Nine Days a Queen: The Short Life and Reign of Lady Jane Grey

Book Description

I had freckles.

I had sandy hair. I was too short.

Would my feet even touch the ground if I sat on the throne?

These are the words of lady Jane Grey, as imagined by celebrated author Ann Rinaldi. Jane would become Queen of England for only nine days before being beheaded at the age of sixteen.

Here is a breathtaking story of English royalty with its pageantry, privilege, and surprising cruelty. As she did in her previous novel Mutiny's Daughter, Ms. Rinaldi uses powerful, evocative writing to bring to life a teenage girl caught in the grip of stirring times.

Ages 12+

Customer Reviews:

Ann Rinaldi has done it again..........2006-06-12

Ann Rinaldi never disappoints--Nine Days a Queen was another excellent novel.
An interesting aspect is that it was written in the first person, as if Lady Jane Grey's ghost is telling the story. This point of view makes the reader sympathize more with Lady Jane.
Through this book, I learned some less-known facts about the Tudor period. I could relate to Lady Jane, and found myself in tears at many parts of the book.
This is a must for Ann Rinaldi fans, and fans of the Tudor period.

Not Just For Teens!.......2006-06-04

NINE DAYS A QUEEN, perfectly reveals the compelling story of Lady Jane Grey. Her story, which is told in a first person narrative, begins at the age of nine when she is sent to the Court of Henry VIII by her manipulative and ambitious parents. Here she meets her future guardians, Katherine Parr (the sixth of Henry's wives) and Thomas Seymour; she reconnects with her cousins, the future King Edward VI, Princess Mary (later Queen Mary I) and the Princess Elizabeth (Elizabeth I). Her happiness at escaping the harsh, unpleasant world of her parents is charmingly evident though almost fleeting when one considers her short life. Soon enough upon Katherine's death, Jane is back home as her parents continue to scheme to make the most advantagous marriage and future for her. Maneuvered into accepting the crown after Edward's death in a ploy filled with both religious and political overtones, she is abandoned and left to falter by those who should be closest to her.

This is a lovely and lovingly researched historical novel which I am confident will lead its readership to futher delve into the lives of its main and secondary characters. It is obvious Rinaldi, who is so brilliant in the YA genre, knows her readers and enthusiastically writes *for* them...and quite happily takes those willing adults along for an intelligent ride too.

Not bad, but less than I'd hoped for.......2006-06-01

I should preface my review by saying Ann Rinaldi wrote this book for teens, and I read it when I was 35, after reading several other books on the Tudors.

Rinaldi's novel tells the story of Jane Gray, who was the victim of a plot to place her on England's throne in order to keep the Catholic Queen Mary I off of it. After the scheme failed, Jane was beheaded at age 16.

The first and last third of the book were great, but it sagged in the middle. I may know too much about Tudor history to have enjoyed it thoroughly. In simplifying the story, Rinaldi omitted some things I thought were essential to understanding Jane's short, tragic life. For example, Rinaldi barely mentioned the role religion played in politics at the time. And she let Thomas Seymour, Lord High Admiral, off the hook for his treasonous activities. In the book, Jane believes he is executed for nothing more than rumors. In fact, Thomas tried to kidnap Edward VI and displace the Lord Protector, Edward Seymour, his own brother.

In the middle of the book, Jane became annoying, wringing her hands and acting helpless far too much. In the beginning, she was a bewildered child who just wanted a peaceful life. In the end, she showed dignity and strength as the nobles who placed her on the throne turned their coats and left her to her unhappy fate.

