Lady in Waiting: A Novel

by Susan Meissner

Paperback, 2010

Status

Available

Call number

813.6

Genres

Publication

WaterBrook (2010), 352 pages

Description

After her husband leaves her, Jane Lindsay finds an old ring in a box of relics from a British jumble sale and discovers a Latin inscription in the band along with just one other word: "Jane." Feeling instant connection to the mysterious ring bearing her namesake, Jane begins a journey to learn more about the ring--and perhaps about herself and the lives of a sixteenth century dressmaker, Lucy Day, and the innocent young woman known in history as Lady Jane Grey.

Language

English

Original language

English

Physical description

352 p.; 8.2 inches

ISBN

0307458830 / 9780307458834

User reviews

LibraryThing member atimco

This story is actually two stories that twine around one another via a small fragment of history—a ring, inscribed in Latin, shoved into the spine of a prayerbook from the 16th century and discovered hundreds of years later. Who is the Jane so lovingly addressed in the ring's inscription? And why

does Jane Lindsay, a middle-aged antique shop manager in 21st-century Manhattan, find herself so drawn to the ring's untold tale?

The Jane of the inscription is Lady Jane Grey, fourth in line for the throne of England at a particularly volatile time in British history. To Jane's young dressmaker, Lucy Day, the world of politics is a dangerous place for her mistress. Lucy's part of the tale follows Jane's life leading up to the startling and tragic events of 1553. It's all conjecture, of course, but it's an entertaining premise that Susan Meissner builds on.

Several hundred years later, Jane Lindsay is shocked when her husband of twenty-two years walks out on her. She never saw it coming. What did she do wrong? How can their relationship be repaired? As Jane struggles to make sense of her life, her quest to find out more about the ring becomes an expression of her growing dissatisfaction with her own weakness and fear in personal relationships.

I enjoyed this quick read, despite its flaws. The two stories could have been spliced more neatly, and the characters beyond the two Janes should have been developed more fully. Brad especially comes across as flat and one-dimensional, and in the end their relational problems are resolved a little too easily. The prose was a bit self conscious as well, and I'll never warm to adjectives that will date a book in twenty years ("her Ann Taylor suit," for example).

But once I gave up being a literary critic and just let myself enjoy the unfolding tale, I quite enjoyed it and grew eager to find out what happened. This story reminded me of Anne Fortier's Juliet, but I liked Lady in Waiting better.

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LibraryThing member skstiles612

One of my favorite reads is historical fiction of just about any era. When you mix historical times with modern times it enhances the read even more.

Jane Lindsay’s marriage has ended after 22 years. She never saw it coming. Instead of moping around she puts herself whole-heartedly into her

antique shop. While going through an old box, she discovers a ring engraved with her name. This makes her wonder about the owner of the ring. She sets out to find out all she can about the Jane who had owned the ring. She learns the Jane is none other than 16th century Lady Jane Grey. Both women were dealt a bad hand but they both possessed a strength and courage they didn’t know they had.

The great thing about this book is that the two stories are told in alternating sections. Lady Jane Grey’s story is told through the point of view of Lucy her dressmaker. It felt like I was reading two stories and yet the thread connecting them seamed them together effortlessly. Before reading this book I actually knew little of Lady Jane’s story. I did wait until I’d finished the book before I did some research on her. It is because of books like this that I am finding myself becoming a fan of British history. I don’t often enjoy first person narrative. It seems stilted or forced. Susan Meissner was able to pull this off with no problem. There are some excellent reasons to read this book, the interconnected stories, the historical aspect, and the subtle lessons of strength and courage. This is definitely a book to recommend to all my friends.

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LibraryThing member LynndaEll

"Lady in Waiting" revolves around two "Janes" linked by one ring and separated by 400 years. Even though the stories are told separately, Susan Meissner smoothly transitions between them. The best word I can use to describe the book is "enjoyable." This book will go in my permanent library so that

I can read it again and again. I recommend it for readers of historical fiction and for everyone who likes to read a good book on a rainy autumn afternoon.

(I received an advanced copy for review.)

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LibraryThing member psychdoc66

Lady in Waiting is an absorbing and well written story. Two women from different time periods (one lives in modern times and the other lives in pre-Elizabethan England)are linked by a gemstone ring. Both women deal with the timeless issues of love, duty, and difficult choices. I plan to read Susan

Meissmer's other books!

