The Virgin's Lover

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Call Number: BOCD Fiction
On Shelf At: Downtown Library

Location & Checkout Length	Call Number	Checkout Length	Item Status
Downtown 2nd Floor 4-week checkout	BOCD Fiction	4-week checkout	On Shelf

Compact discs.
Narrated by Davina Porter.
Gregory answers the question about an unsolved crime that has fascinated detectives and historians for centuries. Using documents and evidence from the Tudor era and, with almost magical insight into the desires of Robert Dudley and his lovers, she paints a picture of a country on the brink of greatness, a young woman grasping at her power, a young man whose ambition is greater than his means, and the wife who cannot forgive them.

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The Virgin's Lover submitted by Jen Chapin-Smith on July 28, 2013, 10:47pm "The Virgin's Lover" explores the relationship between England's Queen Elizabeth I and Robert Dudley, a married member of her court. Some historians contend that Dudley and the Queen were lovers, which is how Philippa Gregory portrays them in this novel. Dudley's wife died unexpectedly by falling down the stairs, which people at the time thought was a bit too convenient, forcing Dudley from Court.

The novel includes allusions to Gregory's previous books, including "The Other Boleyn Girl," which readers will also enjoy but should read ahead of time to understand the historical background.

Historians called Elizabeth I the Virgin Queen because she never married. She even had a portrait painted of her with a sieve meant to symbolize virginity. So, the suggestion that she was not, in fact, a virgin, would have ruined her reputation and cost her the throne at the time. The idea comes as a surprise to most people.