Queens' Play: Book Two in the Legendary Lymond Chronicles

By Dorothy Dunnett

This second book in the legendary Lymond Chronicles follows Francis Crawford of Lymond who has been abruptly called into the service of Mary Queen of Scots.

Though she is only a little girl, the Queen is already the object of malicious intrigues that extend from her native country to the court of France. It is to France that Lymond must travel, exercising his sword hand and his agile wit while also undertaking the most unlikely of masquerades, all to make sure that his charge's royal person stays intact.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: Aug 11, 2010
• ISBN: 9780307762375

Reviews for Queens' Play

[wagner5sarah35 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Set in one of my favorite eras, this second installment of the Lymond Chronicles involves a plot to kill the young Mary Queen of Scots when she is a child in France. Of course, the sardonic Francis Crawford of Lymond comes to her rescue, along with a colorful cast of characters who plot and scheme in sixteenth-century Scotland, England, and France. This is great reading for those familiar with the era, but I think a more casual reader would struggle with keeping the characters and their schemes straight as the plot twists and turns throughout the book.

[jbd1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The second Lymond book. Like the first, an extremely intricate and complicated book that definitely demanded my full attention. There's a whole lot of great story in here, but you've got to work for it.

[lauralkeet · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In 1550, Mary Queen of Scots was just 8 years old and living with the Queen Mother at the court of France’s King Henri II. She was betrothed to the the King’s eldest son Francis to unite France and Scotland under Henri. However, the political landscape was quite volatile. Scotland and England had been at cross purposes for some time, and England was actively seeking to control Ireland. France had a similar desire to expand their realm; in 1550 France and England were in the midst of negotiating peace. In the midst of all this political maneuvering, there were factions who wanted to remove Mary from the Scottish throne. Concerned for Mary’s safety, her mother engages Francis Lymond to come to the French court specifically to protect Mary. Lymond, disguised as the secretary to an Irish prince, uncovers a plot to poison Mary. His efforts to foil the plot and bring the perpetrators to justice unfold over more than 500 pages. As with the previous book, there’s a huge cast of characters, and enough plot twists to make your head spin. And just when you think you’re figuring things out, the good guys turn out to be bad guys or vice versa.I enjoyed this book, but found it dragged a bit compared to the first novel. Lymond identified the man behind the poison plot pretty quickly, and the chase took too long, with a diversion to go after his accomplice. But I’m enjoying the history, and the way Dunnett places her characters in the middle of actual events, so I’ll be reading the third book soon.

[anna_in_pdx · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

“For those of easy tongues, she said. Remember, some live all their lives without discovering this truth; that the noblest and most terrible power we possess is the power we have, each of us, over the chance-met, the stranger, the passer-by outside your life and your kin. Speak, she said, as you would write: as if your words were letters of lead, graven there for all time, for which you must take the consequences. And take the consequences.”O’LiamRoe, an Irish minor noble, is speaking here, paraphrasing to the protagonist, Francis Coulter (Lymond) the words of Margaret Erskine (nee Fleming), a member of the Dowager Queen of Scotland’s train. That message struck home so hard I had to stop reading and think about it for several minutes. What does it say in the modern age, that a book written 50 or more years ago, about a time frame more than 400 years ago, should be so applicable to our leaders today? This novel, the second of the Lymond Chronicles, was set in the French court of Henri II (mostly – there are parts that take place in England as well). The court travels around the country, which provides natural sections to the book named after the locations – Rouen, St. Germaine, Bloix, Aubigny, Chateaubriant. (There is also a section in the middle where Lymond and O'LiamRoe spend some time in London.)In a way, this book was much easier for me than the first book in the series (which is set almost entirely in Scotland), as the court was familiar to me - this is the court chronicled in the first French novel, The Princess of Cleves, by Mme de Lafayette, which was also one of the first non-abridged works I ever read in the French language, right before college. The amount of ceremony and the many factions (“partis” - of the Queen, the King’s mistress the Duchess de Valentinois, the King’s own loyalists who he rewarded or released upon his accession, the De Guises, and many others) are realistically drawn, engaging and fascinating. There is a hunting scene that I think an epic poem could be based on. Descriptions just to die for! "Earth and animals wore the same livery. Jazerained in its berries, the oak tree matched their pearls, and paired their brilliant-sewn housings with low mosses underfoot, freshets winking half-ice in the pile."Each chapter starts with an epigram from the ancient Irish Brehon laws. I found these epigrams really added a lot to my enjoyment of the novel. They usually had a tangential but clear application to the theme of their chapter (as a single example, a chapter centered on the Irish beauty Oonaugh O’Dwyer had an epigram about the medieval assumptions about women’s consent).Lymond grows a great deal in this book, and O’LiamRoe is one of my favorite characters of any book I've read in the past ten years or more. Other characters were memorable as well. If you enjoy intricate, ever-changing characters, you should read this book, and probably the entire series, on the strength of the character development alone. But more than that, this series is a truly great way to get an idea of how dynamic statecraft during the Renaissance really was. Very highly recommended.

