Fiona Buckley

The author is better known for her historical novels usually set in Medieval or Tudor England, but this was I think her first novel, published in 1984, about an interracial marriage between a white English woman and an Indian man. I am assuming this is based on the author's own experiences. Melanie Purvis is from rural Somerset, Avtar Singh is from Chandigarh. This is generally novel is not so much about racist prejudice per se, but much more about the duality of the cultures competing show more within Melanie and pulling her in two directions. I thought this internal conflict was very well described and quite nuanced. At varying times I thought she would settle definitively for one or the other. She visits England against Avtar's opposition as she yearns for a break from the ordered tradition of the Punjabi community. The final moment of decision came when her English relative Frances makes a casual remark about Melanie's future child being half caste, "they’re neither one thing nor the other, are they? People won’t accept them here". Melanie counters that the child will be “Indian as well as English. Inheritor of two lands, two tongues, two literatures. Someone with a chance of growing up richer, more knowledgeable and less prejudiced than anyone limited to only one of each. Is that supposed to make people into something less than human?" Melanie is reconciled with Avtar and returns to India to have her baby, while intending to return periodically to England for work and personal reasons. I really enjoyed this thoughtful novel. show less

This was the second novel about Indian communities and interracial relationships written by Valerie Anand, more famous for her novels set in Medieval and in particular Tudor England, often written under her pseudonym Fiona Buckley. As was the case for To A Native Shore, some of this, especially the Lynn character, was clearly based on her own experiences as a white British woman married to an Indian Sikh, Dalip Anand. This is a family saga stretching across three generations, and set between show more 1956 and 1988 (so nearly the present day, as the book was published in 1992). In the former year, a middle aged Sikh Delhi couple Ranbir and Joginder are adjusting to their sons emigrating to England to build a new life. Later on, after Joginder's death, his widow moves to England to join her offspring. A whole range of issues are explored through the passage of the years, including: adjusting to a new country and culture, while confronting racial and cultural prejudice from white English people; but also, even more centrally, the clash between traditionalists within the Sikh community such as Ranbir, and the more liberal attitudes of some of the next generation such as her younger son, Perry (Prem). Perry dates an English girl, later marries a Hindu woman Shanti, much to the Sikh traditionalists' displeasure and, more reluctantly, decides to remove his beard and turban in order to get a job from which he was initially rejected on the basis of his appearance. There is also some shocking domestic abuse from a controlling man and, separately, a real heart-breaking tragedy involving a rape and suicide near the end. The final section of the book in the 1980s takes place against the backdrop of appalling sectarian violence in India between Sikhs and Hindus following the storming of the Sikh Golden Temple by Indian government troops and assassination of Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1984. Many entirely innocent Sikh people back in India, including family members of our central characters, are killed during revenge attacks by militant Hindus following the assassination, while here in Britain, a young family member Satnam Singh, becomes a Sikh militant agitating for a separatist state and eventually being convicted and imprisoned for attempted murder. It is all in this wonderful book, which I loved, but which I also found emotionally quite draining. show less

Engaging main character thrust headlong into the political machinations of Elizabeth I’s court.

To Shield the Queen is the first book in author Fiona Buckley’s (pen name of Valeria Anand) long-running historical mystery series featuring Ursula Blanchard, a widowed mother of one and a lady in service to Queen Elizabeth I. Set in 1560, early in Elizabeth’s long reign, Ursula is summoned to court after the death of her husband, Gerald (a love match), to serve as a lady-in-waiting to the show more young queen. The court is awash with rumors of Elizabeth’s relationship with her Master of Horse, Sir Robin Dudley, a married man with a critically ill wife whom he keeps sequestered in the country. When speculation escalates, hinting that Dudley may be trying to hurry his wife’s imminent death along so he can pursue a marriage with the queen, he and Elizabeth send Ursula to attend the ailing Amy Dudley and safeguard her from any such evil assistance and hopefully quell the rumors. However, on her arrival at the country estate, Ursula finds there may actually be some truth behind the rumors. Still, it’s unclear to her whether Sir Robin is aware of what may be underway on his behalf, but she’s suspicious.

This first book in the series is a riveting tale once all the heavy lifting of establishing the time, place, and characters is complete. It feels like it had to have been a massive task, with so much known or speculated regarding the intrigue during Elizabeth’s reign, all the historical figures involved, and the intersection of factual and fictional storylines. Halfway through the book, I was still wondering when the mystery would start, but it definitely does, and the action never lets up from that point on.

Ursula is a likable character, and her personal story is a tragic one, beginning with her illegitimate origins, a cruel childhood at the hands of self-righteous relatives, a runaway marriage, and the sudden death of her beloved young husband. But she is a survivor, strong and determined not to be a victim ever again. An astute observer of human nature, Queen Elizabeth recognizes Ursula’s potential value and her deep loyalty to the crown and puts her to good use.

A romantic relationship evolves with Matthew de la Roche, a newcomer to the court, who aggressively presses his suit with the young widow, even following her, uninvited, to Amy Dudley’s bedside several days’ ride into the country. While it felt like their feelings for each other were a bit rushed, their courtship really extended over a couple of months. I’m anxious to see how this all plays out, considering what occurs between the two as the story unfolds. The descriptions of the settings and life in 1560 are vivid and really put me in the story. A number of secondary storylines develop along the way and are left unresolved, but they are mentioned in the resolution as the basis for Ursula’s next moves in future books in the series.

I enjoyed listening to the Hoopla Digital 2005 Blackstone Audiobook edition narrated by Nadia May but it took me a good length of time to sync my understanding with her fast pacing, pronunciation, and accent. As the characters who are speaking change, she does a good job of altering her voice to add some discrimination. However, her speaking voice is just different enough from my region that I had to readjust to her voice every time I began listening. While I wouldn’t search out additional titles this narrator voiced, I wouldn’t not listen to her again, and it doesn’t appear she narrates any more of the books in this series.

I recommend TO SHIELD THE QUEEN to readers of historical cozy mysteries. show less

Elizabethan intrigue!

Ursula Blanchard, illegitimate half sister to Queen Elizabeth, is once again called upon to serve Queen and country. This time the requirement is to marry for political reasons. Ursula has already buried three husbands and remarriage is not on her horizon--although it seems to be taken for granted by those arounds her, Sir Francis Walsingham being the main proponent. Ursula is already fighting off neighbours with an eye to her lands and possessions, and now the court show more takes a hand.
The proposed alliance is with Count Gilbert Renard, the illegitimate son of King Henri II.
A big question for Ursula is just how much does she have to keep giving, how many times is her life to be disrupted due to her relationship with the Queen. The dangers of childbirth for women, including Ursula and the Queen are referenced. Other issues include the problem of succession, the place of Catholics under Elizabeth's regime and the reality of courtly marriage being just one more move on the chessboard of national or international relations.
Ursula's reasons for acquiescence are as complex as she is. Her complex relationship with the Queen is the leading one.
It seems that there is a French spy at court and that particular worry invades Ursula's haven, along with all the other matters. One of her servants is murdered, another disappears, and the life of an English spy in France is being threatened.
Intrigue and fast action thread the pages and Ursula's pleasing life is sorely disrupted and threatened from all sides.
As the plot unravels we are treated to insights into at a strong woman, wary of her position, with no illusions about her value to the court, who somehow maintains her understanding, insights and compassion.
A fast paced, very human, historical mystery.

A NetGalley ARC show less