Rating: 
Summary: Very disappointing
Review:
'The Queen's Fool' was a disappointment. I have rarely read a novel with a less enticing plot... just... it didn't do it for me. The ending was particularly flat. I won't read it again. It was particularly disappointing after the satisfying read that 'The Other Boelyn Girl' was. I wouldn't recommend it.
Rating: 
Summary: Good, but not as good as "The Other Boleyn Girl: A Novel."
Review: "The Queen's Fool : A Novel" is my second Phillipa Gregory novel, the first being "The Other Boleyn Girl: A Novel," and while I enjoyed this book, I found it lacking, compared to her other royal book. Detailing the children of Mary and Anne, we find ourselves learning about the tragic and risqué lives of Queen Mary and Princess Elizabeth, through the eyes of Hannah, a Jewish girl who must put aside her faith on the outside, to live, and becomes the Fool of Queen Mary. I thought that Hannah's own life and tribulations took away from the story, and would better suit her own story, without the politics of the court. In "The Other Boleyn Girl: A Novel," there was passion, sensuality, risqué themes, and true torment, and even more defamation of characters. I felt this book lacked all of that. The 500 pages were drawn out, and could have been significantly reduced, if Gregory removed Hannah and her husband, Daniel's, quandaries. Nonetheless, this story was very interesting to read when it came to the matters of women in a marriage, etc. If you like this time in history, then this is good novel to read. I recommend.
Rating:
Summary: Back in time
Review: Although I don't typically read these types of stories, after The Other Boelyn Girl, I would give anything Gregory writes a try. That book was one of the best books I've ever read. The follow up to it, which is this book, wasn't as good, but was great in it's own right! The story of Hannah, the Queen's fool, is really about more than just her, it's about that whole period of time in England and about the royal family and it's enemies. I found everything quite interesting. And although at some points the story dragged for me, it didn't last long. There was always something new going on to catch your interest. I enjoyed most of the characters, but do be ready to memorize who is who- there are a lot of players involved! I'd recommend this book, it was long, but worth every minute! And if you haven't read The Other Boelyn Girl, read that as well!
Rating: 
Summary: A Worthy Purchase!
Review: Although I'm fond of historical fiction (nothing beats velvet gowns and courtly love for passing the time on an international flight), and the Tudors are my favorite royal family to read about, it makes me nervous when I sense a revisionist gleam in an author's eye. One particularly ill-advised series has Queen Elizabeth I as a spunky Tudor sleuth, solving mysteries while presiding over Britain's golden age. There's nothing wrong with creative interpretations of historical figures' lives, but even the most determined fan can only suspend so much disbelief. After hearing that Philippa Gregory's newest novel featured a teenage psychic spy, as well as extreme personality makeovers for both Elizabeth and Mary, I had my doubts. But long flights demand reading material, and so I stuffed The Queen's Fool into my carry-on and hoped for the best. This is the story of Hannah Green, a fourteen-year-old Jewish girl who flees Spain with her father after her mother is burned to death by the Spanish Inquisition for heresy. Arriving in London, they open a bookstore and pose as Catholics. All they want is to live quietly and escape persecution in their new country. But Hannah is no ordinary girl: possessed of a remarkable gift called the Sight, she sees visions of the future. Sir Robert Dudley discovers her and brings her to court to be a "holy fool" for the sickly boy-king Edward. Dazzled by Dudley's dashing good looks, Hannah falls in love with him, happily becoming his faithful servant; in her naivete, she fails to realize that she's becoming an accomplice to treason. After Edward's grisly death, Hannah begins a new life as a courtier, serving Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth as companion, friend, and spy - often at the same time. Struggling against her sense of duty to her father, her fiance, and the Jewish community, Hannah embraces the glamour of court life, only to founder in the swift and treacherous waters of political scheming. Gregory brings the Tudor era to life with vivid descriptions and period detail; she writes knowledgeably and entertainingly about every aspect of courtly life, from dress and etiquette at a royal banquet to the tortures of the Tower's dungeons. Her writing creatively imagines the much-maligned "Bloody Mary" as a tender-hearted, kindly woman, emotionally destroyed by her husband's rejection and her failed pregnancies, and driven to the burning of heretics by a genuine wish for their salvation. Elizabeth, the "Virgin Queen," is presented as a ruthless, amoral seductress who steals her married-to-England schtick - and the throne - from big sister Mary. Oddly, the great romance between Elizabeth and Dudley is glossed over; Gregory's Elizabeth is a calculating home-wrecker, exploiting her sexual desirability for narcissistic gratification and political clout. Although these unusual portrayals of Mary and Elizabeth aren't always convincing, it's an interesting experiment, and, for the most part, plays well enough. What the premise may lack in plausibility (Hannah is a kind of Elizabethan Forrest Gump, ricocheting blithely through the aristocratic Who's Who of her era), it makes up in enjoyably naughty intrigue, though the improbably warm-and-fuzzy ending pulls punches to satisfy the book-club target audience. Fans of Gregory's previous work will enjoy this behind-the-scenes foray into the darker side of sixteenth-century life at court, and the unconventional treatment of Mary and Elizabeth's conflicted relationship. The holy-visions angle turns out to be mostly a narrative tool, useful to readers only because it grants Hannah a backstage pass to the inner workings of court, and the license to speak freely; her most supernatural gift is her ability to conveniently be wherever the action is. It may not be the most historically accurate rendering of the Tudor royals, but The Queen's Fool is still an enjoyably down-and-dirty page-turner.Check it out! (...)
