The Wild Irish: A Novel of Elizabeth I and the Pirate O'Malley [Paperback]

Robin Maxwell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 26, 2004

Two female titans -- perfectly matched in guts, guile, and political genius.

Elizabeth, queen of England, has taken on the mighty Spanish Armada and, in a stunning sea battle, vanquished it. But her troubles are far from over. Just across the western channel, her colony Ireland is embroiled in seething rebellion, with the island's fierce, untamed clan chieftains and their "wild Irish" followers refusing to bow to their English oppressors.

Grace O'Malley -- notorious pirate, gunrunner, and "Mother of the Irish Rebellion" -- is at the heart of the conflict. For years, she has fought against the English stranglehold on her beloved country. At the height of the uprising Grace takes an outrageous risk, sailing up the Thames to London for a face-to-face showdown with her nemesis, the queen of England.

In this "enthralling historical fiction" (Publishers Weekly), Robin Maxwell masterfully brings to life these strong and pugnacious women in order to tell the little-known but crucial saga of Elizabeth's Irish war.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Two powerful women of indomitable will-Elizabeth I and the sea-loving Irish pirate, Grace O'Malley-collide in this vivid but ungainly historical drama. Maxwell (The Secret Diary of Anne Boleyn, etc.) introduces the fabulous queen at 60, her face white with alum and eggshell paint and her red wig ablaze. Twice the age of her confidant, the brilliant Robert Devereaux, earl of Essex, she is brittle and bitter, loath to show any weakness or mercy. Determined to stamp out the ongoing unrest in Ireland, she calls on the notorious O'Malley for counsel. O'Malley's son and brother are in the custody of the English, and it is for their sake that she agrees to appear before Elizabeth. In an extraordinary private conference late at night in the queen's rooms, the Irishwoman tells her own story, which is the history of an island nation at war with England and itself as well as of a woman who has lived a long and turbulent life. Moved by her tale, Elizabeth grants her wishes, but soon finds herself sending Essex to destroy the rebellion raging in Ireland. Ravaged by syphilis and outnumbered two to one, Essex is persuaded by O'Malley that there is no shame in asking for a truce, and he makes peace with the Irish. Though he rushes back to Elizabeth hoping for her blessing, he falls from favor and desperately engineers a hopeless uprising. Maxwell's double portrait of two aging women is warmly drawn ("Look at us," says Grace. "Two old birds fightin' for the same feckin' worm"), but the novel's pacing is erratic, its leaps from England court intrigue to Irish battle scenes jarring.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Maxwell interweaves the strands of three individual stories into a stunning tapestry of love, loyalty, and betrayal. When Grace O'Mally, passionate clan chieftain and legendary Irish pirate, visits the court of Elizabeth I to plead for the release of her imprisoned son, the two most extraordinary women of their time find they have much in common. As Grace relates her incredible life and times to Elizabeth, the aging Bess also revisits her own often tragic past. Caught between these two powerful and magnetic females, Elizabeth's favorite courtier and one-time lover, Robert Devereaux, earl of Essex, is inexorably drawn into the tangled web of the Irish rebellion. His is no match for the emotional and political forces that swirl about him; Essex's ill-fated attempt to lead an uprising against the queen eventually results in his execution. Superbly crafted, this dynamic tale brings a host of historical characters vividly to life. Margaret Flanagan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks (October 26, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060091436
• ISBN-13: 978-0060091439
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #255,084 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Queen and a Pirate and the Irish Quest for their Future-, January 5, 2005

By 

jeanne-scott (Virginia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Wild Irish (Hardcover)

Robin Maxwell creates a wonderful novel based on both historical fact and legend when she creates a very plausible,possible conversation between Elizabeth I, Queen of England and the infamous Irish pirate Grace O'Malley. Delving almost magically between imagination and fact the author brings to life the people of Elizabeth's court and the Irish chieftains known to Grace O'Malley. The is a tale of the ensuing struggle of the Irish clans to claim their own leadership while at the same time, submitting and/or pretending to submit to English rule in order to gratify their own needs and desires. The clash of two quite unique cultures is a central point that seems to run through this novel and yet both sides are drawn to certain aspects of each others lives.

Elizabeth I and Grace O'Malley's conversation puts the human heart into this novel revealing both it's warmth and love as well as it's hard cold side when betrayed. This is a clear and amazing look at the life and times of two very strong and independent women and how they grapple with the complicated Irish quest for their future.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Discovery Channel could do it better, November 4, 2004

By 

Elizabeth (Calgary, Alberta Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Wild Irish: A Novel of Elizabeth I and the Pirate O'Malley (Paperback)

What kept me reading The Wild Irish was that I wanted to figure out whether or not Robin Maxwell was one of the authors of historical novels about Anne Boleyn that I had quite enjoyed or whether she was had written that Anne Boleyn novel that I never could finish. As I ploughed through this average tale of the little known 16th century Irish pirate-heroine, Grace O'Malley and Elizabeth I, it wasn't until the very end of the book that I realized that it was Philippa Gregory's writing in The Other Boleyn Girl that I was yearning for and not that of Robin Maxwell's The Secret Diary of Anne Boleyn.

Thankfully, the most compelling character in this book is the Pirate Grace O'Malley who tells her life story in the first half of the book during a secret fireside confidence with Elizabeth I. Unfortunately, the choice of this literary device, gives the reader the impression that the are simply reading the prelude and that the real story has yet to begin.

When I finally settled into Grace O'Malley's story, on page 186, and accepted that this was how the entire novel would be told, suddenly the point-of-view changed and the book became a story told from an omniscient narrator. Grace O'Malley fell away as central figure, to be replaced by Robert Devereaux, Earl of Essex, suspect former lover of the queen, mentally affected by syphilis and sent to Ireland on the near-impossible task of quelling the rebellion in the hopes of regaining the queen's favour.

As I close the final pages on this book, I describe this book as: curious but average and historically compelling but fictionally lacking. While I am thankful that it made me aware of an Irish historical figure that I never knew existed, I wonder whether I would have preferred hearing the tale on a one-hour presentation on the Discovery Channel rather than through Robin Maxwell's writing.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A marvelous and engrossing tale, October 13, 2005

By 

Paula L. Fener - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Wild Irish: A Novel of Elizabeth I and the Pirate O'Malley (Paperback)

From the shores of an embattled, blood-soaked Ireland to the haunted chambers of Elizabeth I's palaces, Robin Maxwell's "The Wild Irish" is that rare treat: an intelligent, beautifully written novel that is as much about us as it is about history.

After suffering a lifetime of loss and hardship at the hands of the marauding English, the Irish pirate Grace O'Malley sails up the Thames for a confrontation with her nemesis, Queen Elizabeth I. She comes prepared to implore the queen for help in saving her imprisoned son's life; instead, she and Elizabeth find a wary, mutual accord in which Grace is allowed to relate the story of her struggle to see Ireland freed from tyranny.

The meeting of these two very different women - one a robust, vibrant survivor, the other a brittle, isolated figure who is no less a survivor - takes on added dimension as the dashing, paranoid figure of doomed Essex becomes an integral part of both women's lives, causing each to confront her own inner demons. As in real life, the climax is neither easy nor pat, but rather as inevitable as the past events that have driven the central characters to their individual fates.

A paen to the courage of the Irish and the lonely splendor of England's most famous queen, this is an engrossing novel of historical fiction by a writer at the peak of her own significant powers.