Name: Haley Murray's review of Six Tudor Queens by Alison Weir
Item: Six Tudor Queens
Rating: 3
Author: Haley Murray

Alison Weir

*A Sunday Times Top Ten Bestseller* Katherine of Aragon: The True Queen by bestselling historian Alison Weir, author of The Lost Tudor Princess, is the first in a spellbinding six novel series about Henry VIII's Queens. Alison takes you on an engrossing journey at Katherine's side and shows her extraordinary strength of character and intelligence. Ideal for fans of Philippa Gregory and Elizabeth Chadwick. 'Shatters the many myths about Henry VIII's long-suffering first wife' Tracy Borman 'Weir is excellent on the little details that bring a world to life' Guardian A Spanish princess. Raised to be modest, obedient and devout. Destined to be an English Queen. Six weeks from home across treacherous seas, everything is different: the language, the food, the weather. And for her there is no comfort in any of it. At sixteen-years-old, Catalina is alone among strangers. She misses her mother. She mourns her lost brother. She cannot trust even those assigned to her protection. KATHERINE OF ARAGON. The first of Henry's Queens. Her story. History tells us how she died. This captivating novel shows us how she lived. SIX TUDOR QUEENS. SIX NOVELS. SIX YEARS. Praise for Alison Weir and Katherine of Aragon: 'A tender understanding of and genuine sympathy for this proud, much-loved and honourable Queen. . . I was gripped [from] start to finish' Mavis Cheek 'Well-researched and engrossing' Good Housekeeping 'Yet again, Alison Weir has managed to intertwine profound historical knowledge with huge emotional intelligence, to compose a work that throws light on an endlessly fascinating historical figure. Yet her real gift in all of this is making it feel so fresh and alive' Earl Spencer 'Alison Weir clearly admires her heroine . . . meticulously researched' The Times 'This exquisite book charts the rise and fall of Henry VIII's first wife, Katherine. . . A fascinating insight into this period of our history. Weir's undeniable strength is her immaculate description, enabling the reader to be transported back to Tudor England' Sun 'Weir manages to untangle the complex web of 16th-century politics, shown through Katherine's duties as ambassador, and her astute reading of the games being played. This adds greatly to the heft of the character, demonstrating what a competent woman she was becoming' Herald Scotland 'Katherine of Aragon, The True Queen is a true tour de force. Finely crafted, this novel is wonderful historical fiction and an outstanding introduction to the Six Tudor Queens series' Queen Anne Boleyn Blog 'Known for bestselling historical biographies, Alison Weir is in command of her detail . . . her handling of Katherine's misery and dignified response to her predicament is very touching' Elizabeth Buchan, Daily Mail

Katherine of Aragon, the True Queen

Six Tudor Queens

Haley Murray

Anne Boleyn: A King's Obsession by bestselling historian Alison Weir, author of Katherine of Aragon: The True Queen, is the second captivating novel in the Six Tudor Queens series. An unforgettable portrait of the ambitious woman whose fate we know all too well, but whose true motivations may surprise you. Essential reading for fans of Philippa Gregory and Elizabeth Chadwick. 'Weir is excellent on the little details that bring a world to life' Guardian The young woman who changed the course of history. Fresh from the palaces of Burgundy and France, Anne draws attention at the English court, embracing the play of courtly love. But when the King commands, nothing is ever a game. Anne has a spirit worthy of a crown - and the crown is what she seeks. At any price. ANNE BOLEYN. The second of Henry's Queens. Her story. History tells us why she died. This powerful novel shows her as she lived. SIX TUDOR QUEENS. SIX NOVELS. SIX YEARS.

Anne Boleyn - A King's Obsession

Elda Mengisto

"She had never seen marriage alone as an especially fulfilling estate for women. She had always wanted more in life--and more than she had ever dreamed of would soon, God willing, be in her grasp. There was so much that she could accomplish as queen, and her children would be royal. That mattered very much indeed."

Ah, Anne Boleyn. Another one of history's most polarizing women. Some people have seen her as a wanton whore who managed to get to King Henry VIII at a high cost, others see her as a martyr for their cause, and others are intrigued by her personality. I've read about her and heard about the multitudinous portrayals of her in media, so much that some of what's real and what's not gets a bit blurred. There are just as many people who see her as a victor due to giving England Elizabeth I, whereas others are more skeptical.

That being said, Weir strives to show the audience how Anne Boleyn had lived, rather than how she died. Honestly, I read the author's note before cracking the novel, and found out about several things I didn't know about her previously, like whether or not she truly loved Henry VIII.

That lens, combined with Anne Boleyn's exposure to progressive (for its time) ideas about women, establishes the scaffolding of which Weir decides to establish a more human Anne. And for the earlier chapters, it really works! I like seeing her getting inspired from Christine de Pizan's works, trying to ensure herself that she wouldn't get involved with any man, and learning from Margaret of Austria and Queen Claude of France. I got the impression that she was a precocious child, one who wanted to learn more, and that impressed me. One of the more touching moments was when Leonardo da Vinci sketched her. Made up for the story, but quite nice.

Once we get to see her catch King Henry VIII's eye, I found it interesting on how the story went. On one hand, it was one delay after another as Anne waits to get the crown. On the other hand, one could see how Anne develops and refines her ambition, from wanting to become queen regent to consort. Nevertheless, we see her desire to do better:

"Reform had to come. And she was uniquely placed to make it happen. Every word that fell from her lips had Henry spellbound. She could make him listen to her.She would lay the foundations of reform now, and build on them when she was queen." (238)

While I like her ambitions and desire to make changes, I see Anne Boleyn confronting others, more often than not, along with plotting revenge and acting hostile to Lady Mary. While understandable in that she needed to protect her position from those who wanted to harm her (I constantly compared her to Hurrem Sultan of the Ottoman Empire in my mind, though the differences may be more clear cut than I thought), her impact was less than both of us desired. Especially compared to Katherine of Aragon leading troops in Scotland and becoming Europe's first female ambassador.