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LibraryThing member polarmath

I enjoyed reading about the characters in the different time periods. It was interesting to follow the characters as their lives progressed. I enjoyed learning about how things were in a different time period and seeing how things can be the same as well.

LibraryThing member ashleywintters

This book was interesting. It tells the story of modern day Jane with her choices (or lack their of) and impending doom of her marriage and Lady Jane Grey (actual historical monarch) who literally had no choices. It compares the two of them in a way and Jane finds a 'mystery ring' that belonged to

Lady Jane but cannot prove it was hers. The book shows how two completely different women had somewhat of the same problem and how one helped the other to overcome it.
I liked Lady Jane and how she was portrayed. I love when actual historical figures are given a 'voice' for their personal life, even if it is just for fictional purposes. She seemed so real and you could feel her emotions through her seamstress' words. Jane's character was ok. I didn't like the 'whining' but it served its purpose in the story to tell of her character and change it. My favorite character was Lucy, the seamstress who was also friend to Lady Jane and loved her very much. All the characters were very realistic and the story well written.
I rate this a 4/5. It was a good read, but not one I would add to my 'keeper' shelf.

Thank you to LibraryThing for the review copy of this book. I received this book in exchange for an honest review and the opinions stated above are 100% mine.

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LibraryThing member Raenolt

This book kept me turning and turning the pages just wanting to see what would happen! The Past/Present effect had me on the edge of my seat. I would just settle into a relationship with the characters and it would change to the next set of characters. While reading, my mind would float to what I

would think would happen to each "Jane" and how it would all tie together. This was my 1st book by Susan Meissner and halfway through the book I started looking for more books by her...cause I know I'll read more of her books in the future. Love how she writes and looking forward to read another book by this author!

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LibraryThing member DLester

Author, Susan Meissner has created a novel that lets the contemporary and the historical walk hand in hand. In Lady in Waiting, Meissner tells two stories, about two different woman, joined by the journey of one ring. One in modern day Manhattan, the other in sixteenth century England.

Jane Lindsay

feels helpless to change her circumstances. Her husband Brad walks out on her after twenty-two years of marriage and leaves her to face some difficult choices in her life. Throwing herself into her work as an antique dealer she comes across a ring with a long history. With one word of the Latin inscription intact and not much to go on, Jane will start a journey to find out about the ring and the other Jane who wore it.

Lady Jane Grey has decisions of her own to make. She no longer wishes to be a pawn in a political game of chess that centers around the death of Henry VIII and the subsequent rule of his son. Jane is only a young girl and her life isn't her own, will the choices she makes alter her world and history alike?

Susan Meissner weaves the past and the present together with such finesse that readers will be enthralled by her novel. The engaging characters of both Jane Lindsay and Lady Jane Grey will captivate readers of both historical romance and contemporary romance. Meissner has a knack for being able to make her characters jump off the page. These women become women we think we might know someone like or women we wish we could be like. Strong and determined and even though they face great obstacles they are still make those necessary choices and live with the consequences, good or bad.

I really enjoyed the contemporary portions of the novel. Jane Lindsay was dealing with situations that every day women face and the feelings they deal with when something upsets the balance of their lives. The historical portions would usually be my favorites in most novels considering I'm a former history major and I enjoy historical romances very much. But, I was really surprised at how much the contemporary Jane caught and held my interest. The premise of both women interacting with the same ring was very poignant and seemed to tie everything together well.

This is the first book I have read by Susan Meissner and after reading this one I definitely want to go out and get some of her other books as well. The writing was edgy and the style resonated with me. Her character development was excellent and she was able to hop back and forth between time periods seamlessly and really captured my interest. I would definitely recommend it to my friends who love contemporary and historical romance.

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LibraryThing member Lori_OGara

I just started reading this book and already I am hooked. The mix of modern and historical is working wonders to weave a story about two women and it is tied together with a ring. Jane is a character that any woman who has struggled with her love life can relate too. I am going to finish reading

this book, I am about half way through it and I will come back to finish this review....but for now I am loving it!

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LibraryThing member EdnaT

Jane Lindsey is operates an antique shop that belongs to her aunt, that is unable to run it any longer. Her husband Brad decided to take a job out of town and just wants to be on his own for a while. Their son Conner is in college, so Jane is by herself. She has a friend in the UK that looks for

estate sales and ships them to Jane and Jane does like wise as her friends runs a store for vintage clothing.