[herenya_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In 1550, Francis Crawford of Lymond arrives in France, incognito, to protect Scotland’s queen, seven-year-old Mary. I enjoyed this, even though I am not very interested in the antics of the French court and I thought that The Game of Kings benefited from having more characters who I found wholly likeable and/or who matter, personally, to Lymond. Dunnett is an impressive storyteller -- vivid descriptions, lively dialogue, nuanced characters and twists that take me by surprise. Moreover, those satisfying puzzle pieces explain the plots and intrigue, give insight into personalities and develop the narrative’s themes (here, the consequences of power).“What, in the event, did Margaret Erskine say? Now, if ever, seems the time to tell me.”O’LiamRoe looked up, sweat spilled in the soft cup of his throat. “Ah, dhia... Have I not attacked you enough? It was a piece of advice only, and aimed at myself as much, I suppose, as at you.—For those of easy tongues, she said. Remember, some live all their lives without discovering this truth; that the noblest and most terrible power we possess is the power we have, each of us, over the chance-met, the stranger, the passer-by outside your life and your kin. Speak, she said, as you would write: as if your words were letters of lead, graven there for all time, for which you must take the consequences. And take the consequences.”

[seriousgrace · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Queens' Play is the second book in the Lymond series starring "cool, daring, strangely haunted" Francis Crawford of Lymond. [By the way, don't you just love that description of him? Not my words, though.] The year is 1550 and Mary, Queen of Scots is now a seven year old. She has been sent to France as the betrothed to the Dauphin. Francis (or Lymond as he is sometimes called) goes "undercover" to follow her and protect her. There are a lot of other people who have designs on the throne and she is constantly at risk. As "Thady Boy Ballage" Lymond has dyed his hair jet black and poses as the companion to an Irish prince. He doesn't stand on the fringes of politics and just watch for enemies. True to Francis form, Thady prefers and enjoys being in the thick of it, causing most of the trouble. He still drinks like a fish and plays just as hard as he protects.

[jkdavies · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

After the riotous, roisterous introduction to Lymond and his family struggles, his personal goals seemingly take a back seat as he takes a commission from the Queen Dowager to protect the young Queen Mary at the court of her French fiancé.
I love the split personalities of Lymond the austere and his seemingly carefree slovenly alter-ego. And the set pieces in this book glitter so brightly, even the darkest ones, so many personal journeys on the way, and the rawest of all at Robin Stewarts cottage at the end hardening Lymond's character for the future.

[leslie398 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Very well done historical fiction. Francis Crawford has agreed to help prevent an assassination attempt on 7 year old Queen Mary, who is living in the French court of her affianced husband, the Dauphin. Throughout this story of Scotland and France runs the story of England and Ireland. Shifting allegiances, spies, opportunists, pragmatic politicians all play a role in this most opaque novel of the Lymond series. And it is because of its opacity that this is the book in the series I like least. The main plot is more intricate, or perhaps it would be more accurate to say that there is less exposition on its details and less straightforward adventures to carry the reader along. There are adventures or escapades, but they almost all have a hidden motivation. For example, the race across the rooftops was exciting, but we don't learn until almost the end of the book that Lymond had deliberately chosen that night as a way to keep Oonagh and Robin from communicating to d'Aubiney that Cormac O'Connor had arrived in France!On this rereading, I found that I had forgotten many of the details but remembered the big picture - I was more concerned with the Irish part this time and found that aspect of the book made more sense to me than it had in the past. However, I was more annoyed by O'LiamRoe than I recall.

