RIVAL TO THE QUEEN

In quiet, dispassionate tones, Susan Lyons narrates the account of 13-year-old Lettice Knollys, lady-in-waiting, and soon-to-be rival, to nasty, self-indulgent Queen Elizabeth I. Lettie is privy to the queen’s temper tantrums, her very private journal entries, and her unruly passion for Lord Robert Dudley. Lyons describes the burning of Lettie’s tutor (for maintaining his Protestant faith during the reign of the Catholic queen, Mary Tudor) from a calm remove that does little to heighten the event’s drama. In scenes of passion, whether of anger, jealousy or romance, Lyons’s narration lacks the energy to engage listeners. Carolly Erickson’s historical view of the period stays faithful to religious and political basics but uses the fiction writer’s license to imagine character. Lyons’s lackluster narration misses the mark. S.J.H. © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine [Published: JANUARY 2011]