The Mapp and Lucia series of novels penned by author E.F. Benson is a study in opposites. The vengeful and calculating Miss Mapp, whom many readers love to hate, is balanced out by the social graces of Lucia, who, though good-hearted and well-meaning, often finds herself mired in seemingly intractable snafus. Queen Lucia is the first novel in the series and an engrossing introduction to these two protagonists' shared social milieu.