Roses Have Thorns: A Novel of Elizabeth I (38 page)

I think the greater role that her ladies played was that of companionship and providing care and affection. As I mention in the Afterword, Elizabeth had no mother, no father, no siblings, no husband, no children, and all of her cousins were in some way rivals for her throne. That made for a lonely and guarded existence, and was one reason, I believe, why she could be somewhat needy and reluctant to let them go.

Q: Elizabeth allowed Catholics the freedom to worship in private. Can she be considered an early proponent of religious freedom? At one point in the story you reveal that the Papal Secretary of State sanctioned the queen’s murder, which is rather shocking. Was it routine or extreme for the Vatican to take this kind of overt action against a monarch?

A: Elizabeth has always said she had no desire to make windows into men’s souls. In other words, she was willing to let them worship according to their own consciences and inclinations as long as it did not veer into treason. She made it clear that she was born and bred in the Church of England, but as long as her Catholic subjects remained loyal to her politically, she allowed them the freedom of choosing their own religious path. Once an action became a threat to her kingdom, it was a matter of state and not of soul, and she took action.

The Papal Bull calling for her execution was shocking. It was a time when there were people on both “sides” with pure motivations to protect what they felt was true Christian faith, and people who used the faith issues of the time to gain political power; scratch the surface and they had no good intent. Sorting out which was which was, then as now, difficult.

Q: Tell us about your travels to England. What places associated with the Tudors made the greatest impression on you?

A: All of it felt like a pilgrimage of sorts, to be honest. I loved visiting The Tower, Hampton Court Palace, Allington Castle, and Hever Castle. I have not yet made it to Sudeley, but I will! Standing by the monument in Westminster Abbey where Queen Elizabeth I rests atop Queen Mary I, one can only hope that they are at peace with themselves, and each other,
at last. Mary, Queen of Scots, by the way, is interred just down the aisle from them.

Q: “They were burning my bones to get out and onto paper,” you remarked in an interview about the Ladies in Waiting stories. Do you plan to keep writing about the Tudor era, or will you venture into another historical time period?

A: I read dozens of books while writing the Ladies in Waiting books, so for now, I feel satiated with the era. I will continue to read Tudor fiction, because I love it and there are so many skilled novelists writing good books. However, there are other eras and genres in British fiction I am itching to explore as a writer, and I am eager to begin!

1. Buy a lavender sachet or herbal candle for each member of your club to hand out at the end of the meeting.

2. Serve a feast using recipes in the International Cooking section on
Epicurious.com
in honor of Helena’s adopted country, along with Swedish fare in a nod to her heritage (
www.epicurious.com/recipesmenus/global/scandinavian/recipes
).

3. Elizabeth was well known to have loved sweets, especially marchpane, which we now call marzipan. Pitted fruits, such as plums, were also popular at court. Prepare this recipe, and serve it at your meeting for dessert:
www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Plum-Tart-with-Marzipan-Crumble-103654
.

4. Have a look at Queen Elizabeth’s locket ring, the model for the one Helena gives her in the novel. Typically kept tucked away at the British prime minister’s country residence, it can be seen here:
www.thetudorswiki.com/page/ARTIFACTS+of+the+Tudors
.

5. Pair your reading of
Roses Have Thorns
with one or both of Sandra Byrd’s other novels centered on royal ladies in waiting—
To Die For: A Novel of Anne Boleyn
, which features Queen Anne Boleyn, mother of Elizabeth I, and
The Secret Keeper: A Novel of Kateryn Parr
, which features Queen Kateryn Parr, stepmother of Elizabeth I.

6. Visit
www.SandraByrd.com
to learn more about the author, her books, and Tudor tidbits like a royal timeline.

T
his is by no means exhaustive, and some of these books I relied on extensively while some only provided helpful tidbits. I love to look up books and resources when I read historical fiction, and I thought it might be enjoyable for others to do so, too, if they wish.

Sjogren, Gunnar.
Helena Snakenborg,
1973.

Bradford, Charles Angell.
Helena, Marchioness of Northampton,
1936.

Bell, James.
Queen Elizabeth and a Swedish Princess
, 1926.

Gorges, Raymond.
The Story of a Family Through Eleven Centuries: Being a History of the Family of Gorges
, 1944.

Somerset, Anne.
Elizabeth I
, 2003.

Plowden, Alison.
Elizabethan England: Life in an Age of Adventure
, 1982.

Plowden, Alison.
Elizabeth I
, 2004.

Doran, Susan.
Queen Elizabeth I
, 2003.

Borman, Tracy.
Elizabeth’s Women: The Hidden Story of The Virgin Queen
, 2009.

Somerset, Anne.
Ladies in Waiting
, 2004.

Marcus, Leah S., Janel Mueller, Mary Beth Rose, editors.
Elizabeth I: Collected Works
, 2000.

Doran, Susan.
Elizabeth I and Religion 1558–1603
, 1994.

Doran, Susan.
Monarchy and Matrimony: The Courtships of Elizabeth I
, 1996.

Secara, Maggie.
A Compendium of Common Knowledge: 1558–1603: Elizabethan Commonplaces for Writers, Actors & Re-enactors
, 2008.

Sim, Alison.
Pleasures and Pastimes in Tudor England
, 2009.

Picard, Liza.
Elizabeth’s London: Everyday Life in Elizabethan London
, 2003.

Gristwood, Sarah.
Elizabeth & Leicester: Power, Passion, Politics
, 2007.

Doran, Susan.
Mary Queen of Scots: An Illustrated Life
, 2007.

Fraser, Antonia.
Mary Queen of Scots
, 1969.

Mattingly, Garrett.
The Armada
, 1989.

Arnold, Janet.
Queen Elizabeth’s Wardrobe Unlock’d
, 2001.