ALA Booklist

The life of Mary Queen of Scots gets a fascinating new telling in this sweeping novel narrated in the voice of a female Jester--La Jardiniere. When orphan Nicola Ambruzzi performs for the French court with her troupe of players, the bold, smart-mouthed peasant girl wins the interest and affection of Mary, and Nicola joins the court as an entertainer and truth-telling companion to the new queen. A deep friendship develops as Nicola follows the queen through her dramatic life in France and Scotland, finally leaving Mary before the queen's flight to England. With an outsider's eye for vivid detail, Nicola makes the cultural and historical particulars of costume, food, houses, court personalities, and politics easily imaginable. Readers without previous knowledge of the period may have trouble keeping track of characters and become weighed down by the book's dialects and sprawling length. But the exciting story of conspiracies and power upheavals offers a rich introduction to the tumultuous history, and readers will respond to the poignant experiences of alienation, romance, intrigue, betrayal, and justice as Nicola and the young queen come of age. A brief author's note helps separate fact from fiction. (Reviewed April 1, 2000)

School Library Journal

Gr 7 Up-This rich and involving novel of Mary Queen of Scots and her court will have readers clamoring to know more about this dramatic period in French and Scottish history. Readers are treated to a fascinating look at royal politics through the eyes of Nicola Ambruzzi, an orphaned performer to whom the queen takes a fancy. Queen Mary appreciates Nicola's wise wit and decides to keep her in the court as a "fool," believing that the girl will always tell her the truth rather than flatter her. After King Francis dies, his mother seizes the throne, and Mary is stripped of her French royalty. She returns to Scotland where she is queen by birth. Two thirds of this novel takes place in Scotland between the years 1560-68 when Queen Mary faced almost constant troubles from the Protestants, her own lords, and her womanizing husband. Yolen and Harris do an excellent job of weaving historical information into the story. The use of Le Jardini re, the queen's nickname for Nicola and an actual figure, personalizes the narrative even more and the girl's spiritual and emotional growth make her a flesh-and-blood character. Readers will laugh at Nicola's way with words and forthright manner, and delight in her skill of almost always being able to say the right thing to comfort the Queen or squelch the pompous advisors who surround her. The play of language is another major highlight in the novel. Read this along with E. L. Konigsburg's A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver (Atheneum, 1973) for a compelling look at two doomed queens.-Cheri Estes, Detroit Country Day School Middle School, Beverly Hills, MI Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.

Horn Book

When the young Queen of France asks eleven-year-old Nicola to be her "fool," Nicola believes that her one duty to the Queen--always tell her the truth--will be easier than the rough life she has led as an orphaned street performer. But as the years pass, she must use all of her wits to avoid being caught in the political intrigue that ensnares Queen Mary. The authors have woven fiction and historical fact into a seamless tapestry.

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

<EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">PW said that this lengthy first-person narrative that centers on "La Jardinière," one of the court jesters to Mary Queen of Scots, "will appeal to fans of historical sagas." Ages 10-up. <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">(Nov.)

Kirkus Reviews

With a handful of historical facts and a great deal of research, the prolific and marvelous Yolen has teamed with a Scottish maker of a fantasy board game to spin a historical tale of great immediacy and impact. In Rheims, in 1559, a troupe of street performers captures the eye of the radiant young Queen Mary. Before she knows it, Nicola, an Italian orphan much put upon by her uncle, the leader of the troupe, is taken to be Mary's own fool, and nicknamed Jardiniere. The rest of the recounting sees Mary through Nicola's fond but perceptive eye: when the sallow young French king dies and Mary goes back to Scotland, a veritable vipers' nest of intrigue begins. Mary marries, and marries again; nobles rise up against her and are banished or return, craven, to her service; she bears one son and loses twins. Through it all, Nicola loves and supports her queen, finds humor amidst danger and deception, and in the end, returns to France, and to love, while Mary becomes her cousin Elizabeth's prisoner. Based deeply in fact and full of detail both luscious and sordid, the story's length will not discourage any reader who picks it up and begins to be enthralled. (Historical fiction. YA)