jc_hall's Full Review: Robin Maxwell - Virgin: Prelude to the Throne
“The King is dead. Long live the King.”
Henry VIII, grown monstrous with age, arrogance, and infirmity, is finally dead, leaving behind a trio of children by different wives. Edward, son of Jane Seymour and only 9-years-old, is now the boy-king of England. His half-sisters, the princesses Mary (daughter of Katherine of Aragon) and Elizabeth (daughter of the ill-fated Anne Boleyn) are first and second in line of succession to the Tudor throne.
Edward’s uncle, Edward Seymour (self-proclaimed Duke of Somerset), wrests power from the Councillors (chosen by Henry to guide his son after his death) to become the sole Protector, and grants his brother, Thomas Seymour, the post and title of Lord High Admiral. But Thomas Seymour, possessed of a charisma and sexual magnetism that floors the ladies, baffles the men, and ultimately brings ruin to one and all, is even more ambitious than this brother.
He marries Henry’s widow, Catherine Parr, now the Queen Dowager, hoping to further his ambitions through her. But then he sets eyes on the impressionable and budding 13-year-old Elizabeth, and his treacherous mind conceives of a faster and perhaps surer way to the English throne.
Robin Maxwell has penned a riveting account of a short but highly significant period of Elizabethan history. Most historians gloss over this ‘prelude to the throne’ when the teenaged Elizabeth is known to have been subject to the advances (some would say molestation) of Thomas Seymour, a state of affairs which culminated in her being expelled from Chelsea House where she had been invited to stay by Catherine Parr who had been like a mother to her for many years.
As an author of historical fiction, it is Robin Maxwell’s job to fill in the holes of history, and she has done so remarkably well, weaving fact and fiction seamlessly into a fascinating and readable account of a significant chapter in the life of the young Elizabeth. She imbues the young princess with grace and dignity as well as a reckless sense of romance, and the reader is given many insights into the heart and mind of the teenaged princess. However, it has to be said that some readers may not necessarily believe the more unlikely episodes of the story (most notably the disguised Elizabeth fooling all and sundry and running off to meet Thomas Seymour).
But for the most part, the account is very plausible, from the thoughts and actions of Elizabeth and those around her, including the Queen Dowager and Thomas Seymour, to the explanation for Catherine Parr’s seemingly inexplicable behaviour, to Thomas Seymour’s implication in her death (though the method put forward is perhaps a tad melodramatic). There is a good deal of drama present, though this reader finds it acceptable. After all, this is fiction, and an author should be allowed some latitude.
In an Author’s Note at the end of the novel, Maxwell notes that readers of the first two novels of her trilogy (The Secret Diary of Anne Boleyn and The Queen’s Bastard) had questioned her endlessly as to which parts of her novels are fiction and which are historically accurate. Long-suffering historical author that she is, she takes pains to remind us that ‘conjecture extrapolated from fact is, after all, the very heart of historical fiction.’ One is inclined to agree.
All in all, 'Virgin: Prelude to the Throne' is a riveting read and I highly recommend it to anyone who has an interest in historical fiction. Those who have already read much of the life of Queen Elizabeth will still find something new, as this short period of her life has truly not been made much of in the past. Those who prefer their facts to fiction should stay well clear, as there is much conjecture, and not all of it is plausible. Having said that, I should be fair and point out that even though I could not be persuaded to follow the author’s more fantastical flights of fancy, I still found the novel satisfying, as I very much enjoyed reading the intimate insights into the young princess’s psyche, something I have not experienced before and which I had always wondered about.
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