BOOK OF THE WEEK

Rizzio by Denise Mina; Birlinn; £10

David Rizzio, a Catholic Italian, is personal secretary to and close friend of Mary, Queen of Scots. It is March 1566, and a pregnant Mary with a number of her courtiers, including Rizzio, are at supper in her apartments in Holyrood House.

Her husband Darnley believes that he should rule absolutely as king; is worried that the coming child will usurp his position and is jealous of Rizzio’s influence over the queen. Darnley has plotted with his father and a number of exiled Protestant Lords to kill Rizzio, on the understanding that Darnley will revoke their exile, and that they will support his claim to be king at the next Parliamentary session.

Darnley and Lord Ruthven, backed by armed men, interrupt the supper party and drag Rizzio off and murder him. Darnley had insisted on the event being as close to Mary as possible, in the hope that it would induce a miscarriage, helping to ensure Darnley’s position.

Mary subsequently convinces Darnley that he is in danger of being betrayed and murdered by his allies, and they escape together to Dunbar, the home of the Earl of Bothwell. With Bothwell’s help, Mary returns to Edinburgh and quashes the rebellion.

Normally in a review, I would not outline quite so much of the plot, however Denise Mina’s novella is a dramatic retelling of one of the key events in Scottish history – so contains little in the way of surprise.

Ms Mina takes the known historical detail of the event; the political climate at the time, and the recorded personalities of the characters, and extrapolates these into a tale that compares well with a contemporary fictional thriller.

I am not a historian, but do find the subject interesting. Much of what I have read, however, and virtually all I endured at school (a long time ago, admittedly), tends

to be dry and boringly factual – so it is refreshing to be presented with a very readable, if embellished, account of Rizzio’s murder and some of its implications for Scotland. This is the first in Polygon’s “Darkland Tales” series focusing on “stories from Scottish history, myth and legend”. I look forward

to the others.