An interesting deep dive but I would have liked more consideration of gender, marriage and relationships given the subject

Good information and well written. This is of course not a field many get into except for the true devotees of good queen Bess. I recommend this book for all true lovers of the virgin queen.

A well researched and written book about Robert Dudley arguably the most important person in Queen Elizabeth I life.I recommend for any Tudor history lover.

I've read a lot of Tudor history, and was drawn to this one due to the scandalous title. Stedall's research sadly doesn't live up to the marketing. People have been wondering whether Elizabeth and Leicester's love affair went beyond courtly tradition for over 400 years, and Stedall thinks a few hints from Burleigh to the Spanish envoy are the proof we needed. I didn't find it convincing.

As a straightforward biography, it's fine. Stedall spends a lot of time on Robert's father and brothers during the reigns of Edward VI and Mary Tudor, before Elizabeth came to power. Robert and Elizabeth were young adults and largely sidelined during these events. Later, toward the end of Robert's career, another large section focuses on Robert's time as Elizabeth's representative in the Netherlands - sparring with the Duke of Parma, underfunded and under siege. These two sections mean that huge chunks of the book do not focus at all on Elizabeth and Robert's relationship at all.

The best parts of this book are about Robert's relationships, which reveal his character. His choice of protégés, rivals, and romantic partners, all showed him to be a complex and deeply relatable historical figure of the age.

Although I have read many books about the Tudor period I knew little of Robert Dudley's life. In those books focusing on the reign of Elizabeth I, Dudley is often made out as a playboy, swanning around court, safe in the knowledge he was the Queen's favourite. This book gives a detailed overview of his life including his success as Master of the Horse, his patronage of the arts as well as his life in the military. We will never know if he and Elizabeth I were lovers but Robert Dudley certainly played an important part in her life.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a free e-copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

A colorful and engaging biography!

Robert Dudley was a very enigmatic figure and one that knew how to circulate and navigate the sticky rules of the court. Through his friendship and supposed love affair with Queen Elizabeth I, he rose to greater heights. This was surprising to many, as his family had the taint of traitors, his father having been put into the Tower for treason.

Robert Dudley was more than just a plaything for the queen. He was an intellectual, he was a thinker who would go to any lengths to get where he wanted to be, and what he wanted.
Although part of the book deals with Elizabeth I, the rest deals with Robert himself, and the full life that he lived. Although the taint of murder still lingers over his head, with the death of his wife, there are so many other aspects to Robert.

For a great biography on Robert Dudley, then you need to grab this book! Perfect and full! Robert Stedall has written the ultimate book, which will go down as one of the best books on Dudley in the future.

Good insight into Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester and his relationship with Elizabeth I. Although I dispute the title, it isn't really much of a secret these days. While I understand the need for grouping chapters on specific themes, the book did jump a lot back and forth in time without adding any context and that made for harder and confusing reading at times. If you're only interested in specific topics it is an advantage though as you can dip in and out of the biography as needed. If you have a specific interest in Tudor times, Elizabeth I and Robert Dudley specifically I recommend it, if you just like history in general I would probably skip this one or only read the chapters you find most interesting.

I voluntarily read this ARC for an honest review
All thoughts and opinions are mine

I love the Tudor era and will read everything and anything given the opportunity so was thrilled to be able to read this

I absolutely LOVED this - well researched and written in an absorbing and accessible way - I learned so much

A privilege to have been able to read this - cant rate highly enough

I really enjoyed this book. I appreciate how it looks more at Robert Dudley than most books about that time period, which usually focus on Elizabeth 1. Although this book does look quite a bit at her reign (pretty much the whole first half of the book), there is a lot more focus on Robert in the second half of the book. I did think the title was a bit misleading... although they very well may have been lovers, most of the book focuses on politics, what was going on in the world at the time, and Robert's entire life, not just a tryst with the queen.

My only complaint is that I wish the author would stick with one name through the entire book. I understand that titles in that time changed, and you don't want to call someone by a title before they are given that title, but it does make it a bit more confusing to follow (and the names of the period all being the same already makes it hard enough). For example, William Cecil. Most of the first half of the book, he is referred to as Cecil. Once he gets the title Lord Burghley, the author switches to calling him Burghley. It can also add confusion as more than one person could have the title (for instance, it is passed down to a son or the person is disgraced and the title gets presented to someone else). Just call him Cecil through the entire book and then there's no question as to who exactly is being referred to. I'm familiar with the time period so it wasn't a major adjustment for me, but for someone who wasn't familiar with the time period... they need a map of people.