Nine Days A Queen By: Ann Rinaldi.......2006-05-20

Nine Days A Queen
By: Ann Rinaldi

Nine Days A Queen is about the nine day reign of Lady Jane Grey over England. She was royalty through her mother, the Duchess of Suffolk and only fifteen years old when she died. Because of harsh life at home on Bradgate Manor Sir Thomas Seymour adopted Jane and took her to live with her relatives in London. Jane's life in London took drastic changes. In the time she was there King Henry VIII had died. After his death his sixth wife, Katherine Parr, married Sir Thomas Seymour and they had a child together. But sadly through childbirth Katherine died. Many rumors went around after this saying that Sir Thomas had committed murder and treason. He was later arrested and beheaded. Jane was strictly told to return home because her parents feared for her safety. On returning home Jane was to get married. Although she didn't want to it was required that she get married to success her mother. Jane got married to a man named, Guildford Dudley.
Soon after she got married something amazingly wonderful happened. Lady Jane Grey became Jane Grey, Queen of England! Jane was very nervous about becoming Queen because she knew her cousin Mary would dispose of her and her kingdom. And that is exactly what happened. After nine days of Jane's rule over England, Mary came to power. She was Catholic and by her fathers laws only Protestant was acceptable.
Soon Jane, Guildford, and some of her maids were led away to the tower. This was where prisoners stayed and waited until they were released or even killed. Sadly, Jane and Guildford's fate was that they were to be beheaded. But Jane strongly doubted this. Her own cousin wouldn't kill her because she was afraid of loosing power. Jane believed that right before she were to be beheaded that a reprieve would come and she would be able to go home. After about a year in prison the time came for Jane and Guildford to be executed. On the day of her execution, Jane seemed to be fairly happy but frightened. She knew her cousin loved drama and would probably send the reprieve just when the executioner was raising his axe. But she always had the thought in the back of her mind, "What if the reprieve never comes, what will become of me?" That very morning in the flicker of an eyelash Jane's husband, Guildford, was beheaded. Jane knew she was next. Jane solemnly walked outside to the execution block, still in hope of a reprieve. Jane was bound with ropes and blindfolded. Everything around her was still and quiet, except for the low beating of drums. And then on that day in 1554, Lady Jane Grey was beheaded.
I really liked this book because of its historical background and the life of a simple teenage girl who becomes Queen at 15. It was also interesting to think that she was cousins with some of the most famous historical figures in history. That would be very cool. I learned a lot about history through this book because I never knew of a Lady Jane Grey or of Henry VIII last wife and how after he died was remarried and had a child. This book was very interesting.

Nine Days A Queen By: Ann Rinaldi.......2006-05-20

Nine Days A Queen
By: Ann Rinaldi

Nine Days A Queen is about the nine day reign of Lady Jane Grey over England. She was royalty through her mother, the Duchess of Suffolk and only fifteen years old when she died. Because of harsh life at home on Bradgate Manor Sir Thomas Seymour adopted Jane and took her to live with her relatives in London. Jane's life in London took drastic changes. In the time she was there King Henry VIII had died. After his death his sixth wife, Katherine Parr, married Sir Thomas Seymour and they had a child together. But sadly through childbirth Katherine died. Many rumors went around after this saying that Sir Thomas had committed murder and treason. He was later arrested and beheaded. Jane was strictly told to return home because her parents feared for her safety. On returning home Jane was to get married. Although she didn't want to it was required that she get married to success her mother. Jane got married to a man named, Guildford Dudley.
Soon after she got married something amazingly wonderful happened. Lady Jane Grey became Jane Grey, Queen of England! Jane was very nervous about becoming Queen because she knew her cousin Mary would dispose of her and her kingdom. And that is exactly what happened. After nine days of Jane's rule over England, Mary came to power. She was Catholic and by her fathers laws only Protestant was acceptable.
Soon Jane, Guildford, and some of her maids were led away to the tower. This was where prisoners stayed and waited until they were released or even killed. Sadly, Jane and Guildford's fate was that they were to be beheaded. But Jane strongly doubted this. Her own cousin wouldn't kill her because she was afraid of loosing power. Jane believed that right before she were to be beheaded that a reprieve would come and she would be able to go home. After about a year in prison the time came for Jane and Guildford to be executed. On the day of her execution, Jane seemed to be fairly happy but frightened. She knew her cousin loved drama and would probably send the reprieve just when the executioner was raising his axe. But she always had the thought in the back of her mind, "What if the reprieve never comes, what will become of me?" That very morning in the flicker of an eyelash Jane's husband, Guildford, was beheaded. Jane knew she was next. Jane solemnly walked outside to the execution lock, still in hope of a reprieve. Jane was bound with ropes and blindfolded. Everything around her was still and quiet, except for the low beating of drums. And then on that day in 1554, Lady Jane Grey was beheaded.
I really liked this book because of its historical background and the life of a simple teenage girl who becomes Queen at 15. It was also interesting to think that she was cousins with some of the most famous historical figures in history. That would be very cool. I learned a lot about history through this book because I never knew of a Lady Jane Grey or of Henry VIII last wife and how after he died was remarried and had a child. This book was very interesting.

Nine Days Queen: A Portrait of Lady Jane Grey

Average customer rating:

Short lived Youth
My Review of "Nine Days Queen: A Portrait of Lady Jane Grey
Very little research perfomed for this book.
Wonderful embellishments
What is true?

