Queens' Play (The Lymond Series) [Hardcover]

Dorothy Dunnett (Author)

Book Description

Series: The Lymond Series | Publication Date: August 1, 1983

Once an accused traitor, now a valued, if reluctant, agent of Scottish diplomacy, Lymond is sent to France, to protect a very young Queen Mary Stuart, who is being groomed for marriage to the dauphin. Disguised as a disreputable Irish scholar, Lymond insinuates himself into the glittering labyrinth of the French court, where every courtier is a would-be conspirator.

Editorial Reviews

From Scientific American

The finest living writer of historical fiction. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

From the Inside Flap

For the first time Dunnett's Lymond Chronicles are available in the United States in quality paperback editions.

Second in the legendary Lymond Chronicles, Queen's Play follows Frances Crawford of Lymond who has been abruptly called into the service of Mary Queen of Scots. Though she is only a little girl, the Queen is already the object of malicious intrigues that extend from her native country to the court of France. It is to France that Lymond must travel, exercising his sword hand and his agile wit while also undertaking the most unlikely of masquerades, all to make sure that his charge's royal person stays intact. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Buccaneer Books (August 1, 1983)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0899663206
• ISBN-13: 978-0899663203
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.8 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #934,627 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Lymond Series is Incredible, September 17, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Queens' Play: Second in the Legendary Lymond Chronicles (Paperback)

A friend lent me her much loved copies of "The Disorderly Knights" and then "Queen's Play" and I've been hooked on this series ever since. It has a richness of prose and depth of character that set it apart from the average hero story. It also has an intriguing plot line and an interesting view of Renaissance politics. All six books fit smoothly together with a tasteful use of foreshadowing. This is perhaps the slowest moving book of the series, but I find that each time I re-read this I enjoy it more. I would recommend starting at the beginning (with A Game of Kings) instead of in the middle and out of order, as I did. While each book is self-contained, there are enough references to previous incidents to make following the series order worthwhile. This is the series I always recommend when a meet someone who TRULY loves to read. I can't say enough good things about it.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Stunning.....enough said., August 24, 2001

By 

Concert Music (Alpharetta, GA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Queens' Play: Second in the Legendary Lymond Chronicles (Paperback)

Once you start with the Lymond series, you will either find it too difficult to follow and will put it down, never to pick it up again, or.... you will sink into the most intricately drawn picture of a fictitous character ever attempted. Once in, you'll never want to leave. You will be shocked by many things Lymond does, but you will find that you will understand in the end. You will also never meet greater evil than in this series - and I can't even give you the name of the character, since that would spoil the moment. Rarely do I sit up straight and experience a sharp intake in breath while reading a description of an event - you will do so every 20 pages or so. Don't be fooled into thinking the Niccolo series will satisfy the longing for more of this series that you will experience - but you have 6 books to keep you happy for a while. Please - try the Lymond series, if hooked, you'll be glad you did.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The court of Henri II as you never imagined it, July 21, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Queens' Play (The Lymond Series) (Hardcover)

QUEEN'S PLAY was the first Lymond book I read--stumbled across it at the public library about 20 years ago. I then had to ransack the rest of Washington,DC's branch libraries to get my hands on the other books in the series, and ever since, Dorothy Dunnett has been my favorite historical fiction writer. She is not for the faint-hearted: you must be literate (in several languages if possible)and well read in history of the period if you are to appreciate the books to the fullest. Or, if you come "cold" to the book, the kind of person for whom a novel opens a door through which you begin to learn about the real contemporary history. Her characters are so well-educated and well-bred that I have no problem picturing them at the various European courts where Mrs. Dunnett places them. Modern politics seem very dull indeed in comparison (Tony Blair vs. Mary Tudor!) Mrs. Dunnett writes a beautiful, lush English--one of my major fantasies is inviting her to tea in ! order to find out if she's anything like one of her creations.