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Anna Legat
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The Queen's Avenger Kindle Edition

by Anna Legat (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.2 out of 5 stars 18 ratings
'A vividly told tale full of violence and intrigue with characters that burst off the page. Historical fiction rarely gets more detailed, gripping and impressively accurate than this.' Peter Tonkin, author of Shadow of Treason

1592.

The Reformation has engulfed the Holy Roman Empire. The power of Catholic church is not what it was.

At St James’s Monastery in Ratisbon, its Scottish Abbot, Ninian Winzet, dies.

Brother Gunther, a young Bavarian monk, discovers a hidden vault in Winzet’s scriptorium containing Winzet's deathbed confessions.

The revelations are shocking. If made public, they could not only ruin the late Abbot’s reputation but also harm the monastery and the whole Benedictine Order.

Winzet, a Scot by birth, tells a tragic story of Mary Stewart, a catholic queen in protestant Scotland, hounded to death by opponents both within and outside her kingdom.

Having sworn to protect her and failing to deliver on his pledge, Winzet dedicates his life to exposing her enemies. But they are influential and practised at concealing their crimes. They are also unscrupulous and will stop at nothing.

When Mary’s husband, King Henry, is assassinated, she is framed for his murder, imprisoned and forced to abdicate. She flees to England - only to be imprisoned by her cousin, the Queen Elizabeth.

Winzet’s dogged investigation leads him to the real killers and their paymasters. But what recourse is there for justice?

Thwarted in his efforts, the Abbot embarks on a mission of bloody revenge to exact his own version of justice on the men who destroyed his queen.

Gunther is resolved to keep Winzet’s confessions secret, but he discovers that is not the only person who knows of their existence.

Bio: Although she writes in a wide range of genres, Anna Legat is best known for her DI Gillian Marsh detective series and The Shires, her cosy murder mysteries. Anna is also the author of the historical thriller, Buried in the Past. She lives near Bath.

Praise for Anna Legat:
'The Queen's Avenger is an atmospheric, thrilling novel, one that is well-structured and extremely cleverly written. I sincerely hope there will be sequels. Any lover of Elizabethan thrillers will enjoy this novel, which is vivid, strong and faithful to known history.' The Historical Novel Society

'The Queen’s Avenger offers a captivating retelling of the story of Mary, Queen of Scots.' Yarde Book Reviews

'I would highly recommend The Queen's Avenger to any fans of Marian literature, and the period in general, who enjoy a detailed historical read in which they can absolutely lose themselves.' The Coffee Pot Book Club

‘[Her] characters pull at our heartstrings and are incredibly vivid, their stories moving.’ Carol McGrath, author of the She-Wolves trilogy

‘The pleasure for the reader, as ever, lies in the believable and engaging characterisation, an expertly handled plot and a wry observational prose style.’ Tim Stretton, author of Catfish Alley

'More than just a legal thriller... The first book in a gripping series.' Thomas Waugh, author of Duty Calls
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  1. Print length
    230 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Accessibility
    Learn more
  4. Publication date
    May 1, 2024
  5. File size
    2.5 MB
  6. Page Flip
    Enabled
  7. Word Wise
    Enabled
  8. Enhanced typesetting
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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0D35HVV7N
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Sharpe Books
  • Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 1, 2024
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 2.5 MB
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 230 pages
  • Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 out of 5 stars 18 ratings

About the author

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Anna Legat

Anna Legat

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Anna Legat is best known for her crime thrillers and murder mysteries. Murder isn't the only thing on her mind. She also dabbles in historical fiction, magic realism and dystopia. Apart from writing, Anna has been making a living as a lawyer, a teacher, a silver-service waitress and a librarian (not all at the same time). She has lived in far-flung places but has now settled in a small town near the historical city of Bath.

Keep in touch

@LegatWriter on Twitter

@LegatAuthor on Instagram

@AnnaLegatAuthor on FB

Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
18 global ratings

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Top reviews from other countries

  • BattleCat Press Reviews
    5.0 out of 5 stars How far would you go for justice?
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 16, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    You might think you know the story of Mary, Queen of Scots. Anna Legat will make you think again. 'The Queen's Avenger' is a gripping historical thriller that transports readers back to the turbulent era of 16th century Europe. Set against the backdrop of the Reformation, the novel illuminates the well-known facts through the unusual perspectives of Brother Gunther, a young Bavarian monk, and Scottish Abbot Ninian Winzet. Ninian was the late Queen's confessor, but Gunther discovers that on his deathbed, the abbot had confessions of his own...

    The revelations contained within Ninian's confessions are both shocking and thrilling, drawing readers into a world of intrigue, betrayal, and political machination. Legat's expert storytelling skillfully weaves together the tragic story of Mary Stewart, Queen of Scotland with Gunther's own quest for justice and redemption.

