"Great historical fiction"

In 1553 Hannah de Verde and her father flee Spain following the Inquisition burning her mom at the stake for being Jewish. With the help of the Carpenters, they open up a London bookstore changing their name to Greene. Their sponsors and the Greenes hide their Jewish traditions behind a Christian façade. Teens Hannah and Daniel Carpenter are betrothed to marry when she turns sixteen.

Scholar John Dee and Lord Robert Dudley arrive at the bookstore seeking books from the early ages of Christianity and Hebrew antiquity. Hannah, garbed in boy's clothing, mentions a third person with them that excites John as he realizes that God gave Hannah the gift of sight. She describes an angel.

Hannah delivers their purchases to Whitehall Palace. Robert introduces her to the ailing teen King Edward who names her his Holy Fool. She sees death lingering near Edward, but says nothing. Robert's father threatens to expose her and her father as Jews if she refuses the position. She accepts though Daniel is unhappy. Now her adventures amidst the royal intrigue begin over the next several years as Mary reigns.

The solid depiction of real 1553-1558 historical figures provide an in-depth look at an era of transition from an ailing King Edward through the short reign of Queen Mary to the point of ascension of Queen Elizabeth. That serves as a double edged sword as at times the story seems to go tediously on. Hannah is a strong protagonist who enables the audience to look closely at the royals and some key aristocrats while depicting the plight of the Jews in Western Europe. Historical readers will devour this deep look at England's mid sixteenth century monarchy.

Harriet Klausner

Reviewed by Harriet Klausner
Posted January 27, 2004

Summary

A young woman caught in the rivalry between Queen Mary and her half sister, Elizabeth, must find her true destiny amid treason, poisonous rivalries, loss of faith, and unrequited love. It is winter, 1553. Pursued by the Inquisition, Hannah Green, a fourteen-year-old Jewish girl, is forced to flee Spain with her father. But Hannah is no ordinary refugee. Her gift of "Sight," the ability to foresee the future, is priceless in the troubled times of the Tudor court. Hannah is adopted by the glamorous Robert Dudley, the charismatic son of King Edward's protector, who brings her to court as a "holy fool" for Queen Mary and, ultimately, Queen Elizabeth. Hired as a fool but working as a spy; promised in wedlock but in love with her master; endangered by the laws against heresy, treason, and witchcraft, Hannah must choose between the safe life of a commoner and the dangerous intrigues of the royal family that are inextricably bound up in her own yearnings and desires. Teeming with vibrant period detail and peopled by characters seamlessly woven into the sweeping tapestry of history, The Queen's Fool is another rich and emotionally resonant gem from this wonderful storyteller.