Nevertheless, one of the highlights Weir writes was when Anne Boleyn was at her lowest--when she was arrested, tried and executed on trumped-up charges. The speech after her conviction moved me; those morbid jokes she made before her execution made me laugh. And this point:

"She laid down her pen and thought back over all she had achieved in her time. What would posterity say about her? Future generations should say that she had influenced monumental change, and for the better. She had helped to free England from the chains and corruption of Rome, and to make the Bible available to ordinary Englishmen in their own tongue...But few would acknowledge that debt to her now." (524).

Like always, Alison Weir blends history and narrative to create a compelling story; a bit weaker than Katherine Aragon: The True Queen, but nonetheless just as wonderful to see the many sides of a particular woman. There was the curious Anne Boleyn who wanted to read many books, the loving Anne Boleyn towards her family, the temperamental one who lashed out at whim and sought punishment, the ambitious one seeking the crown, and the revolutionary. As Anne Boleyn's image changed over the past five-hundred years into what we see today, we have to remember she was human, after all. Therefore, the woman should be analyzed for all her strengths and weaknesses, her quirks as well as her crowning moments. And this book is a good way to see it all.

"In her life, she had been both pious and self-indulgent; in love with religion and with the gospel and the church, but also with pomp and with luxury and power; she had been brittle, highly strung, neurotic, sarcastic and volatile. But she had also been charming, gracious, vivacious, entertaining, clever, affectionate and dazzlingly charismatic...In her own life, in her own personality, can be found her vindication. No-one can look at her final weeks and not conclude that this was not a woman of substance and courage and, as Anne herself pointed out, such things do not spring at the end unless they have been there from the beginning." http://garethrussellcidevant.blogspot...

Ley Stanton

Full review: https://leyreads.wordpress.com/2017/0...

Christine Liu

Alison Weir writes wonderfully detailed and captivating history books, but her fiction could use a little workshopping. This book is like a documentary where the reenactments are campy and cringey, but the plot, pacing, and narration are solid. The dialogue between Anne and Henry is borderline unbearable. Still, I appreciated Weir's thoughtful portrayal of Anne as a young woman in a difficult situation whose most egregious crime in the end was being too difficult to live with.

*A Sunday Times Top Ten Bestseller* Katherine of Aragon: The True Queen by bestselling historian Alison Weir, author of The Lost Tudor Princess, is the first in a spellbinding six novel series about Henry VIII's Queens. Alison takes you on an engrossing journey at Katherine's side and shows her extraordinary strength of character and intelligence. Ideal for fans of Philippa Gregory and Elizabeth Chadwick. 'Shatters the many myths about Henry VIII's long-suffering first wife' Tracy Borman 'Weir is excellent on the little details that bring a world to life' Guardian A Spanish princess. Raised to be modest, obedient and devout. Destined to be an English Queen. Six weeks from home across treacherous seas, everything is different: the language, the food, the weather. And for her there is no comfort in any of it. At sixteen-years-old, Catalina is alone among strangers. She misses her mother. She mourns her lost brother. She cannot trust even those assigned to her protection. KATHERINE OF ARAGON. The first of Henry's Queens. Her story. History tells us how she died. This captivating novel shows us how she lived. SIX TUDOR QUEENS. SIX NOVELS. SIX YEARS. Praise for Alison Weir and Katherine of Aragon: 'A tender understanding of and genuine sympathy for this proud, much-loved and honourable Queen. . . I was gripped [from] start to finish' Mavis Cheek 'Well-researched and engrossing' Good Housekeeping 'Yet again, Alison Weir has managed to intertwine profound historical knowledge with huge emotional intelligence, to compose a work that throws light on an endlessly fascinating historical figure. Yet her real gift in all of this is making it feel so fresh and alive' Earl Spencer 'This exquisite book charts the rise and fall of Henry VIII's first wife, Katherine. . . A fascinating insight into this period of our history. Weir's undeniable strength is her immaculate description, enabling the reader to be transported back to Tudor England' Sun 'Katherine of Aragon, The True Queen is a true tour de force. Finely crafted, this novel is wonderful historical fiction and an outstanding introduction to the Six Tudor Queens series' Queen Anne Boleyn Blog 'Known for bestselling historical biographies, Alison Weir is in command of her detail . . . her handling of Katherine's misery and dignified response to her predicament is very touching' Elizabeth Buchan, Daily Mail

I had a difficult time sticking with this book at first because of its monotonous sentence structure and slightly stilted, detached style. But I persevered and am glad I did because this was an amazingly detailed and illuminating look inside the life of Katherine of Aragon. Although it is a fictionalized account, the book is meticulously researched and takes very little artistic license with the lives and characterizations of the figures involved. I appreciated the careful attention Weir pays in revealing Katherine's motivations and thoughts throughout a difficult life and tumultuous time in history.

Roos Kuijper 

I really love this series. The book about Katherine was really good and this novel about Anne is also very good. But those two are the most famous wives of Henry VIII, so I am curious te see what Weir will do with the other four wives :-)

Haley Murray &
Six Tudor Queens by Alison Weir

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