[vallloyd · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

In many ways the most difficult book, 'what is Lymond doing here' - Paris this time. The plot is actually simpler than most of the rest of the series but where is Lymond's head at? This a much debated question. We meet Archie for the first time, yeah. We meet Mary Queen of Scots again.We meet Robin Stewart. In many ways this book is another stand alone like Kings is but in reality the seeds are sown for all the plot lines to follow. I did not become addicted until the middle of this book, quite late, but after the race across the rooftops I couldn't read fast enough. The first book and a half took a week or so the following 2,100 pages took three sittings basically until my eyes could no longer see the page.

[krisiti · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Lymond, Lymond, Francis Crawford of Lymond... Eh.Compelling read for the political machinations, even if I don't quite believe in the protagonist. It's the superhero aspect I can't identify with. Brilliant fencer, wrestler, best musician ever heard, linguist, lover, leader, strategist, charismatic, gorgeous... It's all a bit much, understand? In the first novel there was enough of a temper of error and self-doubt, and his best-at-everythingness wasn't so much on stage.And yet I suppose there were such people. The proverbial renaissance man: Henry VIII was a musician and athlete, before he went to fat, it's said. Others... I suppose someone has to be the best.I have the same problem with the Miles Vorkosigan books. He's a bit much... I think it's the charisma again. I suppose that sort of overwhelming personal magnetism doesn'tt penetrate the book-brain barrier for me very well.Maybe it's inadequacy: I'm not charismatic, brilliant, or good at most things, so reading about someone who is makes me feel deficient. The arrogance bothered me, too. "Making him into a leader of men." "I made him mine." Having sex with Oonagh, to teach her self-knowledge... Guh.

[misfit_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It is two years since the close of The Game of Kings and someone is planning the murder of young Mary Queen of Scots, and Mary of Guise summons Francis Crawford of Lymond to France to stop the murderous plot. Francis comes in disguise as a member of the entourage of a Prince of Ireland, and the game is on. Thady Boy Ballagh nee' Lymond charms the decadent French court with his wit, sarcasm and music as Dunnett slowly unpeels the layers of her tale with plot twists and surprise turns around every corner. No one is what they appears to be at first glance, even Francis. Is Thady Boy really a drunken sot or is someone trying to poison him? Someone is trying to kill O'LiamRoe but is it because they think he is Lymond in disguise? Does the young Archer Robin Stewart who befriends Thady Boy have another motive than friendship? While the book is slow at times, this story unfolds amidst the decadence of the French Court, it's hard drinking, partying courtiers, scheming noblemen, a race atop the roofs and steeples of Paris (brilliant!!), and ending in a nail biting finish as the plot to murder Mary comes full circle and Francis' efforts to save Mary include some members of the King's menagerie -- a couple of elephants, a roaring lion and even the chimpanzees get in the act. Throughout, Francis Crawford is a fascinating hero, and is as suave, debonair, flawed and fascinating as only a 16th Century version of James Bond could be. This is a complicated tale, and one that a reader has to pay close attention to, if you let your mind wander you may have to back track occasionally as I did. However, if you enjoy a complicated, action packed, surprise around every corner type of novel ala Dumas, you will probably find this series to be right up your alley. Five stars and now on to book #3 The Disorderly Knights.

[nellista_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Predominatley set at the court of Henri II in France, here we have the James Bond of the 1550s Francis Crawford of Lymond, delving into intrigue as only he can. In disguise, he is set to protect the life of the little Queen of Scotland, Mary, who is affianced to the Dauphin. Phelim O'LiamRoe, a prince of Ireland, adds a wonderful character to the court, along with the sheer hurdy-gurdy life of Thady Boy Ballagh. I enjoyed this second book in the series a little more than the first, though it has been around 3 years of reading between them. I think I understood Lymond a little more, and Dunnett's writing style too. Wish I had copies of the Companions to help with translating some of the foreign dialogue though.