Victoria Victorious

In this third novel in her new series on the queens of England, Plaidy, indefatigable romancer of Europe's royal lines, arrives at the times of Queen Victoria. The first-person narration of Victoria's life and loves, taking her from plump, pouting girlhood to the unamused ""grandmother of Europe,'' unfolds replete with familiar incidents and anecdotes of her 64-year reign. The cast of male supporters is large: the dominating consort, Prince Albert; the reprobate heir, ``Bertie,'' who could never please his royal parents; the men on whom she dependedministers like Disraeli and Gladstone, servants like Scotsman John Brown. For young or unsophisticated readers, this is an uncomplicated introduction to Victoria's many roles. Others will find it overlong, tiresome in its primer-style narration, and lacking the sparkle of Plaidy's romances. February 17