What I find interesting about this book, are some new (at least to me) perspectives, which are neither strongly pro- or strongly anti- Queen of Scots, but a seemingly realistic look at what may have really happened and the reasons behind it. For a change Bothwell is portrayed as a more sympathetic and noble character. I am so used to seeing him presented in a really negative light, almost a caricature/cartoonish "villain", so it surprised me to see Byrd's interpretation of him, which IMO is quite realistic and is probably a lot closer to the real Bothwell. After all, there had to be a better explaination of Mary's loyalty and endearment towards him, and there had to be more compelling reasons why she married him against all logic (besides the alleged "rape" -which I never really bought into). As far as Mary herself, in this book she is not always a sympathetic character, but is presented as neither a villain nor a saint - as some pro- or anti- Mary biographers have done - but a human being with faults as well as virtues. At least this author's interpretation sheds some light on the possible/probable motivations for Mary's actions, which are often difficult to understand.
