"Mary Queen of Scots" by Antonia Fraser

More than 400 years after her death, Mary Queen of Scots remains one of the most romantic & controversial figures in British history. Fraser's classic biography of her won the James Tait Prize when it was 1st published in '69, became an international bestseller & was translated into 9 languages. Mary passed her childhood in France & married the Dauphin to become Queen of France at 16. Widowed less than 2 years later, she returned to Scotland as Queen after a 13 year absence. Her life then entered its best known early struggles with John Knox & the Scottish nobility; marriage to Darnley & his mysterious death; marriage to Bothwell, the chief suspect, that led directly to her captivity at the hands of Queen Elizabeth; her long imprisonment that ended with the labyrinthine Babington plot to free her & her execution at age 44. Fraser's biography, 4 years in the writing, enters fully into the life of an historical figure who continues to capture the popular imagination, & provides an answer to the question, `What was Mary Queen of Scots really like?' "Lady Antonia Fraser tells Mary's story movingly, with scholarship, insight & balance. It's the sort of biography of Mary which has long been needed."--The Scotsman "A fluent narrative style, a perfect eye for physical detail, a rich sense of the black comedy that the period demands & a high feeling for the central tragedy"--Sunday Times