Fatal Majesty : The Drama of Mary Queen of Scots

Reay Tannahill's Fatal Majesty is about Mary, Queen of Scots, and I liked it even better than The Seventh Son. It's written in a similar style, with a very dry, sardonic tone to the narration. Fatal Majesty switches back and forth between the English court and the Scottish court, and has a very wide cast of characters--wide enough, in fact, to be rather confusing for someone who isn't intimately familiar with the main players of the time. Most of the characters act entirely in their own self-interest, like so many spiders spinning their webs, and it is the convergence of these webs that eventually engulfs and destroys Mary. Though Tannahill is sympathetic toward Mary, one gets a sense of distance, especially in the latter half of the novel. Indeed, Tannahill's favorite character seems to be Mary's Secretary of State, Lethington, which gives rise to what I thought was the novel's major flaw: once Lethington makes his final exit, Tannahill becomes far less engaged with her material, making the last fifty pages a bit of chore to get through. Tannahill covers thirty years in those fifty pages, and although there's a lot of intrigue packed in those years and pages, I found myself skimming. Worse, Mary herself appears only occasionally in them. That may have been to drive home the point that she was little more than the pawn of others during that time, but I would have liked to have seen more of Mary nonetheless. Still, this is a 450-plus-page novel, and the pleasure of reading the first 400 pages, packed full of excellent characterizations and dry wit, more than makes up for the relative weakness of the last fifty pages.

This was a departure from the types of books I usually read, but one that I found very enjoyable. It read like a thriller, even though I already knew the outcome. The author is from Scotland and the book was naturally sympathetic to Mary.The book begins in 1561 when the 18 year-old Queen Mary returns to Scotland for the first time in 13 years, as the widow of the king of France and its former Queen, albeit briefly. The story follows the plotting of her half-brother James who wants the throne for himself; her cousin, Queen Elizabeth I of England who sees Mary as a personal threat; and the brilliant leadership of Lethington, her Secretary of State, whose only agenda is to place a Stewart on England's throne. Although Mary and her ambitions were portrayed in a favorable light, I found that she also seemed to be a woman who was manipulated by the men who advised her, men who were out for their own personal gain (with the exception of Lethington and a few others).The author has managed to make this story into a romantic thriller, in the best sense of the term. She brought these characters and the history of the time to to vivid life. I was fortunate to have visited the palace (Holyroodhouse) and castle (Edinburgh Castle) where much of the action of the story took place, which greatly added to my interest.

Studied in England for a few months and purchased the book there; this author has a gift for finding the perfect words to describe human emotion and interaction. History truly comes alive, and you are emotionally connected to every character in the book. Different from the English version of history of this period, and what you would read in textbooks - it makes history what it is - human. Excellent read - buy it!

When I first cracked the spine of this novel I was aprehensive about it. I thought I was going to be reading a stuffy historical novel about a queen and her court's wrongdoings. I was, however, mistaken. For the first time in my readings, I have found a book that successfully combines a history that nobody really knows the intricacies of and a fiction that is so realistic, it may have actually occured. Instead of trying the queen and painting a portrait of an angered lunatic, Mary is shown as a young girl (only 24 by the time she was married for the third time) frightened and manipulated by her lords for their own personal gain. I was instantly swept into the story of her life, was steered into the motives behind her actions and left feeling a pain for her and the tragedy that was her life. Reay Tannahill successfully created this world and manipulated the reader to like and support the characters as Mary herself did, then turn to dislike them and cast them away whenever the queen was betrayed. A landscape portrait has finally been painted of history for a twentieth century reader to relate to but it is cleverly concealed in a fiction steeped with intrigue.

finally a book which successfully combines history and fiction .You don't get bored by historical references -you just watch a story which is happens to be true.It is wellwritten ,divided into mini chapters enabling the reader to proceed at his own pace. It reminds me a lot of a movie with its breathtaking scenery which stands as an excuse for great performances by the characters.In a few words a fascinating plot,quick and understandable. An approachment to historical personalities from their human side which is always stimulating for the readers.A movie like book; it is like watching a drama era with a political thriller plot.