The Poyson Garden

Bess Tudor Mystery: 1

ISBN: 0-7887-3755-4 Order from: Recorded Books

An interesting investigation, filled with the color and politics of pre-coronation Elizabethan England, the mystery is entertaining despite a slightly contrived plot and a feeling that Princess Elizabeth is shoehorned into the role.

Reviewed by David on May 17, 2003

Genre: Mystery (Amateur Sleuth, Politics, Intrigue, Historical, Elizabethan England)

Synopsis: This is an unabridged recording of The Poyson Garden.

Before her coronation, Princess Elizabeth lived in a dangerous and turbulent time. She never lacked for enemies, and in the period after her father Henry VIII's death, many doubted her right to the throne, or wanted to make sure she never reached it.

In the final years of her Catholic half-sister's reign, Queen Mary Tudor has confined Princess Elizabeth in a country home, far from the court or potential supporters. When Elizabeth hears that her few remaining Boleyn relatives seem to be targeted for murder, she secretly embarks on an investigation. Stripped of supporters, she gathers a small group of amateurs, including an out-of-work actor and a distressed herb girl, to assist her in the investigation. It appears that someone is determined to murder all Boleyns, including Elizabeth. The burning question is: can Elizabeth survive the plot long enough to uncover it?

Full Review: The book is interesting, in that it concentrates on the period before the famous queen had any power. The heroine is shown as intelligent, stubborn, resourceful, and above all determined to succeed. The side characters, except for the villain, seem well-portrayed and gain motivation and history in the telling. Elizabeth herself seems a bit unlikely in the role, although occasional flashes of stubborness and paranoia seem true to her later character. In part, these aspects make the princess more distant and less appealing than a book reader might wish—there is no single character here to truly engage one's sympathy.

The investigation, mired as it is in the need for secrecy and lack of resources, seems slow in time, but it ends up with an appropriately tense climax.

Entertaining though not too deep, this mystery has the color of late Tudor England going for it.

Overall: 5.5; Plot: 6; Characters: 6; Style: 5.5; World-building: 6.5; Originality: 6;

ISBN: 0-7887-3755-4 Order from: Recorded Books