The Queen's Fool A Novel

A young woman caught in the rivalry between Queen Mary and her half sister, Elizabeth, must find her true destiny amid treason, poisonous rivalries, loss of faith, and unrequited love.It is winter, 1553. Pursued by the Inquisition, Hannah Green, a fourteen-year-old Jewish girl, is forced to flee Spain with her father. But Hannah is no ordinary refugee. Her gift of "Sight," the ability to foresee the future, is priceless in the troubled timesof the Tudor court. Hannah is adopted by the glamorous Robert Dudley, the charismatic son of King Edward's protector, who brings her to court as a "holy fool" for Queen Mary and, ultimately, Queen Elizabeth. Hired as a fool but working as a spy; promised in wedlock but in love with her master; endangered by the laws against heresy, treason, and witchcraft, Hannah must choose between the safe life of a commoner and the dangerous intrigues of the royal family that are inextricably bound up in her own yearnings and desires.Teeming with vibrant period detail and peopled by characters seamlessly woven into the sweeping tapestry of history,The Queen's Foolis another rich and emotionally resonant gem from this wonderful storyteller.

Philippa Gregory is the author of fourteen previous novels. Wideacre, her debut, was a New York Times bestseller and the first in a trilogy that included The Favored Child and Meridon. A writer and broadcaster for radio and television, she lives in England.