Nine Days Queen: A Portrait of Lady Jane Grey
Mary Luke
Manufacturer: William Morrow & Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Lady Jane

ASIN: 0688057713

Customer Reviews:

Short lived Youth.......2004-05-21

The story of lady jane grey begins with a plot of selfishness and greed between the Duke and Duchess of Suffolk and the Duke of Northumberland.The Duchess is Jane's mother and the Duke is her future husband's Father.After King Edward died the dukes and the Duchess plotted to have Mary Tudor's, next heir after edwrad,claim set aside to put Jane on the thrown. To keep both families happy Jane is forced to marry Guilford Dudley, the Duke of Northumberland's son. Jane had to be literally beat to inch of her life to agree.Mary Luke goes into the in depth trials and tribulations of torttured youth used for parental gain. Lady Jane who is not quite sixteen is forced to excepot the crown, the Orb, and the Sceptre of England fully acknowledging her right of queenship.Sadly Jane only wears the crwon for nine days before country rose for Mary Tudor and is convicted of treason is executed.Nine Days Queen is the most detailed and accurate biography of the Tudor Family so I highly recommend it.

My Review of "Nine Days Queen: A Portrait of Lady Jane Grey.......2004-04-21

Mary M. Luke's basic facts are correct, and personally I enjoyed the book. But unfortunately I feel she had to resort to some novelizing as she couldn't possibly know what was going on inside Jane's head in between her daily lessons, other people's letters to and about her, and her own letter writing. She also wasn't there to personally observe Jane's interactions with others or question her about them, always a dilemma for historians and historical fiction writers. Ms. Luke's writing style is clear and fluid; she's excellent at creating mental images with her words, so you have no problem following her narrative. However, I feel that in this case this book should have been a historical novel instead of an attempt at non-fiction. She would have then been forgiven for whatever embellishments or speculations she had to come up with to fill out the book and hold her readers' interest.

Very little research perfomed for this book........2002-01-10

Very colorful if this was a fiction format. This book is not for anyone who wishes to review the literay remains of Lady Jane Grey or relevant information. Several pieces of information are inaccurate. A great use of embellishments nonetheless.

Wonderful embellishments.......2002-01-01

Wonderful storytelling embellishing a few well known facts. No new material. More questions arise as a result of this book than are answered.

What is true?.......2001-05-14

It's really good,but.....how much of this is honest-to-goodness true?There's no way that Ms.Luke could have found out on how Jane consummated her marriage....unless she time-travelled.I do hope she will publish something to distinguish fact and fiction. All in all,it's pretty good.

Book Description

This new book tells the tragic story of Jane's life and death. While also revealing her to be a woman of intelligence, steady faith and unusual strength of conviction.

Customer Reviews:

Jane Grey fan.......2006-03-24

I didn't read much of "Lady Jane Grey: Nine Days Queen", but that's due to the author. However, the book is skimpy and regulated to "this event happened" and "He/she did/said this and that". Alison Plowden is a good and factual writer, but this time she paints by the numbers. Also, in her excellent four-book biography of Elizabeth I, Plowden's attitude resembles Hester W. Chapman's; she tends to get a bit terse and condescending. I guess this is why I didn't finish "Lady Jane Grey: Nine Days Queen". I simply didn't want to encounter Plowden's attitude again while reading about my favorite Tudor princess.

Disappointing reprint, no revisions, cover portrait?.......2004-11-27

I was honestly hoping that the issue with the cover portrait would have been resolved with the reprint. There is no new information that I had so hoped for from a writer as well-known as Alison Plowden. I am disappointed and would not recommend that anyone seeking facts about Lady Jane read this book. In an "information age", I had really hoped for facts, the book is so reflective of 1986. There are plenty stories about the Tudor period of our history but little factual compositions.

Queen for a day, but not much more..........2004-07-01

Jane Grey was queen for nine short days, during a period of great turmoil. The documentary evidence from this time is rather spare; even the coins minted during this brief reign are so rare as to be valued collectors' items. Author Alison Plowden uses documentary evidence and secondary sources to reconstruct the world around this brief reign. Indeed, Jane Grey remains a shadowy figure, even with this and other biographies available, given that, as a child, she was not party to much life at court, and did not have ongoing correspondence with many people likely to preserve such writing (only a handful of personal letters remain from her).

Plowden introduces the world of the Tudors and their friends, hangers-on and rivals from the time of Lancaster/York conflict, and Henry VII, the first Tudor king, forward. This reads like a soap opera, and indeed it was a time of intrigue, deception, jockeying for position and occasional outright evil behaviour. The executioner's task at the Tower was never wanting for more; the Tudors, Seymours, Brandons, Dudleys and other such families were intertwined in the political, religious and dynastic machinations of the time, and sometimes this late medieval machinery caught up the people as it would grind along.

