Her Majesty's Will
by
David Blixt
| Title: |  |
HER MAJESTY'S WILL |
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| Publisher: | |
David Blixt |
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| Imprint: | |
AuthorBuzz |
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| Pub Date: | |
May 25, 2012 |
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| ISBN: | |
B007XK63ZGxxx |
| Author: | |
David Blixt |
| Category: | |
FICTION - ADULT: Historical & Biographical: Historical |
About the Book . . .
William Shakespeare
and the Babington Plot.
Before he was famous, he was a
fugitive.
Before he wrote of humanity, he lived it.
Before he was the Bard of Avon, he was a spy.
A very poor spy.
England, 1586. Swept up in the
skirts of a mysterious stranger, Will Shakespeare becomes entangled in a deadly
and hilarious misadventure as he accidentally uncovers the Babington Plot, an
attempt to murder Queen Elizabeth herself. Aided by the mercurial wit of Kit
Marlowe, Will enters London for the first time, chased by rebels, spies, his
own government, his past, and a bear.
Through it all he demonstrates
his loyalty and genius, proving himself to be - HER MAJESTY'S WILL.
About the Author . . .
A Shakespearean actor living in Chicago, I have appeared onstage at the
Goodman Theatre, the Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, CityLit, Northlight,
and the First Folio Shakespeare Festival, as well as Lifeline, Griffin,
the Shakespeare Theatre of Washington D.C., the Michigan Shakespeare
Festival, and the Stratford Festival Friends in Chicago. My wife Jan and I are co-founders of A Crew of Patches, a Shakespearean repertory company in which I act, direct, and choreograph the violence. Jan was recently named the Artistic Director of the Michigan Shakespeare Festival. I am also a company member of Shanghai Low Theatricals, a playwriting collective.
My first novel, THE MASTER OF VERONA, was published by St. Martin's Press in 2007. It's now available in trade paperback.
Reader Review . . .
Before there was Romeo and Juliet, before there was Othello, before there was the Globe, William Shakespeare was.....what? History fails to answer that question; the early life of Shakespeare is clouded in mystery, so author David Blixt has attempted to answer that question, with his fictional novel, Her Majesty's Will. There have historically been rumors that Christopher Marlowe was a spy, and it is known that Shakespeare and Marlowe knew one another. They would have been contemporaries, and Shakespeare paid tribute to Marlowe in As You Like It, when he borrows the lines
'Who ever loved that loved not at first sight?'""Dead Shepherd, now I find thy saw of might,
from Marlowe's Hero and Leander. So, David Blixt has presented us with a rollicking tale of their first meeting and their subsequent role in the foiling of the Babington Plot. The language is that of Shakespeare's time, and the dialogue is, at times, worthy of William himself. Even before reading the author's bio, I had realized that this writer was a Shakespearean scholar.
If you like Shakespeare and tales of Elizabethan England, you will love this novel. It is not for everyone's tastes, but I found it to be an enjoyable read for the most part. Be forewarned; just as Shakespeare could be rather bawdy, Blixt has written in that same vein.
4 stars
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the NetGalley book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
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