Queens' play

The young Mary Queen of Scots is now part of the court of Henri II of France. Mary of Guise, the Queen Mother, on her way from Scotland to visit her daughter, persuades Francis Crawford to go to France to gather intelligence about France's negotiations with England, Scotland's enemy. He reluctantly complies, and becomes a central part of the travelling court's lavish and riotous entertainments - though not in the way his friends had hoped. The action moves between London and France while a traitor plots the death of the young Queen and Crawford is forced into ever more dangerous stratagems to outwit Scotland's enemies. The chapter headings are taken from the Brehon Laws - the ancient laws and institutes of Ireland. This is an historical romance and the second of 6 books set in the mid 1500s and focused around a flawed hero, Francis Crawford of Lymond. The series starts and ends in Crawford's (and the author's) homeland of Scotland. The books follow Dunnett's hero through a series of adventures at the centres of power in Scotland, France, Malta, Stamboul (Constantinople), and Russia. He develops as a leader in war and politics, with the potential to rule a country: but at the expense of his humanity, his family and his companions, as he ruthlessly suppresses his own weaknesses and frailties. The language, culture, customs, political intrigue, warcraft and ethos of the time are captured in beautifully constructed prose and the books are worth reading for this alone. But they are also cracking adventures. If you can, ignore the author's constant reminders of her hero's beauty and stick with them.