Jane received some boxes that had seen better days but when she got into them she found a little locked box and inside it was a prayer book that dated back in the 1600s, as she was looking at it she found lump and took her knife and carefully got it out of the binding of the book and it was a beautiful ring that had little jewels on the ring. on the inside was an inscription written in a language that Jane could not read but she could read her name "Jane" inscribed on the ring. That really got her interest to try and find out where the ring came from and who had it belonged too.

Meanwhile the story is told in two different eras, the one Jane is in is present day then the other is in England in the mid 1500s. This is the part that tells the story of Lady Jane Gray as she was growing up and Lucy her maid that did all of the little girls sewing and was with her through out the rest of her short life.

A very good story and the way Susan weaved the two eras together is remarkable.

This book was sent to me for review from Blogging for Books, with no cost to me.

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LibraryThing member wakela

Lady In Waiting was one of those books that is difficult to put down. There is so much going on that you don’t want to miss anything.

Susan Meissner really makes you feel like you are a part of each world.

Lady In Waiting is the story of Jane Lindsay (wife, mother, antique store manager) who is

confronted with the idea that her marriage is crumbling and she now has to reassess her life and what she wants out of it. Jane finds a ring that takes her on a wild ride to find its original owner.

Little does Jane know that the original owner was Lady Jane Grey. Through glimpses of the past, we follow Lady Jane’s story through the eyes of her seamstress, Lucy Day. We see the joys and sorrows of Lady Jane as she grows up from a small eleven year old child to the Queen that she was for nine days.

This book was very well written. It was wonderful to follow along both plotlines as they interwove together to tell a very awe-inspiring tale of love, courage, and determination.

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

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LibraryThing member mejese313

After being happily married for 22 years Jane Lindsey experiences the unexpected. Her husband needs a “break” from their marriage. She is shocked to find out that he already has a new job lined up and is moving to another state. In the mist of struggling to realize what went wrong with her

marriage, Jane finds a ring in the binding of a book. The book is quite old, appearing to be from the 16th century. As Jane’s investigation into the history of the ring unfolds we are also introduced to the story of Lucy Day, seamstress and confidaunt of Lady Jane.

As both the story of Jane Lindsey learning about true happiness and the story of the ring are told you will find yourself jumping back and forth between both stories every few chapters. At first I found that I couldn’t put the book down but the further into the book I read I grew somewhat tiresome of switching back and forth between stories and lost a little enthusiasm for the book. However, if you are married and also have a interest in history I would recommend you read Lady In Waiting. It is well written and overall enjoyable to read if you don’t mind two stories in the same book.

Thanks to Waterbrook Multnomah Publishing Group for supplying me with this book to review!

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LibraryThing member Tara22

Who knew the courage that could be found within one child-sized ring? This ring was given to Lady Jane Gray in the sixteenth century, but this book starts in modern-day New York City by Jane Lindsay inside of an ancient prayer book. The story goes between Jane L. and Jane Gray's dressmaker Lucy and

tells of each Jane's struggle to understand their own ability to make choices for themselves.
This story can be very aggravating and seem unfair, but it gives you a sense of hope and courage. A very good read!!

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LibraryThing member hobbitprincess

I love historical fiction, especially when it involves England and royalty. I also love antique jewelry. This book combines those two things with a modern story too. The main characters are Jane Lindsey, an antique dealer who is waiting on her husband to decide on the fate of their marriage; Lady

Jane Grey, who is waiting on her parents to decide to whom she'll be married; and Lucy, Lady Jane's lady-in-waiting, who tells Jane's story. I like the development of all the characters, from the historical figures to the modern Jane. The ring draws them all together in a way that creates an interesting story. I hardly put this one done once I'd started it.

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LibraryThing member MichelleSutton

Meissner skillfully incorporated varying circumstances that allowed each of these women to see that they did indeed have choices and that those choices would determine how they lived their lives. I loved watching their empowerment grow, and experiencing what each Jane gained by that personal

revelation. And while the circumstances in their lives didn't necessarily change, the beauty of the peace that they'd found in owning their choices outshone their difficulties.