*Many thanks to Robert Stedall, Pen & Sword and NetGalley for arc in exchange for my honest review.*
This non-fiction is much, much more than just a tale of the love affair between the Queen and her Robin. It's quite lengthy, with detailed panorama of the political world and its niceties during the reign of Elizabeth I. I knew a lot of details concerning Rober Dudley, however, it turned out that I was unaware of how strong his political ambitions were. The book delivers everything you might want to learn about Robert, still, you need to be patient and be prepared that it is not only just about Dudley. In fact, he makes his apprearance well after 10% of the book, I appreciated the fact that the book does not concentrate just on the relationship between the Queen and Robert but it also analyzes the period in depth.

Although I was aware Robert Dudley was a favourite of Elizabeth I and had read about the mystery surrounding his wife Amy Robsart's death I was unaware of much else regarding Dudley.

Stedall gives a detailed overview of his life including his youth which was very intriguing. Through reading this I've learnt about Dudley' s accomplishments  as a military man and his patronage of the arts.

I'd previously thought Dudley a somewhat social butterfly of Elizabeth's court I've now learnt how much of an important role he played in advising Elizabeth and providing balance to her other advisors like Cecil.

It also highlights how Elizabeth often used their relationship to demoralise Dudley and use him to her advantage.

The only thing I would have preferred would be if the book were published in chronological order as I did find it a little confusing at times regarding the order of events.

The book is clearly the result of a lot of research produced in a well written manner.

Lord Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, loved by Elizabeth I but seemingly hated by many others. Even the Cate Blanchett film 'Elizabeth' paints him as ultimately traitorous to the Queen, but what was Leicester really like? Did he kill his first wife so he could marry Elizabeth? Was he Machiavellian or misunderstood?

This book goes a long to help rehabilitate Leicester's reputation and it seems he was no worse than many others of the era including his longtime enemy Cecil/Burleigh. In fact he was a patron of the arts, a competent military man, and was in many ways indispensable to the Queen. He made many mistakes and was not perfect, but then again neither was Elizabeth who could be mercurial to say the least. It is likely that (as in the title), Leicester was Elizabeth's lover at one point, but as we know, she could never quite bring herself to marry him. The author also gives the reader plenty of background history which helps to explain why things happened as they did. It's an interesting read which doesn't become too bogged down with historical dates and extraneous detail, and I recommend this if you are a fan of Tudor history.

Thanks to NetGalley and publisher, Pen & Sword, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

When I saw that my wish was granted to review this book I was very excited. I have always seen Elizabeth I and Robert Dudley as two of history's greatest lovers, that sadly were kept apart by mere politics.

I was however disappointed in this book. The title of the book suggests that the reader will learn about Robert Dudley, and though there is a great deal of information on him, however the first 13% of the book is predominantly focused on Edward Seymour, Earl of Somerset and King Edward VI. Though background information is important to establish where the Dudley family originated, and how they became established in the royal circle, this was just too much. It was hard to get interested in the book because of this, and it was hard to stay interested because it was like reading a textbook; just a listing of facts in paragraph form instead of a description of events, places, battles, etc.
The title also leads you to believe you will learn more about him in the context of his relationship to Elizabeth. There are details of that as well, but there was nothing revealed that I haven't read in previous texts about the pair. For me, it did not go deep enough into his relationship with Elizabeth.
I also was not fond of the organization of the book. It at first seemed to go in chronological order which is great, but as the chapters progress we were constantly moving back and then forward again, which leaves confusion.

I won't be posting a public review. I prefer not to post my negative reviews because I don't like to discourage others from reading something they might enjoy. Thank you for allowing me this opportunity to review this book.

This book provides an interesting and well informed account of Robert Dudley, a character I previously knew very little about. I liked how well supported the 'facts' of this book were, as so much of the history of this time can be supposition. However, I really felt the author knew what he was talking about here and clearly he has a great passion for his topic - thank you Robert, I learned a lot.