Maid of Secrets (Maids Of Honor Book 1)

"Maid of Secrets" follows 17-year-old Meg Fellowes as she journeys from pickpocket to student to spy, with a side trip into love.She travels from the streets of Elizabethan London to a classroom for spies to the court of Queen Elizabeth I, with a side trip to a dungeon.That's the premise: Five teenage girls, each with a special skill, are recruited to spy for the queen. After all, no one would suspect a 17-year-old.First novelist Jennifer McGowan brings it off nicely, though she left me in some confusion at the end.Meg is a well-drawn character, easy to identify with. She was a good thief, a girl with perfect recall, a student who struggles to learn to read, a spy torn between watching for the queen and fand on the queen. And she's a girl who begins to find her first love.We start to get to know her four comrades, all very different from different backgrounds and all with different skills. I look forward to learning more about reach, as they all will get their own book. Other characters - two royal ministers, even the queen herself, are clearly secondary.The setting is Windsor Castle during Elizabeth's early months as queen, when where someone - probably the Spaniards - is trying to destabilize the her reign. But we don't known which Spaniard.The book, which is quite good, deserves a better ending. Meg's narration of the second-to-last chapter starts with, "Things got a little complicated after that." Yes, they do, as Ms. McGowan tries to wrap up all of her plot lines. We start to clarify Meg's relationship to the queen, wrap up the status each of the other maids, learn the motivation of the villain, and watch the overly quick evolution of Meg's relationship with her new love. My head was spinning.Still, the book was worth the spin, and I think Ms. McGowan's plotting will mature as her writing style evolves.

4.5 stars, actuallyRobin LaFevers has a blurb on the book, and if you liked her newest YA Nun-Assasins (His Fair Assasin Trilogy) then you will definitely like Maid of Secrets.We are introduced to Meg-- until recently part of the Golden Rose traveling group of thespians at the start of Queen Elizabeth's reign-- her skills as a pick-pocket were more oft used than that of her theater skills.But she comes under the eye of one the Queen's Spymasters and is plucked off the streets to join a secret cadre of the Queen's Maids of Honor. Each one has a special skill, and is there to help Elizabeth navigate the very tricky waters of her newly Protestant country watched heavily by Spain ,France, and the Netherlands.Meg is given conflicting order by spymasters and queen, conflicting feelings by one of the main suspects, dashing Spanish Courtier Rafe, and the impossible task of learning court manners, literacy, and Spanish all while trying to make friends with the other oddly assorted Maids of Honor.Meg is fiercely independent, and her desire to stay that way means she looks ill upon any thought of marriage, either for her or her friends. She longs to protect them as well as the Queen, as well as herself-- the maid in her position was gruesomely killed not long ago.Meg is a delicious, strong character going through interesting trials that make her doubt and believe in herself. There are so many courtly intrigues and factions and secret plans going on that I almost couldn't keep track of them all.What I mostly wanted more of (and hopefully each will get their own book) was the wonderful development of friendship and revealing backstory for the other maids in Meg's group. That's where the half point gets deducted.However, this is a rousing start to a definitely younger YA safe series (just kissing) and I'm already hungry for the next installment.This Book's Snack Rating: Garlic and Parmesan Kettle Chips for the spice of courtly intrigue, creamy-delicious characters, and sturdy Elizabethan setting in every bite.

Maid of Secrets – what I thought to be a YA romance turned out to be so much more. It begins with Meg, an expert thief who travels with a play troupe, who gets caught by Queen Elizabeth’s advisor and is given a choice to become a spy or rot in the dungeons. As a spy, she is expected to protect the Queen in her newly established court by gathering information with her mimcry skills. She is kickass, and quite spunky and I love her philosophy – when in doubt, always curtsey! ;)Plotwise, the book had so much going on and it was such a interesting flow of events. The complexity within the plot involved much more than just Meg and the danger that came with being a spy. There is her loyalty to the Queen, the friendships she earns and quite a lot of sneaking about and discovering. The writing complemented the plot so well, with all the subtexts and clues offered which make it an excellent suspense novel. The instability in the court, the fearless Queen and the overall element of paranoia were portrayed quite realistically.The romance is somewhat overwhelmed by the political intricacies woven and while Rafe was interesting I am not his fangirl yet. Nevertheles, the other love stories and the ones which might develop offered so much more than the main one and the friendships between the girls, especially Meg and Jane is so cute that I wish I had such friends. Considering how little time they had together, they still come to each other’s aid without any pettiness. I am looking forward to reading more of these brave and spirited Maids of Honor.

My granddaughter loves this book, every time I called round to see her, she had it in her hand. So much nicer to see than reading from a tablet.

I loved this book..the characters were so realistic and the writing made me feel as if I was transported back to that time...great read