The message about love being a choice was probably the most moving of all of themes found in this book. It's so true that we can't love a person, truly love them, and manipulate them at the same time. I found the story enjoyable on many levels and was particularly fond of the message of choosing to love. Love, like forgiveness, is a choice.

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LibraryThing member arielfl

I picked this book up from a library thing recommendation and I am so glad I did. I love this Tudor period of history and have read a great many of Philippa Gregory's books that covered that period. This book is much slimmer than her novels and can be read rather quickly. This book concerns the

fight to determine who gets to control the throne after King Henry VIII's son and heir dies at the young age of 15.

The story begins in modern times when I woman named Jane finds a very old ring in the spine of a prayer book that is bought at an estate sale in England. She makes the discovery during a time when she is broad sided by her husbands announcement that he is leaving her. The modern portion of the book covers Janes efforts to discover the owner of the ring as she works out the unraveling of her marriage.

The Tudor portion of the book covers the Lady Jane Grey's life from the age of 11 until her death at the age of 16 through as seen through the eyes of her loyal friend and seamstress Lucy. The book bounces back and forth in time but is never confusing and I found both parts of the story to be equally interesting. Lady Jane is a cousin to King Henry's VIII's children and as such is only fourth in line for the thrown. In the last weeks of King Edwards young life, he is manipulated into naming his cousin Jane to the throne. Jane is a political pawn being forced into a role she knows is wrong and does not want by members of her family. Jane is known as the nine days Queen because that is how long her reign lasted when her cousin Mary marched on London and took back the crown. Jane was subsequently charged with treason and executed along with her husband and various members of her family. As the story progresses we learn how Lady Jane acquired the ring found by modern Jane and who her true love is conjectured to be.

I really enjoyed this book. Even though I was already quite familiar with the story of the Lady Jane Grey, I love how it was intermingled with the modern Jane Lindsey. I loved the part of the book at the end that showed all of the letters through time between people who owned the ring as it traveled from owner to owner over hundreds of years revealing how the ring ultimately ended up lost in the spine of the book. I think anyone who enjoys historical romances will want to read this book. i look forward to exploring more of Susan Meissner's work in the future.

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LibraryThing member weatherlover1

This is the story of two Jane's. One from present day and one from the sixteenth-century. Present day Jane is going through a rough spot in her marriage and is trying to figure out what when wrong and how to move forward. Jane from the 1600’s is set to be married to someone she does not love but

has to marry. The story is set around a ring that present day Jane finds and she sets out to find out its past history.This book has been sitting on my desk now for way to long. This is my first review book I have not been able to finish. I tried but I just could not get into it. I just did not find the story line overly interesting. I even read the last chapter trying to spark my interest to read it all but in the end its been on my desk collecting dust. I think my problem was I could not connect with the characters. sixteen’s century is not an era I really enjoy reading and that plus the fact that the story of this young lady was just so sad. Present day Jane was pretty depressed and it focused on her husband leaving her and how she was trying to cope. Again I just could not get into the story I tried.The author is a good writer she did a great job with the details of the 1600’s and explained why certain things where happening which was nice. I also felt she did a good job jumping back and forth between the two stories it fit together very well.If you like reading about that era then you may like this book but it just was not for me.

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LibraryThing member amusingmother

This book takes on two different stories and different aspects of love. Lady Jane Gray is a real historical figure who entered the English court around the time King Henry VIII had a wife outlive him, Katherine Parr. The events of this time period have always fascinated me. The story told is that

Henry, unhappy with Catherine of Aragon's inability to produce a male heir, requested a divorce from Rome in order to marry the bewitching Anne Boleyn. Rome said no so Henry started a protestant faith, the Church of England then his wives kept dying on him. Some with his help, others not so much. Henry sires 3 children; Mary, a devout Catholic and later known as Bloody Mary, Elizabeth, the Virgin Queen who ruled Britain for decades, and Edward, a sickly son who died in his mid teens.

As I study more of these events and the Catholic church in Britain at this time, along with reformists' ideas floating around, I am more of the opinion that Henry was a Reformist long before he actually became the head of the Church of England. Rome's rigid stand on divorce was the excuse he needed to practice his beliefs. Just my two cents.

To be royalty in any country at this time was dangerous and left marriage options in the hands of the powerful or those seeking increased power. This was the case with Lady Jane. Lady Jane was simply a victim of circumstances and a pawn used to secure the crown. Her life and death marked with tragedy. Or was it?

