The Stolen One by Suzanne Crowley

From the Publisher

No one wanted you. But I did.

Kat's true identity is a secret, even from her. All she has ever known are Grace and Anna and their small village. Kat wants more—more than hours spent embroidering finery for wealthy ladies and more than Christian, the gentle young farmer courting her.

But there are wolves outside, Grace warns. Waiting, with their eyes glowing in the dark . . . and Grace has given Kat safety and a home when no one else would.

Then a stranger appears in their cottage, bringing the mystery of Kat's birth with her. In one night, Kat's destiny finds her: She will leave. She will journey to London, and her skill with the needle will attract the notice of the magnificent Queen Elizabeth—and of the wolves of the court. She will discover what Grace would never tell her.

Everything will unravel.

Children's Literature

In this well written, well told historical fiction, Kat and her sister Anna work with their mother creating magnificent embroidery and garments in Elizabethan England. They live in a rural cottage not far from Uncle Geoffrey and Christian. Christian is enamored of Kat and hopes to marry her while Anna, the quiet, deaf sister, is enamored of Christian. On one stormy night, a sickly dwarf, Jane, comes to the cottage. Known as a healer, their mother ministers to her, but Jane speaks of strange things and has torn the cottage apart looking for something valuable before she dies in her sleep. Kat has overheard accusations and realizes that her intuitive feelings of not belonging to the rural family may be true. When their mother dies unexpectedly, Kat bundles up the clothing she has to sell along with her sister and journeys to London. She leaves Christian and his wedding proposal behind as she intends to search out the truth of who she is and who she might be. What Kat finds is the political intrigue of Elizabeth's court and the amorous attention of superficial men. But she also finds out something about herself and the honest values of her rural upbringing. This is a compelling story based in true historical mystery. The sensory images surrounding Elizabeth's life bring the queen alive for young adult readers, while the themes of love and identity present the universality of human nature. Reviewer: Janis Flint-Ferguson

School Library Journal

Gr 8 Up—Intrigue, romance, and period details abound in this riveting story of Tudor England. While many novels about this time period focus on Queen Elizabeth I, Crowley has chosen to ponder a historical mystery—the fate of Mary Seymour, the daughter of Katherine Parr and Thomas Seymour, about whom virtually nothing is known. Was the orphaned child spirited away somewhere? Did she die in the plague like so many others? Told from the point of view of Katherine Bab, a country girl of unknown parentage, this novel offers a plausible scenario. Kat has always wondered who her parents were, but could never get any answers from the woman who raised her. When her caretaker dies, she uncovers what looks like a royal necklace from among the items that supposedly came with her as a baby, and she decides to go to London to find some answers. Her talent as an embroiderer gives her entry into Queen Elizabeth's court, where, surprisingly, she is chosen to be one of the queen's maids of honor. Her quest for answers about her past brings her closer to the queen and closer to danger. Readers who are ready for something more complex than Grace Cavendish's "Lady Grace Mysteries" (Delacorte) or Carolyn Meyer's "Young Royals" series (Harcourt) won't be able to put this book down. The sophisticated writing flows well, and the author does a terrific job of integrating historical details, though some previous knowledge of the era would be helpful.—Cheri Dobbs, Detroit Country Day Middle School, Beverly Hills, MI

Kirkus Reviews

Mystery and magic surround Katherine "Kat" Bab, a spirited 16-year-old with wild red hair her omen-wary adoptive mother Grace calls "wolf bait." Kat, who never knew her birth parents, is told no one wants her-except for the farmer's son she's expected to marry. Independent-minded Kat wants no part of it and sets off for London with her deaf sister Anna to unearth the truth of her parentage. When Queen Elizabeth zeroes in on fellow redhead Kat in a chance street encounter, the country lass goes royal: Her extraordinary embroidering skills land her in the queen's court, and the plot thickens as Kat finds herself circled by eager suitors . . . and those jealous of her sudden intimacy with the queen. Is she, as is rumored, the Virgin Queen's daughter? Clues to Kat's true identity are dropped for readers like Hansel and Gretel's breadcrumbs. As they revel in Kat's clear-as-a-bell, first-person observations of Tudor England's dangerous liaisons and fairy-tale gowns, teens will also relate to a girl who struggles not only to find her place but to know her heart. (epilogue, family tree, author's note) (Historical fiction. 14 & up)

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