Cindy Harrison loves books. As a review for Publishers Weekly, she read about 20 books per month, and still finds time to teach at her local community college."I am also deeply loyal to writers whose work changed my life in significant ways, even if I have not read them in ages. Plus, all kinds of books have marked meaningful moments in my life." Visit her at
Cynthiaharrison.com or email her
Cindy@CynthiaHarrison
Innocent Traitor
Author: Alison Weir
S
ome of the most complex plots come straight from the history books. Alison Weir, a British historian, has written ten non-fiction accounts of the intrigues of the monarchy. Her first novel, out in the U.S. today, uses all of the historical facts she has gleaned--she needs no more plot than what history has given her. What Weir had to create were the psychological aspects, the motives, the musings of the minds of the various players in her book, which centers around Lady Jane Grey, a pawn of the political structure in the 16th century, and queen of England for a brief nine days.
Jane Grey is highborn; her mother, Frances, was niece to Henry VIII. Although she is saddened that her firstborn is not a boy, Frances has grand plans for Jane. From almost the moment of her birth, Frances schemes to marry Jane to the king's only son. And Jane does become Queen, briefly, but not by marrying a king. Those facts are the bookends to a story that fills out the high-stakes chess game of a bloody royal court divided religiously and politically into Protestant, Catholic, and Church of England. In the end, it is Jane's devotion to her religious beliefs that condemn her to a horrible death.
All this is easily found in any book of British history. What Weir does is breathe personality into these characters by entering into their consciousnesses as fully as possible. Her brilliantly illuminated text comes alive in ways mere historical reenactment never can. It doesn't matter that the facts are well-known; this story is a page turner despite the weight of the true-to-life plot.
Back To The Cover
What I am Reading
