Book Log 2013 #7: The Watchers by Stephen Alford

I never finished this book about espionage during the reign of Elizabeth I, and looking at reviews I am likely in the minority in how I feel about this book. Based on the jacket I was expecting an account that would feature the likes of Sir Francis Walsingham, the queen's principal secretary and sypmaster, but it mostly focused on individual spies.

That on its own might not have been a problem if there was more primary material about their lives and duties. But as you might expect, these folks (who were typically young men who entered Catholic colleges in France and Italy to root out plots against the queen) didn't leave much of a paper trail, for both professional and personal reasons. The story derived from what does exist (and some speculation) is interesting, to a point, but after a few stories about Englishmen suddenly appearing in Rome to ingratiate themselves with some mid-range cleric I lost interest.

But as I said I may be off on this one, so if the subject/period is of interest, it couldn't hurt to give it a go.