A well-written historical novel about an intriguing woman who, through her
Life as told by Turgot, a bishop who knew her personally, is one of those best known to us from the medieval period,
Queen Hereafter tells the story of St. Margaret of Scotland. A Saxon princess who has spent part of her life in Hungary, Margaret and her family (including her brother Edgar, considered by some to be the rightful king) flee an England ruled by William the Conqueror and are shipwrecked off the coast of Scotland, where despite her desire to become a nun, she wins the heart of King Malcolm and becomes his queen. Susan Fraser King does an excellent job of humanizing Margaret, who could easily be portrayed as insufferably perfect, by revealing her doubts and insecurities, as well as by showing her partly through the eyes of the bard Eva, a fictional granddaughter of Lady Macbeth who is held hostage at Malcolm's court for her grandmother's good behavior. The friendship between the pious, compassionate queen and the proud, fortright young Scotswoman, despite their differences, is movingly and realistically depicted.