Although Lady Jane married a man she did not love, her dressmaker, Lucy, married of her own volition a man of her choice. She enjoyed growing older with him, having children, and struggling to make ends meet. At Jane's coronation, Lucy wisely is dismissed from court and stays far from it as the drama of power plays out; Mary's turn holding the crown, her death, and finally Queen Elizabeth.

So what does this have to do with the protagonist in today's Manhattan?

Jane Lindsay finds a ring in the binding of book she acquires from Cardiff, Wales. Inscribed is her name and prose from Songs of Solomon. The ring becomes more relevant to her as she finds herself separated from her husband, a circumstance she does not choose. Brad, her husband, announced he was leaving for a different job in a different state closer to their only son, now in college and she was not invited to come. And so she waits as she has done all her life, until someone else makes decisions for her. Like Lady Jane, she is a victim of her circumstances. But is she, really?

The contemporary story was compelling and relevant. A younger woman may not understand the undercurrents and the quiet decisions Jane makes or the anticlimactic ending to the book. At the risk of revealing more than I should, this is the perfect book for a wife who watches her husband in the throes of a mid life crisis and feels helpless as her future is uncertain and feels dictated by his decisions.

And that's all I'm going to say about that.

Solid writing talent. Quiet, yet amazing insight. Beautiful symbolism.

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LibraryThing member mmmorgan1089

In Lady in Waiting the prolific Ms. Meissner has crafted an intriguing tale of two Janes. One, Jane Lindsay, is a contemporary New York antiques dealer and the other is the unfortunate Lady Jane Grey who ruled England for a mere nine days in 1553 before being executed. The stories are linked by a

ring that surfaces in Modern Jane’s antiques shop with a Latin inscription and one recognizable word: Jane. While investigating the ring’s provenance Lindsay becomes convinced that it once belonged to Lady Jane Grey. As Lindsay tries to unravel the mystery of the ring, she is also struggling to come to terms with her husband’s sudden and devastating separation which has caused her to question whether her decision to marry him had been truly her own or if she had succumbed to the expectations of others. Lady Jane is seen through the eyes of her fictitious seamstress and confidante, the young Lucy Day. Lady Jane hopes to marry the man she loves but powerful men with schemes to rule England through her have other plans.

It would be easy for both Janes to simply give up and let other people determine their life’s course. But they do not. Lindsay, with the help of her sister, her friends, and a caring therapist, learns that she is responsible for her own life, her own happiness and that, if she wishes to, she can fight to save her marriage. Lady Jane Grey, caught up by political and religious forces beyond her control nonetheless comes to see that she can still make a choice, even if it results in her death.

These two stories flow effortlessly side by side, each informing and enriching the other. Award-winning author Jane Kirkpatrick (The Daughter’s Walk) comments are typical of the praise being heaped on Meissner for this fine effort. “The pacing, perfection. Transitions between centuries, seamless. Capturing the nuances of relationships, flawless. Put anything by Susan Meissner on your ‘must read now’ list…. I couldn’t put this elegant novel of love and choice down. A completely satisfying read.”

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LibraryThing member Twinmom

Title: Lady in Waiting

Author: Susan Meissner

Publisher: Waterbrook

Source: Blogging for Books
Available: Now

Susan Meissner once again marries opposite polars with two women who live centries apart, yet struggle with the same problem. Do they let others choose their paths or do they choose their own

way? They were also linked together with a ring and their name. The theme is choices and we see both women struggle with many choices throughout the book.

I really liked the way that while I was learning more about sixteenth century and Lady Jane Gray, while also relating back to present day. True to Ms. Meissner's writing style, she brings so much history to life!

Highly recommend this book! Especially if you love Susan Meissner's writing style. If you have never read a book...start now with Lady in Waiting!

This book gets a 4 out of 5 family thumbs up!

This book was given to me by the Blogging for books program and I was in no other ways compensated by Waterbrook Multnomah

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LibraryThing member fantasia655

This was a very cool book, in the fact that two women who have the exact same thing happen throughout their lives and yet they're centuries apart. There should be more books like this one. Two thumbs up, Susan Meissner!