Lady Jane Grey was not born to be queen. This does not make her unique among monarchs in British history; when the current queen Elizabeth was born, it seemed very remote that she should ever advance to be monarch. Indeed, even the great Henry VIII wasn't the heir apparent when born; his brother Arthur was Prince of Wales -- Henry married his brother's widow Catherine of Aragon, and the successive sequence of wives and offspring commenced from there. Lady Jane Grey was born of none of these wives, nor even from Henry directly, but rather through one of his younger siblings, Mary, one-time queen of France.

Plowden's tracing of the history is very much personality driven. Events and issues take a secondary role to the history she recounts here -- it is very much the people involved, who are somewhat hard to keep straight at times (when one would acquire a new title, the name changes; since these names often had predecessors also active in royal and governmental affairs, one sometimes needs charts and graphs to keep the players distinct).

Lady Jane Grey was a mere teenager when she came to power, such as it was. A precocious and intellectual child, she still lacked the political savvy of the Privy Council and other chief executors and leaders from Henry and Edward's reigns; she was the not-always-willing but not-unwilling pawn of her family's ambitions -- at one time thought to be a possible wife for the king Edward, her family jumped at the chance of settling the crown directly on her head, under the ostensible purpose of preserving a Protestant succession.

Ultimately, the venture was doomed to failure, for as much as the royal and parliamentary authorities like to believe they rule England, ultimately it has been the people en masse, and those whom they do not support do not last long. The common folk, still largely Catholic in leaning, also understood royal succession in simple terms -- Mary Tudor was the next in line for the throne, so they supported her (largely they would support Elizabeth, a moderate Protestant, for the same reason five years later). Lady Jane fell victim again to the problems of politics; Mary Tudor, once queen, was inclined to be lenient until it was felt that Jane's presence continued to be a rallying point for Protestant dissidents.

Plowden's book is not a simple biography of Jane Grey, but rather a survey of the historical period, from the generation prior to the aftermath. If Jane Grey seems to be a bit lost in the sea of people in this text, that is understandable, for even though she was queen for a short time, it was hardly her own reign or her own doing, and she didn't last long enough for contemporary histories in personal detail to be written (nor was it really in the interests of others to do so during the reign of either Mary or Elizabeth). Taken as a snapshot of a short time in the Tudor dynasty, and a very unique period in British history, this is a good survey.

This is not an historical romance, nor a narrative history done in novel style. It is a little light on notes, placed at the end rather than as footnotes, for a 'grand' history, but is still built on strong authority. The select bibliography is worthwhile, as is the index. While Plowden's language could take a little polish to good effect, the text remains interesting and factually well-executed, keeping speculation and romantic embellishment to a minimum, and clearly delineating between documentary fact, gossip and hearsay, and later interpretations and reconstructed memories.

Dissapointing.......2003-11-09

I had eagerly anticipated this book for a long time, but I found it very dissapointing.

It's more of a quick retelling of the struggle for the throne after Henry VIII's death than a biography of Jane. She's a minor character in her own biography, emerging only for brief, tersely described events.

Catherine Parr on the cover of a book about Jane Grey?.......2003-09-26

A book with Catherine Parr on the cover using a few embellished facts, very little research and fanciful story telling make this a book only for the passive reader.

Lady Jane: Nine Days Queen Of England 1553

Average customer rating:

Disappointing
No embellishments on known facts, a refreshing change.
Entertaining, but useless as legitimate history
A great research tool
Good, but Misleading

Lady Jane: Nine Days Queen Of England 1553

Manufacturer: Algora Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0875863345

Customer Reviews:

Disappointing.......2007-02-15

I have read much more reader friendly books that incorporate primary source documents. The book was dull and did not provide any new insights or information about an interesting character in the Tudor era.

No embellishments on known facts, a refreshing change........2007-01-20

I will admit that I was skeptical about this book after reading the contrasting feedback left by other readers but after completing the book I feel that Mr. Taylor should be commended for several reasons. First and perhaps that most important to a retired professor of European history as myself is that Mr. Taylor did not follow the same format as many "historians" do by using colorful embellishments to retell a few known facts. The second being that Mr. Taylor also refrained from criticizing other author's lack of information or misuse of. It is clear that Mr. Taylor only recites the sources that he felt were the most accurate. I have learned in 30 years of teaching college level classes that if you present 10 people with 10 primary and secondary sources that you will have 14 different opinions about them. I feel that Taylor's use of the Lane Letters is questionable and after contacting the author, he explained that the publisher omitted a sentence in the introduction indicating the use and source of letters. Nevertheless, the Lane Letters should have been placed in a separate chapter away from the main body of the book, but when they are read as the author intended, they are entertaining. Ill regardless of the rather harsh criticism left by another reader, I would have used the book in my classes if I were still teaching. Publishing Weekly left an accurate feedback and I do feel that there is a fresh approach here that does belong in a library. From what I can see, Mr. Taylor is the first to present all known information about this young lady. I look forward to a revision

