"A Crown for Elizabeth" by Mary M. Luke, published by Coward-McCann, New York. First Edition, 1970.

Original dust jacket [some edge wear, a few small damages and soiling]; hard boards, red cloth with gold lettering on spine and small decoration on front board, 6.1/4" x 9.1/4"; illustrated endpapers; name and date '5/15/72' on top of half title page; 573 pages including Index + monochrome plates on glossy paper, very good condition.

"In this account of royal power and conspiracy, Mary M. Luke accurately portrays the plight of England's most famous heirs to the throne, the three children of Henry the Eighth, while focusing on Elizabeth I especially. Throughout the reigns of her brother and sister, Elizabeth's position was always very precarious, and she came close to execution several times, but escaped, gaining with each close call the shrewdness needed to survive the Tudor monarchy."

"Though this book is called "A Crown For Elizabeth," what it's really about is the whole middle period of the Tudor Dynasty. The first third of the book is about the later part of Henry VIII's reign, starting from his divorce from Catharine of Aragon, the second third of the book is about Edward's reign, and the last third is about Mary's reign. Young Elizabeth features throughout, of course, and this is purportedly a book about everything that led up to Elizabeth's accession, but I don't think it has a special focus on Elizabeth." [private review]

In a review of "A Crown for Elizabeth" for The New York Times, Lady Antonia Fraser wrote, "To the sympathetic retelling of history, Mrs. Luke has made a notable contribution and one that will give much pleasure to its readers."

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