Tag: Carol Ann Lloyd

Book Review: “Courting the Virgin Queen: Queen Elizabeth I and Her Suitors” by Carol Ann Lloyd

On By hmalagisiIn Book ReviewsLeave a comment

As humans, we love a good love story. Tales of courtships, grand confessions of love, over-the-top weddings, and marriages that last decades. These seem like high expectations, especially when we compare these expectations to royal courtships of the past. The majority of royals married and they were more focused on political matches instead of love. However, few chose a different path altogether, they decided to be single. One of the most famous monarchs with a single status was Queen Elizabeth I of England, the Virgin Queen So why did Elizabeth stay single throughout her reign, and how did she navigate her numerous suitors? Carol Ann Lloyd tries to answer these questions in her latest book, “Courting the Virgin Queen: Queen Elizabeth I and Her Suitors.”

I want to thank Pen and Sword Books and Net Galley for sending me a copy of this book. I enjoyed Lloyd’s previous book, “The Tudors by the Numbers,” so when I heard about this book and that it would be about Elizabeth I and her romances, I knew I wanted to read it.

Lloyd breaks her book down into sections focusing on the suitors and the aspects that made her reign rather unique. While she was a child, Elizabeth’s primary purpose was to create a powerful alliance with another country, however, issues of legitimacy and religion hampered any real chance of her marrying anyone before she became queen. Once she was crowned, the marriage market became even more complicated as she not only had a great number of eligible suitors both in England and abroad, she needed to make sure her kingdom was secure and that she remained in power. She had to balance her natural and her political body of a ruler, a task that was difficult for a man to accomplish let alone a queen whose legitimacy and religious standings were on shaky grounds.

I think Lloyd did a great job of presenting new information about Elizabeth I, her suitors, and how different aspects of courting affected how the queen ruled. I will say that the way the book was organized did hinder my enjoyment of this book a little bit. I think it would have made more sense to have the aspects of Elizabeth’s courting and how it affected her reign before diving into her numerous suitors and why things didn’t go so well, which led to Elizabeth becoming the titular Virgin Queen.

Overall, I did find this a rather informative and fascinating read. If you want a solid book about Elizabeth I and her numerous romances, I recommend you read, “Courting the Virgin Queen: Queen Elizabeth I and Her Suitors” by Carol Ann Lloyd.

Book Review: “The Tudors by Numbers: The Stories and Statistics Behind England’s Most Infamous Royal Dynasty” by Carol Ann Lloyd

On By hmalagisiIn Book ReviewsLeave a comment

The Tudors by NumbersThe story of the Tudor dynasty has been told in numerous different ways. We know the major figures, the significant events, and the stories of their love lives. We understand how they changed the history of England and Europe forever, but these are just the basic facts. If we look at the numbers surrounding the dynasty, what type of story does it tell? This is the approach Carol Ann Lloyd has taken in her debut book, “The Tudors by Numbers: The Stories and Statistics Behind England’s Most Infamous Royal Dynasty.”

I want to thank Pen and Sword Books and Net Galley for sending me a copy of this book. When I heard about the concept for this book, I was intrigued to see how statistics and history could combine to make a fascinating read.

Lloyd begins her book by exploring how the Tudors came to the throne through the conflict known as the Wars of the Roses, typical for Tudor nonfiction books. However, unlike many nonfiction books about the Tudors, Lloyd has decided not to stick with the chronological order. Instead, she has chosen to highlight certain aspects of the Tudor dynasty to discuss in each chapter with a number corresponding to the topic, such as one rose, two crowned queens, etc.

I found this a refreshing take on telling the Tudor story. To see the stories of the monarchs of the Tudor dynasty, Henry VII, Henry VIII, Edward VI, Lady Jane Grey, Mary I, and Elizabeth I, told through numbers and statistics was unique. Lloyd also tied these statistics to other English dynasties, before and after the Tudors, to show how this dynasty differed from the rest.

However, I wish Lloyd included facts about the nobility and common people in this book. Of course, it is important to discuss the monarchs of the Tudor dynasty, but that is only part of the story of the Tudors. What about the statistics of religious victims of the Tudors? How about statistics that showed the difference between the common people and the nobility? If Lloyd writes another book similar to this one, it would be a fun twist to share statistics from every walk of life during the dynasty featured in the book.

Overall, this was a fascinating fresh look into the Tudor dynasty from the statistics surrounding the monarchs. Lloyd has a unique way of approaching her Tudor dynasty research, making this a great debut book. If you want a stellar introductory book for the Tudor dynasty, check out “The Tudors by Numbers: The Stories and Statistics Behind England’s Most Infamous Royal Dynasty” by Carol Ann Lloyd.