The Queen's Favourites - Jean Plaidy

[watervole]

 This book is an interesting read. Plaidy did a lot of research for her books (some details may be wrong as newer information has come to light since she wrote them, but overall they are pretty good on the accuracy front.)

 

It's an easy way of learning some history!

 

It's essentially about Sarah Churchill, the wife of the man who would become the Duke of Marlborough - a very successful general who won many battles.

 

And her poor relative Abigail Hill (eventually Abigail Masham).

 

Sarah discovers that some of her cousins have fallen into poverty and (probably to protect her own reputation) tries to find them positions/schooling.  She sees Abigail as being quiet and malleable and gets her a job as a chambermaid for Queen Anne (after several years of using Abigail pretty much as an unpaid servant for her own children).

 

Sarah and Anne spend much time together as children and Anne has always looked upto Sarah and admired her vivacity and outspokenness.  Anne has given Sarah important roles at court, but Sarah is very ambitious, and also has a very short temper.

 

Over time, Sarah's influence on Anne wanes, and Abigail's grows.

 

What I like about this book is that we see a lot of the politics of the period - and written at a level that summarises them nicely, but without drowning you in detail.  We get to know the leading politicians who all want influence with the Queen.

 

We also see the problem of selecting who will take the crown after Anne dies childless - her half brother James is Catholic, but the alternative option is George who is German. 

 

We see the effect of media - in the from of ballads and pamphlets - spreading misinformation, gossip and slander!  Nothing new there....

 

The downside of the book is that it's very evenly paced (admittedly the writer has to follow history as it happened, but I feel there is still more scope for drama) and the characters seeming very one-sided.

 

Sarah pretty much rants for the entire book (from her surviving letters, this may be true to character), but I'm sure she must have had SOME quieter moments.

 

However, some small elements really do bring out what it was like to live in this period, in ways that a more 'dramatic' novel might miss.  The number of children that women had, and how many of them died young....  Even the rich were not immune to smallpox and other infectious diseases.

 

I may read some more Plaidy novels, but mostly as a way of getting a historical over-view rather than for the characters.