    With a real feel for the intellectual landscape of the period and a thriller writer's eye for a pacy narrative, 'The Queen's Avenger' is a must-read for fans of historical fiction. Legat's meticulous research and attention to detail bring the characters and events of 16th century Europe to life, immersing readers in a world of danger, suspense, and moral ambiguity.

    Written with verve and expertly plotted, 'The Queen's Avenger' is a superb tale of power, loyalty, and the enduring quest for justice. Other reviewers have noted parallels with 'The Name of the Rose', and the comparison is an apt one. Anna Legat has crafted a compelling novel that leaves the reader hoping for more adventures with Brother Gunther.
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  • Sestius
    5.0 out of 5 stars a new look at the story
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 10, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    Thanks to a wonderfully unreliable narrator in Ninian, this story approaches Mary from a new angle. It is fast moving, thrilling and unexpected, and I was particularly struck by the expert portrayal of the religious complexities.
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  • Avid reader
    5.0 out of 5 stars A right Royal intrigue
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 7, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    The Queen's Avenger is two tales in one book and brims with intrigue, treachery and suspense. Set in the 16th century the book documents how the young Scottish Queen Mary is manipulated and abused by her many powerful contemporaries in pursuit of their own ambitions for power and influence.
    The story shines a light on the brutality and depravity of the times, and the unenviable isolation for a young queen unable to fathom who she can trust.
    Full of action.
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  • M P Maxwell
    5.0 out of 5 stars A revelatory biofiction about Mary, Queen of Scots' confessor
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 6, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    Cleaning is not generally known for its moments of high excitement, but Anna Legat surprises her reader by framing this fascinating tale with one of them!

    The scriptorium of the recently deceased Abbot Ninian, the former confessor of the famous Queen, receives a vigorous spring clean by Brother Gunther. This results in the discovery of a revelatory autobiographical manuscript, which the good abbot (or was he?) penned shortly before his death. The confessor confesses, in a neat formulation characteristic of this carefully patterned novel.

    As we read the astonishing document itself, over the shoulder (as it were) of Brother Gunther, we witness a highly tumultuous period of history. It begins with the birth of the adorable baby Mary, yet soon sees the country riven by religiously-motivated violence as the Reformation overtakes Scotland. As the years pass, the novel is populated by a dazzling cast - Knox, Darnley, Bothwell, Rizzio, not to mention the captivating Queen herself, to whom Ninian is utterly devoted and under oath to defend. They are all here, and all brought excitingly back to life by the expert hand of Legat, who enables us to see for ourselves what all the fuss of this notorious tragedy was about. The reader will already know that Ninian can't save his beloved Queen. But Legat poses a new and absorbing question: can he avenge her?

    With quasi-cinematic visualization, the novel also neatly transitions from the long-ago deeds of Ninian to the present-day situation of his early reader, Brother Gunther. A fire in the life story Gunther is reading seems to almost literally spark fire now. Such parallels and interruptions add unexpected tension to our own experience of following Ninian's engrossing tale. We've already seen what cleaning can do. Reading, too, may be perilous. In an unobtrusively postmodern twist on the historical story, there are increasingly uncanny resemblances between the behaviour of the monkish reader and the behaviour of the man about whom he is reading. What, then, might reading bring out in us?

    Eerie as well as highly informative, with a pleasing dash of The Name Of The Rose about it, The Queen's Avenger would work equally well as an introduction to Mary or as a fresh perspective for those already deeply fascinated by her.
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  • Terry Tyler
    5.0 out of 5 stars Riveting!
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 25, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    I downloaded this book on Kindle Unlimited.

    Anna Legat's books, of which I have read several, tend to be unusual in both theme and execution, and The Queen's Avenger is no exception.

    The novel opens with young monk Gunther discovering, in his Bavarian monastery, scrolls written by the late Abbott, Ninian Winzet. The scrolls take the form of a journal that reveals the often secret and dangerous life of Winzet as the protector of Mary, Queen of Scots. The main part of the story is his account of the monstrous treatment of Mary, throughout her life and by almost everyone with whom she was involved, whether a romantic partner, a political/religious opponent or a member of her own family, not least of all the execrable Lord Darnley, her second husband.

    This is a story of greed, lust for power, murder, malevolent conspiracies and fickle loyalties. There were a few, like Winzet, who remained faithful and honourable, but these were in the minority. I didn't know much about the late Elizabethan period or the life of Mary before, and this made me marvel that she remained alive and sane, at all. Brother Gunther's own world was only marginally less dark.

    The novel is so well written and I was glued to the pages throughout. Highly recommended for all addicts of this period in history.
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