another historical fiction

A Constant Heart by Siri Mitchell is about the court of Queen Elizabeth I.
The ladies of the court paint themselves in the image of Queen Elizabeth. She uses ceruse and vermillion paint. It is a white lead-based paint which gives the illusion of youth while covering up the scars of age. The effects of using this paint over time is lead poisoning which causes greying, dry skin, rotting teeth, miscarriages, and paralysis. I would never use anything that could harm my body for fashion or to fit it. The character imitates the Queen and the the other ladies in court in order to gain a social standing. Another thing the court ladies do in imitation of the Queen is to dye their hair red and 'frazzle' or curl it until eventually it falls out and they are forced to wear a wig. The Queen is the most beautiful woman in the kingdom so everyone must copy her beauty by dimming their own. Queen Elizabeth had a lot of power especially because she did not have a marriage partner with to share the power. In this story anyway, she is jealous of anyone who has a strong marriage. Love is forbidden in her court. The main characters must hide their growing love for one another. I think it is selfish of her to make sure that no one could be happy with any other woman but her. I assume this is how she held so much power in court. She couldn't control the actions of the peasants (except by sending them to fight in the war) but she could control her noblemen.
It would be difficult to be a courtier and have to smile and laugh and make someone else happy while feeling miserable. It would be even worse if you were truely happy and had to hide it. I dont think I could ever do that, especially my whole life. When im miserable or happy, I show it. the character Marcia has trouble adjusting to the rules and court. Because everyone lies it is hard to tell when someone is really telling the truth. How confusing!
My favourite part in this book is when the court is seated at the dining table and marcia and her husband and seated side by side. They are both involved in separate cconversations but then the husband starts eating bitter radishes as a way to apologize for something that happened earlier. I like how the author gave meaning to plain vegetables. It's humourous and also sweet how they understand each other in that moment. It's nice to know that someone understands you when youre surrounded by people who are your friends and possible enemies.