Entertaining, but useless as legitimate history.......2006-03-17

Mr Taylor has clearly spent a great deal of time and effort in producing this volume. Unfortunately the result is useless for anything other than entertainment. It cannot in any way be called legitimate "history." The book is replete with flaws, errors and omissions. Mr Taylor relies very heavily on a late-eigtheenth century collection of "letters" published by William Lane through Minerva Press. The collection is tellingly entitled "Lady Jane Grey: An Histoircal TALE"..."tale" being the operative word. Mr Taylor notes that the Lane collection had been "lost" to historians for over 200 years until he "re-discovered" it. There is a good reason why the "letters" were "lost": any trained historian would immediately recognize them as complete fiction. The "letter" from Henry Grey to "Lord Protector" Northumberland, for example, reveals the fiction (p. 18-20, Lane Letter 86). Northumberland was never titled "Lord Protector," and Henry Grey would never have addressed him as such. Any trained historian familiar with the Tudor era would have known this. But Mr Taylor is apparently not a trained historian. This is evident from his bibliography. He has "primary" and "secondary" sources utterly confused. Further, he cites works such as Jane's prayerbook by using a secondary source (a later Harley Manuscript). The original prayerbook is Harley MS 2342, and has been microfilmed. That microfilm is available in many US libraries. Why not look at a microfilm of the original rather than a printed transcription of a later manuscript that simply describes the original? A serious error. And finally, in his bibliography he lists a work as having been written by Guglielmo Facciotti. In actuality, Facciotti was a PRINTER, not an author. He was active in Rome ca. 1592-1637. The AUTHOR of the work cited is actually Giovannni Raviglio-Rosso. Read this book for what it is: a compilation of factual AND FICTIONAL documents that take Jane Grey as their subject. But for legitimate ("real") history, look elsewhere. This book is a perfect example of why amateur historians and sloppy publishers should never be brought together. The result is a complete mess, and leaves readers completely misinformed and confused...and legitimate history teachers scrambling to pick up the pieces.

A great research tool.......2005-04-21

If the book is used as the author indicates it's only purpose is to be, which is for reference, then Mr. Taylor has done a great job of bringing all the literary remains of Lady Jane Grey together in one edition for others to use. Though I do not believe that the "Lane Letters" should have been included, I will commend Mr. Taylor on not following the format that some recent authors have chosen of embellishing a few facts and sensationalizing them to appeal to the masses. I have used this book in my classes and the book is a time saver for my students who often research Tudor history.

Good, but Misleading.......2005-04-03

If you are interested in the turbulance of the Tudor era, this is not a bad book. Unfortunately, there were very few documents from Jane Grey. Her story has fascinated me since I heard of her, yet I know no more about her now than I did before I bought the book. It seems that most of the correspondance is between Anne Grey and Lady Laurana (who wed Edward Courtenay, who many thought would be a good hsuband for Queen Mary)

The Nine Day Queen of England: Lady Jane Grey

Average customer rating:

BEAUTIFUL!

The Nine Day Queen of England: Lady Jane Grey
Faith Cook
Manufacturer: Evangelical Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0852346131

Customer Reviews:

BEAUTIFUL!.......2007-08-23

Nine Day Queen of England is a wonderful book, convincing and truthful. Faith Cook tells the true story of Jane Grey as no other book I've read has! This book is truly amazing. I highly recommend it for anyone who is interested in Lady Jane Grey, or in English Monarchy!
This is certainly a truthful account of one of England's most tragic and brave monarchs.

Nine days' queen, Lady Jane Grey and her times;

Average customer rating:

Nine days' queen, Lady Jane Grey and her times;
Richard Davey
Manufacturer: Methuen
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

The Letters of Lady Jane Grey, Nine Days Queen of England, 1553

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The Letters of Lady Jane Grey, Nine Days Queen of England, 1553
Jane Grey , and James D. Taylor
Manufacturer: McFarland & Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0786416351

Nine Days a Queen : The Short Life and Reign of Lady Jane Grey

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Nine Days a Queen : The Short Life and Reign of Lady Jane Grey
Ann Rinaldi
Manufacturer: HarperCollins
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Nine Days a Queen: The Short Life and Reign of Lady Jane Grey
Ann Rinaldi
Manufacturer: HarperTrophy
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Nine Days a Queen: The Short Life and Reign of Lady Jane Grey
Ann Rinaldi
Manufacturer: HarperCollins
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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