Rating:
Summary: A fool caught in the crux of history
Review: Gregory is well acquainted with the behind-the-scenes machinations of the English royal court of 1553; in this instance, the author addresses the rivalry between Mary and Elizabeth, daughters of Henry VIII, heirs to Henry's throne after his male heir, King Edward, dies. Here the author adds a unique character, a young converso (a Jewish convert to the Christian faith) gifted with the "Sight", Hannah Green. Using the Queen's fool as a vehicle for the story serves two purposes: the author is able to delve into the complex relationship between the royal sisters, especially during this most difficult period of their relationship, also illustrating the harried lives of the Jews during years of intense religious persecution. Hiding behind a Christian façade, Hannah is adept at concealing her religion and the traditional practices that continue in spite of persecution. Hannah is betrothed, but helplessly drawn to the royal court, in thrall to the pure-hearted Mary and the clever Elizabeth. Her gift of sight has compelled Hannah to stay at court to ease Mary's journey through a difficult reign. The virulently Catholic, half-Spanish daughter of Catherine of Aragon, Mary is determined, almost beyond reason, to restore her English subjects to the true religion of her mother. At the same time, Elizabeth, daughter of the beheaded Anne Boleyn, incessantly plots to usurp Mary's throne. Mary has devoted herself to the well being of her younger half-sister, but now they are thrown into an adversarial situation, each fighting to control of the spiritual future of England. Queen Mary's marriage contract with King Phillip of Spain causes turmoil in the kingdom, her loyal citizens unwilling to be ruled by a Spanish King. Once married, the royal couple brings the scourge of the Inquisition to England, but it is Mary's inability to bear a child that threatens her hold on the throne. Hannah has come to the royal court as a "wise" fool, but also as a spy for Sir Robert Dudley, an avowed traitor, who plots assiduously for Elizabeth's accession to the throne. It is Hannah's misfortune to fall hopelessly in love with the handsome Dudley, unable to refuse his bidding for all her years at court. Her senses permeated by the smell of burning flesh and the desperate flight from Spain, Hannah is in an untenable situation, living in constant terror. Her allegiance to Mary unassailable, Hannah refuses to abandon the suffering Queen, as Elizabeth's following grows daily, supported by Dudley. Hannah's challenge is whether to return to her family and marry or live at risk in Mary's court. Her decision puts her whole family in jeopardy as the flames of religious fervor burn brightly. In this cleverly crafted scenario, Mary and Elizabeth wrestle for England, in the great clash of religious beliefs begun by Henry's break with Rome. The Catholic Queen and the Protestant Princess, cast in much the same roles as Catherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn, are equally obsessed. In a new twist to a familiar saga, Mary teeters precariously on the throne, Elizabeth schemes with Dudley and Hannah remains torn by her allegiance to both. The daughters of the infamous Henry VIII battle for ascendancy, silhouetted against religious persecution and the terrible shadow of the Inquisition. Luan Gaines/2004.
Rating: 
Summary: Entertaining enough, but not the most engaging characters.
