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The Golden Age is Tasha Alexander's standalone Tudor novel, taking on Elizabeth I from the deeply-trodden ground of her court politics and personal life. Alexander brings the same research discipline she uses for Lady Emily to the Elizabethan period, and the result is competent and respectful and slightly less alive than her mystery work.
The book covers a slice of Elizabeth's reign rather than her whole life, with attention to the Essex affair, the long shadow of Burghley, and the queen's often opaque emotional life. Alexander writes her with sympathy. The supporting cast (Bess of Hardwick, various ladies-in-waiting) is rendered with care.
Three stars. Recommended to readers who enjoy literary Tudor fiction. New Alexander readers should still start with And Only to Deceive.
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