Customer Reviews

Queen's Ransom: Library Edition

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

In 1562, Elizabeth I is twenty-eight years old. She is about the same age as Ursula Blanchard, her Lady of the Presence Chamber. However, Ursula is a spy who has done things that deeply bother her conscience and eat at her soul. To cleanse herself, Ursula goes to France for a bit of needed respite. She accompanies the father of her first spouse, who plans to return home with his ward, the woman intended to wed his son.

France is unsafe, as civil war between the Papists and the Huguenots is imminent. Just before she leaves for the continent, Ursula meets with her Royal Highness. Elizabeth gives Ursula a message to deliver to the French Queen Catherine de Medici. The English monarch offers to mediate between the two warring factions. Ursula is unaware that she is the bait to return a traitor to England. That person happens to be her spouse, loyal to Mary.

QUEEN'S RANSOME, the third installment in the mysteries at the court of Queen Elizabeth I is a fantastic historical fiction novel filled with royal intrigue. Readers gain an insightful look at France on the brink of internal religious wars. Although clearly a product of her times, Ursula retains independence fed by her belief she can accomplish anything. Readers will fully relish the woman as she travels life,s path. Renowned for her characterizations, Fiona Buckley is a creative storyteller who makes the Elizabethan era fun to read about in her novels.

Hariet Klausner

Fiona Buckley's third historical mystery featuring Ursula Blanchard, lady-in-waiting (and sometime spy) to Queen Elizabeth I, "Queen's Ransom," takes place in the 1560s, mostly in France where war is brewing between Catholics and Heugenots. Accompanying her dead husband's father to fetch his niece from the troubled land, Ursula is asked by Elizabeth to carry an offer of mediation to Catherine, Queen Mother and Regent of France. Though she dislikes her father-in-law, Luke Blanchard, who was against his son's marriage and has spurned his young granddaughter, Ursula agrees to go partly in hopes of seeing her second husband, a leader of the Catholic faction in France. Joined by love, separated by politics, their relationship has several times landed them on opposite sides of armed and clandestine engagements (in previous books). The tradition continues as Ursula soon realizes she is immersed in treachery, murder at her heels. Lively period intrigue supplies subplots as well as the main story; Ursula is quick and brave but also a woman of her times, and the setting is vivid, brutal and atmospheric even to the contrasting feel of the countryside between France and England.

This is an outstanding mystery series for lovers of historical fiction, and although this entry may lack the punch of the first two (there seemed to be too few real surprises) the book is still a worthwhile read. The mystery is solid and interesting, the characters are complex, and the description of time and place is unbeatable.

Best of all, Fiona Buckley is an extremely good writer, a true pleasure to read. Unfortunately, Scribner's proofreaders seem to be letting her down--I noticed several typos (including a "teh" in place of "the"). Spell-check, anyone?

I had liked the first couple of books in this series - on the plus side, these are very rich in their historical content. They could qualify as historical novels in addition to mysteries. This novel contains some wonderful story-telling, which is almost enough to make me overlook some of the doubtful plotting. The "Ransom" part of this book seems almost perversely written for the express purpose of being anachronistic - in the author's eagerness to show how democratic Ursula, the protagonist is, she also makes her rather naively simple and open. Ursula is supposed to be a shrewd woman and a clever secret agent.

The main problem is with Ursula. She is a little too contemporary. I can understand her chafing at the restrictions on women during this period, but she does not try deal with them in an intelligent, realistic way.

The rest of the review is something of a spoiler, so you may want to skip it if you haven't read the book.

What has really ended my interest in this series is her on-again, off-again interest in her second husband. Even today I would find her vacillating incredibly selfish - if she isn't going to work on her marriage, why didn't she work harder to end it by an annullment!

In its time period, it's even worse - she can't fly off somewhere and get a quickie divorce if she changes her mind. Initially, she & Matthew were very attracted to one another, but he forced her into marriage, thinking that he was doing her a favor; she fled. I could understand if she never wanted to see him again, but now that she has voluntarily gone to live with him, there is no hope of an annullment. What does she mean that she hasn't decided if she is going to stay with her husband? Does it seem likely that this 16th century man is going to tamely let her leave after all this, particularly given that he might not be able to end the marriage and remarry? This book portrays Matthew in a particularly favorable light, and I find myself thinking that he deserves better than Ursula.

Not a series that I'll continue with.

I read this book over a three-day business trip and was very pleasantly surprised. If you like good historical work, this is definitely worth your time. It's literate, well-thought out, and exciting, with some good writing. I went back and read her first two books and found them equally fine. I do recommend you read them in order. In general, she's not Robert Crais or Jamie Harrison, but these books are definitely worth the time. My real rating would be about 4.5.

Fiona Buckley's third Ursula Blanchard/de la Roche mystery was a facinating read. The plot was complex, realistic, imaginative,smart, and VERY well-written. I found Ursula to be both a femanist and one overtaken by femanine emotions, a devious antogonist and angelic protagonist, a sage soul in desperate need of guidance. There were parts of this book in which I was laughing. At other parts, I felt like crying. I have perchased this book and urge any lover of a good historical mystery to do so also. The setting is vibrant and well-reasearched, the characters are well-written, the plot is realistic to a facinating degree, and the overall book is a true page-turner. Five stars isn't nearly enough to praise "A Queen's Ransom". Fiona Buckley is a true diva not only of historical mysteries, but of writing in general. She is a creative force to be reconned with.

The second book in this series was so imaginative that this one was a real letdown. A problem in many historical novels (call this a mystery, I cannot) is that the characters act too contemporary for the time period. I would have preferred that to Ursula's turning in to a "Had I But Known" gothic heroine. And what's with the missing two years at the end? I'll probably never know because I certainly won't be looking for any future entries in this series.

I was disappointed in this latest Ursula Blanchard mystery. It is not really a mystery; it is more of an adventure story replete with highly improbable feats, both by Ursula and others. There were also significant gaps in the action. Many of the characters portrayed were so shallow as to become two-dimensional. This book does not really work either as a mystery or as a novel.

I always am excited when a new Ursala Blanchard book comes out. This one was not a disapointment. Although it wasn't as exciting as the Douplet Affair and I didn't like the two year leap at the end the book is still so well written and such a good read that its worth every penny. I actually looked forward to times when I could go and read this book. Buy it because you won't be dissapointed.

A passable mystery, Queen's Ransom actually explains clearly the religious wars in France and the threat to England, but the writer lost track of her plot 3/4 the way through. I was going to get the others, but the ending was too disappointing.