Given its extensive timeframe and diverse cast of characters, Crown & Sceptre could easily have become little more than a potted history of Britain from 1066 to the present. But while Ms. Borman offers deft and thoughtful assessments of every reign, the chronological approach is enriched by details that help to humanize her subjects.

Borman offers brisk descriptions of the circumstances each monarch met in assuming the crown and nimbly sketches his or her character and talents.

While [Borman] doesn’t ignore the institution’s darker aspects, she’s nevertheless in thrall to its 'other-worldliness' — its magic and mystery.

... entertaining.

Tracy Borman's Crown & Sceptre brings us in short, vivid chapters from William the Conqueror to Elizabeth herself, much of it constituting a dark record of bumping off adversaries, rivals and spouses, confiscating vast estates and military invasions. It is also an account of the rise and steady diminishment of royal power. Borman offers brisk descriptions of the circumstances each monarch met in assuming the crown and nimbly sketches his or her character and talents—or lack thereof.

An elegant and evenhanded chronicle of the British monarchy.

Impressive.