The fugitive queen : an Ursula Blanchard mystery at Queen Elizabeth I's court

It is 1568, three years since Ursula Blanchard exchanged her work as a spy in the service of her half sister, Queen Elizabeth, for the relative calm of married life. But when Elizabeth summons her, loyal Ursula senses there is more to her seemingly benign request than meets the eye. She is to pluck Penelope Mason, her inappropriately flirtatious protégé, from court and find the disgraced girl a husband, and she is also to deliver a secret warning to Elizabeth's arch rival, Mary, Queen of Scots. Gradually, Ursula comes to understand the true delicacy and danger of this mission. Exiled after the suspicious death of her husband, Mary is now a fugitive queen and a "guest" in northern England's daunting Bolton Castle. Ursula, with her blade-sharp acuity, can outsmart Mary's notorious charm and sidestep treasonous traps while extracting the truth. But can she protect those who look to her -- including young Penelope -- from a deadly game where, to those who hunger for power at all costs, murder is a small price to pay?

It is 1568, three years since Ursula Blanchard exchanged her work as a spy in the service of her half sister, Queen Elizabeth, for the relative calm of married life. But when Elizabeth summons her, loyal Ursula senses there is more to her seemingly benign request than meets the eye. She is to pluck Penelope Mason, her inappropriately flirtatious protégé, from court and find the disgraced girl a husband, and she is also to deliver a secret warning to Elizabeth's arch rival, Mary, Queen of Scots. Gradually, Ursula comes to understand the true delicacy and danger of this mission. Exiled after the suspicious death of her husband, Mary is now a fugitive queen and a guest in northern England's daunting Bolton Castle. Ursula, with her blade-sharp acuity, can outsmart Mary's notorious charm and sidestep treasonous traps while extracting the truth. But can she protect those who look to her -- including young Penelope -- from a deadly game where, to those who hunger for power at all costs, murder is a small price to pay?

Publishers Weekly

Smooth modern prose with only an occasional strewth for period flavor and an ingenious but easy-to-follow plot lift British author Buckley's seventh historical (after 2002's A Pawn for a Queen) to feature Ursula Blanchard, half-sister, confidant and agent of Queen Elizabeth I. In 1568, the queen summons Ursula to court ostensibly because Ursula's ward, Penelope Mason, has been paying too much attention to a married music master. Ursula travels with Penelope to the north of England to find a husband for her ward, but her real mission is to convey a very private verbal message directly to Mary Tudor, formerly Queen of Scots, who's held captive in isolated Bolton Castle. Ursula also seeks to learn what role Mary may have had in the recent mysterious death of her husband, Lord Darnley. Ursula suffers considerable pain, anxiety and concern for her own daughter in the process. Readers familiar with the mineral deposits in Yorkshire will have an advantage in solving one of her problems. Fans will be pleased to know that the author plans to write another seven books in this series notable for its thorough research and faithfulness to period. (Dec. 9) FYI: Buckley is the pseudonym of Valerie Anand, author of The Disputed Crown and other historical novels. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

In 1568 Ursula Blanchard is recalled to the service of her half-sister Queen Elizabeth. She is to remove Penelope Mason, her inappropriately flirtatious protege, from court & find the disgraced girl a husband. She is also to deliver a secret warning to Elizabeth's arch-rival, Mary, Queen of Scots. Gradually, Ursula comes to understand the true delicacy & danger of this mission. Mary is a fugitive queen & a "guest" in northern England's daunting Bolton Castle. Ursula must outsmart Mary's notorious charm & sidestep treasonous traps while extracting the truth. But can she protect those who look to her --including young Penelope--from a deadly game where, to those who hunger for power at all costs, murder is a small price to pay? Journeying to the side of her young ward, who has risked the queen's ire with her infatuations with the married gentlemen at court, Ursula Blanchard receives a new mission to spy on Mary, Queen of Scots, at the castle in which she is being imprisoned, an assignment that proves more dangerous than anticipated. Reprint. Journeying to the side of her young ward, who has angered the queen with her infatuations with the married men at court, Ursula Blanchard receives a new mission to spy on Mary, Queen of Scots, at the castle where she is imprisoned I married Hugh Stannard in 1565, the seventh year of Queen Elizabeth's reign.