Review: Hannah Verde and her father fled the Spanish Inquisition after her mother was burned at the stake. They arrive in England in the year 1548 and hide their Jewish faith in Protestant England. Hannah had dressed as a boy to avoid harassment on the flight from Spain and after five years of living in England, she continues to wear boys clothes in order to make assisting her father in his bookshop an easier task. Her father's bookshop brings in many clients, including the royal Robert Dudley. Robert Dudley takes special notice of the thirteen-year-old Hannah because she sees an angel over his shoulder and he believes she has the Sight. He brings Hannah to court as the androgynous Holy Fool to the frail and dying teenage King Edward. Once she has entered royal service, she finally meets Daniel, her betrothed, a student physician chosen by the Jewish matchmaker. The promise of a life with him is something Hannah alternately wants and doesn't want, but it gives her a potential escape from the political upheaval that is to come in the next few years. Upon Edward's death, we witness Queen Mary's struggle to ascend the throne with Hannah as her constant companion. Hannah continues to work for 'Bloody' Queen Mary who changes the country's religion to Catholicism and persecutes several hundred people through torture and burning at the stake. Mary trusts Elizabeth to spy on her Protestant sister Elizabeth and she spends much time with both women. By the end of the book, Queen Mary's reign comes to an end. If the author chose to write a sequel, although the book finishes with Hannah's personal story nicely concluded, there is room for another novel with more of Hannah and her young physician as well as Queen Elizabeth's court. This novel was decently paced and I was fairly interested in the historical events of the time. But I found that I just didn't care that much what happened to Hannah. Although she is smart and has a life at court, I found that these characteristics were more statements than backed by events of the novel. She is involved in plots and has multiple loyalties, but there is a simplistic innocence to the unfolding of events through her eyes that I found disappointing. There is also a great deal of sympathy for Bloody Queen Mary and the hard life she had lived, her loveless marriage to the Spanish King Phillip, her odd failed pregnancies, her fatal illness and her constant deep depression. Her faith and conviction, which lead to religious persecution were depicted as virtuous qualities. But my biggest dissappointment in the novel was the fact that Hannah has the Sight, but it is so infrequent and useless in the book, that it didn't add to the story. I thought the Queen's Fool was decent reading, but I didn't really enjoy it as much as I had hoped. I think more of the Sight, a more complex presentation of the politics, more of the charismatic Elizabeth and more of what drives Hannah would have made this a better book.
Rating: 
Summary: A Huge Disappointment
Review: I absolutely loved The Other Boleyn Girl, and was really looking forward to The Queen's Fool. However, I found the book ridiculously far-fetched with the "Sight" business, and very historically inaccurate as well. As a serious student of the Tudors, I found several laughable errors in this book, and though it is a work of historical fiction, such obvious errors do detract from the story. The Other Boleyn Girl was a vastly superior work to this one, which seems like it was thrown together hastily to meet a deadline. The ending seems to set up a sequel -- please Ms. Gregory, don't bother.
Rating:
Summary: A Good Book
Review: I didn't like this book as much as The Other Boleyn Girl. But it's still a good book. Hannah's life at court was interesting but the way she deals with Daniel was typical. It's written like a romance novel...she loves him, she hates him, she lusts for him, she leaves him because of something he did etc. etc. Overall, it was a decent book and I hope that Ms. Gregory writes more novels during this time period. I'd also like to see some of her older works such as The Wise Woman come into print again. I look forward to her next book.
Rating:
Summary: Gregory is no fool...5 Star read
Review: I don't give out 5 stars for many books, but "The Queen's Fool" is worthy. An excellent ficitional account, from the perspective of Hannah Greene, an adolescent girl, blessed with "the sight". She is a practicing Christian, but at heart a Jew, hiding her religion for fear of reprisal and punishement. Hannah becomes The Queen's Fool, and lives her life at Court, witnessing history as it happens. I was not familiar with all of the history of the period, Queen Mary, Elizabeth, Robert Dudley, etc. but it was riveting. I could not put this book down and spent 3 late nights reading (well worth it!!) Gregory brings this time period to life, with wonderful descriptions, dialogue and a great story. I highly recommend this book. Lose yourself in the past...time well spent.
Rating:
Summary: Fast-Paced Light Fiction
Review: I enjoyed this novel more than The Other Boleyn Girl because of the richness and detail of the characters. I also liked the fact that the main character was not as high profile a character as Mary in The Other Boleyn Girl, therefore I wasn't constantly checking facts to make sure what was happening was true. Although it is 500 pages, I finished it in a few days. I find that Gregory's novels, while long and detailed, are written like cheap romance books, therefore they go pretty fast and it's hard to put them down. Because of this factor, The Queen's Fool is a fun read- perfect for the plane or a lazy day.
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