In this unforgettable novel of Queen Victoria, Jean Plaidy re-creates a remarkable life filled with romance, triumph, and tragedy.

At birth, Princess Victoria was fourth in line for the throne of England, the often-overlooked daughter spent most of her childhood in genteel poverty, exiled from court because of her mother’s dislike of her uncle, the king. A strong, willful child, Victoria was determined not to be stifled by her powerful uncles or her unpopular, controlling mother. Then at the age of eighteen this almost-forgotten princess became Queen of England. She was finally free of her mother’s iron-hand and her uncles’ manipulations. Her first act as queen was to demand that she be given a room—and a bed—of her own.

Victoria’s marriage to Prince Albert was a blissfully happy and produced nine children. Albert was her constant companion and one of her most trusted advisors. Victoria’s grief after Prince Albert’s untimely death was so shattering that for the rest of her life—nearly forty years—she dressed only in black. She survived several assassination attempts, and during her reign England’s empire expanded around the globe until it touched every continent in the world.

By the end of her sixty-four-year reign, this "Girl Queen" embodied the glory of the British Empire.