Court jester Will Somers stars in, THE TWILIGHT QUEEN the second of the King's Fool Mysteries, as he once more entertains Henry VIII and Queen Anne Boleyn. Anne is in a precarious position, as Henry divorced his first queen to marry her, and now he is looking for a new conquest... And Will does not know how short a time Anne has left on the throne of England.
The palace at Greenwich in 1536 is full of intrigue as usual. Oliver Cromwell is a dour presence, and the jester pokes fun at this man, perhaps to his peril. Princess Elizabeth, Bess for short, is Anne’s child, but Henry wants a son. He hopes Lady Jane Seymour might produce one. Other courtiers wander the halls, dressed in finery they may have beggared the estate to produce, for Henry won’t allow anyone with plain clothing to attend. A man is found dead in Queen Anne’s chambers. She’s terrified that Henry will think she was having an affair with the minstrel – high treason. As Will Somers solved a murder some years previously, she summons him secretly and asks him to remove the body and investigate the death. Will justifies his queries to others by saying the dead minstrel was a fellow entertainer.
Marion Greene, a seamstress, has now married Will, but he still dallies with a gentleman, Lord Nicholas Patchett, a change from the first book in the series (COURTING DRAGONS) where he had multiple dalliances with other men. Being gay or bisexual was considered a sin and a crime at this point in history, so Will’s life has been stressful enough without having to discover a murderous plot. Marion is portrayed as having a much more modern outlook than a woman would have had at that time. Nicholas is a pleasant character; a much more likely hero. As a minor noble he’s better able to stalk around demanding answers from servants, and less continually at the King’s beck and call.
As well as a portrait of the nobility, we get a look at how women were treated, and the double standards of the day. We also learn about the entertainment in Tudor times, Will having instruments and a small dog as part of his act. Jeri Westerson has produced a rounded account of THE TWILIGHT QUEEN with an exciting murder mystery and memorable characters.
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