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The Siren Queen: An Ursula Blanchard Mystery at Queen Elizabeth I's
The Siren Queen: An Ursula Blanchard Mystery at Queen Elizabeth I's
The Siren Queen: An Ursula Blanchard Mystery at Queen Elizabeth I's
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The Siren Queen: An Ursula Blanchard Mystery at Queen Elizabeth I's

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The year is 1569. Ursula Blanchard, illegitimate half sister to Queen Elizabeth I and sometime spy on the Queen's behalf, is happily married to wealthy Hugh Stannard and living quietly in the country. Ursula's thoughts are on domestic matters as she watches her daughter, Meg, grow up. Meg will soon be fourteen, so perhaps it is time to think of a betrothal.

When an invitation to visit arrives from the powerful Duke of Norfolk, Ursula and Hugh welcome the chance for Meg to meet an apparently worthy young man of the Duke's household, Edmund Dean. Is he a possible husband for Meg?

It's love at first sight, at least on Meg's part. Young Dean seems to admire Meg as well, and he's even more impressed with her promised dowry. Ursula, though, has her doubts. Does she see something cruel in the man's eyes?

Soon, more weighty matters demand Ursula's attention. Two men are dead under mysterious circumstances, and there may be a new plot to put Mary, Queen of Scots, on the English throne. A letter written in cipher may contain the information Ursula needs -- but can she decode the letter in time to save the half sister and Queen she loves? And what shattering personal discovery will the letter reveal?

Surrounded by treachery, Ursula wonders whom she can trust. Is the great Duke of Norfolk himself part of the plot against Queen Elizabeth? And what about the young man who would marry Meg?

With richly drawn characters and riveting historical accuracy, The Siren Queen sweeps us into a suspenseful and passionate re-creation of one of the most tumultuous and colorful eras of English history.
LanguageEnglish
PublisherScribner
Release dateMay 21, 2013
ISBN9781439139141
The Siren Queen: An Ursula Blanchard Mystery at Queen Elizabeth I's
Author

Fiona Buckley

Fiona Buckley is the author of eight historical mystery novels featuring Ursula Blanchard: To Shield the Queen, The Doublet Affair, Queen's Ransom, To Ruin a Queen, Queen of Ambition, A Pawn for a Queen, The Fugitive Queen, and The Siren Queen. She lives in North Surrey, England.

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Rating: 3.984848581818181 out of 5 stars
4/5

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  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Ok, so, I read girly books. But I think this is the last one I had to go before I was caught up. The last three of these all revolve around one plot or another os Mary Stuarts. I can't wait until the series reaches 1587 so they can kill the French-Scot hussy. Otherwise, it wasn't bad.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This appears to be the last in the Ursula Blanchard series (excluding the character's brief and rather unsatisfactory appearance in the author's House of Allerbrook writen using her real name). I am sorry for that, as I have generally enjoyed the series and really like and care about the regular characters - I think regular characters are the great strength of series such as these. This one toddles along nicely and reveals some of the complexity of the real Ridolfi plot, though I don't think it's among the strongest in the series. As I have said before, the portrayal of Catholics is rather simplistic in showing evevry single one as being hell-bent on setting up the Inquisition and burning heretics, and this does grate a bit. But I am sorry there will, it seems, be no more of these books.

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The Siren Queen - Fiona Buckley

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