LibraryThing member SenoraG163

This book came from Blogging For Books and I was not so sure at first. I am not a lover of Christian Fiction but it looked good and I gave it a try.LADY IN WAITING is a very good story that tells the tale of two Janes. One who's marriage is ending after many years and one that lived in the 16th

century who's life was just beginning.It all started with finding a ring and wondering what the story was behind the original owner of the ring. I enjoyed how the author weaved the two separate stories together, allowing us to really get to know each Jane's story.I enjoyed Lady Jane much more than I did Jane Lindsay. I found Jane Lindsay to be a bit of a punching bag who did not find it easy to stand up for herself. Maybe it is the age, the inexperience but Lady Jane was much more likable and easier to identify with in my opinion.Overall I did enjoy reading the book. I am glad I took the chance on it. Normally I see Christian Fiction and don't bother.

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LibraryThing member chaoticbooklover

An uplifting yet heartbreaking book, "Lady in Waiting" is one book that needs to make your must read list! It contains two stories, one about Jane Lindsay that takes place in the present, and one about Lady Jane Grey that takes place in the mid 1500's.

The Present day Jane is waiting for her

husband to make the decision of what he wants to do about the emptiness in their marriage, just as she has waited for him and her parents to make the decisions that have shaped her entire life. While she waits she discovers a ring hidden in a recently acquired book that she decides could have belonged only to Lady Jane Grey. Jane’s quest to learn more about the 16th century Jane leads her on a journey inside her own soul – a journey that leads to the discovery of what duty and choice mean, and the decisions she needs to make to preserve her marriage.

Each character is memorable and realistic. Lady Jane Grey will be a character I will remember for a very long time. Her story broke my heart and yet she amazed me with her strength. Jane Lindsay will also be one that I will not soon forget. Her story is of finding one's self and gaining both strength and insight and learning exactly what she wants.
Both stories, although different, were still about the same thing - choices. Those choices that were made for us, and those that we ourselves make, and what we do with them.

This is a fantastic book that has definitely been one of the best I've read in a long time. I'm now going to be hunting down more Susan Meissner books. She's an author that could easily make my favorite's list!!

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LibraryThing member BookAddictDiary

Okay, I bought this off the clearance self.

I admit it -I had no real prior interest in this book until I discovered it on the clearance shelf at my local used book store, and was somewhat intrigued by the blurb. Rather than approaching Jane Grey's story in the traditional, historical fiction sense,

author Susan Meissner throws a unique twist into the well-known story by weaving it into a tale of another woman named Jane in modern-day New York.

At the beginning of the novel, Jane is hit with a devastating divorce and is suddenly thrown into a strange new world where there is little to hold onto. That is, until she finds a mysterious ring hidden inside a prayer book that she believes once belonged to the doomed Lady Jane Grey. In Tudor-era England, readers meet Lucy, the dressmaker for Lady Jane Grey and observer of Jane's strange nine-day reign and political drama. Lucy's story helps shine some light on the mysterious ring, though Jane may never know if the ring was Jane Grey's.

Lady in Waiting was a solid novel -not great, not bad, but solid. It reads very quickly -I read it in an afternoon -and offers a fun, escapist adventure through Lady Jane Grey's life and Jane's journey to find herself after her divorce. The writing is solid and comfortable, and the historical accuracy seemed to be consistent with my knowledge of the period, and I especially enjoyed seeing the period from the eyes of a common, though fictional, person, it gave it a different feel and allowed me to see a different side of Tudor England. I'd also like to see more novels integrated a modern element with the historical one -mostly just for something a little bit different.

A worthwhile read for a Sunday afternoon.

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LibraryThing member amusingmother

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Media reviews

Ashley's Bookshelf

Lady Jane but cannot prove it was hers. The book shows how two completely different women had somewhat of the same problem and how one helped the other to overcome it. I liked Lady Jane and how she was portrayed. I love when actual historical figures are given a 'voice' for their personal life, even if it is just for fictional purposes. She seemed so real and you could feel her emotions through her seamstress' words. Jane's character was ok. I didn't like the 'whining' but it served its purpose in the story to tell of her character and change it. My favorite character was Lucy, the seamstress who was also friend to Lady Jane and loved her very much. All the characters were very realistic and the story well written. I rate this a 4/5. It was a good read, but not one I would add to my 'keeper' shelf. Thank you to LibraryThings for the review copy of this book. I received this book in exchange for an honest review and the opinions stated above are 100% mine.

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