First Published: 2004

Rating: Average

"In his dream he saw once again the rough floorboards of the empty room, the sandstone mantelpiece over the big fireplace with their names carved into it, and the leaded window, set high in the stone wall."

In my review of Philippa Gregory’s The Other Boleyn Girl, I said I’d like to try one of Gregory’s shorter novels before completely giving up on her. Shortly thereafter my turn came up for The Virgin’s Lover on PaperBackSwap, and it became my second Gregory novel. A third of the way into the novel, I decided it would also be my last.

The Virgin's Lover focuses on the love affair between young Queen Elizabeth and Robert Dudley, her Master of Horse. The problem is that Dudley is already married to—and maybe still loves—Amy Robsart, a country lady who is clingier than a box of Saran Wrap. The plot never really advances past this stage: Elizabeth whines and frets, Dudley plots and brushes back his perfect hair, and everyone waits for Amy to stop moping and die already. (Funny, I was waiting for that, too.)

I think what turned me off more than the plot was the characters—Gregory seems to enjoy writing women who are completely dependent on men. For both Elizabeth and Amy, the sun rises and sets with Robert Dudley, and I cannot for the life of me figure out why an author would make a pair of besotted, immature, weak-willed women the main characters of her story. I don’t find that sort of character appealing at all—it’s not charming, it’s not sexy, and it’s a major reason that I’ll no longer be reading Gregory’s novels.

Another reason I won’t be picking up another Gregory novel: I just didn’t find The Virgin’s Lover to be that well-written. Gregory’s repetitive language and phrasing are grating, and the story never grabbed me. I must be in the minority, though, since Gregory’s books are bestsellers and The Other Boleyn Girl is well on its way to becoming a film (and a blockbuster one, no doubt). For me, though, Gregory’s books aren’t worth the time it takes to read them.

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