgin Queen.
Alison Weir uses her deft talents as historian and novelist to exquisitely and suspensefully play out the conflicts between family, politics, religion, and conscience that came to define an age. Sweeping in scope, The Lady Elizabeth is a fascinating portrayal of a woman far ahead of her time–an orphaned girl haunted by the shadow of the axe, an independent spirit who must use her cunning and wits for her very survival, and a future queen whose dangerous and dramatic path to the throne shapes her future greatness.
User popularity level:
Rated by buyers -
A great many novels have been written about Elizabeth I, and still the market is not yet satiated. I picked this novel up wondering what new insights or interpretations could Ms Weir possibly bring to the fictional portrayal of Elizabeth.
Ms Weir's novel opens with Elizabeth being told of her mother's death in 1536, by her half sister Mary, and takes us through Elizabeth's life until the time when the death of Mary in 1558 makes her Queen of England. Ms Weir addresses three distinct phases in Elizabeth's life: as the daughter of King Henry VIII; the sister of King Edward VI; and the sister of Queen Mary I.
What makes this novel interesting to me, and made the difference between 3 and 4 stars, is the portrayal of the tensions in Elizabeth's life as her status changes. The Elizabeth portrayed by Ms Weir is deeply impacted by events around her and is quick to learn about the relative value of women as daughters, wives and mothers. At the same time, she is aware of the value of learning, the politics of religion and becomes aware of her own role as a pawn in the political marriage stakes. The focus on the early part of her life, while it undoubtedly slows the novel down, is valuable because it illustrates so clearly the insecurity born of uncertainty.
Ms Weir's Lady Elizabeth is an intelligent and complex young woman. The novel is presented within the broad framework of known history and possible (if not always probable) speculation. I enjoyed this novel because I know the historical period well enough to be comfortable with fictional liberties.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
Rated by buyers 
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I am a huge Anglophile and generally eat up books about Tudor Era England. I loved Weir's take on the Six Wives of Henry VIII (this book was, in fact, the match that lit my passion for the period) and was excited when I saw this novel on the shelf in the library.
What a huge disappointment! I slogged my way through the very first part of the book (up to the death of Henry) and had to stop. I found the behavior of the child Elizabeth and her younger brother Edward to be very unbelievable. The frank discussions of sex between an 8-10 year old Elizabeth and her governess also seemed very unbelievable. It is as if Weir was writing Elizabeth as the adult Elizabeth for the entire novel and refused to acknowledge that while highly intelligent and precocious, the child Elizabeth was just that - a child - as was her brother, Edward.
I skimmed a bit further, hoping that it got better **spoiler alert** but it only gets more preposterous with a Elizabeth becoming pregnant by Thomas Seymour and miscarries.
I hope that Ms. Weir returns to her usual realm of fact-based biography and leaves the fiction to those who can at least make it believable. I love a good historical fiction and am generally not a nit-picker when it comes to details, but this was just unbearable.
Rated by buyers 
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Yup! I LOOOVE IT. I loved "Innocent Traitor" and Alison Weir has not lost her spark with "Lady" It;s captivating and holds your attention. She includes historical facts with fun fiction. It's a different look at Elizabeth during the years that history generally forgets. I am not even finished it yet and I already plan to read it again!
Rated by buyers 
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There had been a great deal of drama and intrigue in Elizabeth Tudor's life. After all, she was the daughter of Anne Boleyn, King Henry VIII's second wife, the one who was beheaded for supposedly committing treason. The Lady Elizabeth focuses on Elizabeth's life from the age of three, when she was declared a bastard, to her reign in 1558. Rich with historical details, a little too much focus on history by my measure (more on that later), Alison Weir chronicles Elizabeth's life -- how she deals with a father who is at times affectionate and other times aloof, to growing up a woman in an era where men ruled, to her woes and joys with siblings Edward VI and Mary Tudor. Through it all, Elizabeth maintains the conviction that she will never marry, but she does develop a crush on someone during her teens. How had things been different had she not been the "Virgin Queen" who ruled alone? And was her childhood part of the reasons why she became the woman she turned out to be, one whose views (at least according to Weir and other historians) were ahead of her time?
Lately, it seems that everyone and her grandmother is writing a novel based on one of the Tudors. Anne Boleyn and Queen Elizabeth I are the most popular. Some of it is good and well researched while others are so bad and downright inaccurate I wonder if they had paid the editors to have it published. The Lady Elizabeth falls into the former category. Weir knows her Tudor history, that much is certain. I love the Tudor era, especially the Elizabethan, which is why I gave this novel a whirl. I thought a novel about Elizabeth before she became queen would be interesting. I enjoyed Weir's fictional take on this historical figure and I'm glad that I read it. However, the author focuses so much on the historical aspect that she at times forgets about the fictional part. I agree with some reviewers that there are parts of the story that seem implausible, some things I don't think Elizabeth would have thought or done, but Weir maintains a faithful portrayal of the Virgin Queen for the most part, and that, coincidentally, is what put me off slightly. And that is why I give this three stars. I may give Innocent Traitor, Weir's debut novel, a whirl some time in the future though. Her writing is wonderful and I will give her another try.
Rated by buyers -
I chose this book after going to a Book and Author Luncheon and Hear Alison Weir speak. She was interesting and I thought a historical novel would be a nice change. I am finding the book slow moving. Lady Elizabeth was the daughter of Ann Boyln and it starts when she is about 2 years old. I am about 115 pages into the book and it is slow moving. I will stay with it for a while and hope the action picks us. I can't help thinking that this is a story that could be written with half the verbage.
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