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3.78 AVERAGE
3.78 AVERAGE
Simply a case of the right book, at the right time. Really enjoyed it.
I love me some historical fiction from time to time and Philippa Gregory has been a favorite for quite a while. I always enjoy the reading experience and I do not dwell on historical inaccuracies or liberal interpretations. And this statement can be applied to this book as well. The story of Kateryn Parr was enjoyable. I have to say though, the first half of the book more so than the rest. Towards the end it felt repetitive and I was ready for Henry to die and for Kateryn to be free of him already.
A rather enjoyable read that centres around the last years of the reign of Henry VIII and follows his last - usually overlooked - wife, Catherine Parr. Prior to reading the book, I was not familiar with Catherin Parr, and I was pleasantly surprised by her character in the story. After being practically forced to marry the king, who at that point was already infamous for either divorcing or killing off his wives, Catherine takes it upon herself to be the best wife and queen possible in a time where opposing religious forces are disrupting the country. Catherine is the perfect counterweight for the now unstable, paranoid, madding King Henry VIII; she is balanced, kind, pious, driven and caring, but she also has a thirst for knowledge and books that she shares with her dames. I found her to be a very captivating and endearing character you can only root for when everything starts to collapse on her, and she realizes that she has to find ways to survive a sickening husband that has killed many before her.
The personal story of Catherine Parr perfectly intertwines with the historical happenings of that era, which, unfortunately, unravels quite slowly and plainly. It's definitely not a super exciting story, and it does get quite boring at times, but I would still say that it's a rather enjoyable one.
After this little taste, I'll probably pick up a couple more popular books from Philippa Gregory, that's for sure.
The personal story of Catherine Parr perfectly intertwines with the historical happenings of that era, which, unfortunately, unravels quite slowly and plainly. It's definitely not a super exciting story, and it does get quite boring at times, but I would still say that it's a rather enjoyable one.
After this little taste, I'll probably pick up a couple more popular books from Philippa Gregory, that's for sure.
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
informative
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I get that everybody hates Henry VIII - myself included and rightfully so, as far as I’m concerned - but the ignorant fat shaming being used as the reason he’s disgusting is just awful…Henry VIII wasn’t awful because of the way he looked or whatever health problems he might have had (as far as the untreated mental health issues leading him to kill, that’s a separate thing, you can’t see it when you look at someone) he was awful because of the things he did and the system he was a part of…but I digress.
This book was too long, Kateryn played dumb at every turn (clearly the author’s fault and not hers). The level of quality in these books seem to be going down as more are published, although I haven’t read the earlier ones in a while…will reread to find out. Still….this should and could have been much better.
This book was too long, Kateryn played dumb at every turn (clearly the author’s fault and not hers). The level of quality in these books seem to be going down as more are published, although I haven’t read the earlier ones in a while…will reread to find out. Still….this should and could have been much better.
dark
sad
medium-paced
I adore Kateryn Parr and I was really glad to see historical fiction to do with her and this was a really interesting book, focusing on herself as a woman in dangerous times, what it was like being in the court of Henry VIII, and how she managed to survive coming under fire for her religious views, something which would killed anyone else.
I'm not an expert on this historical period but I do remember key parts. From what I heard about Thomas Seymour, I do not particularly like him and I was glad he wasn't in the book that much, and while I feel this book really tried to slam it home how repellant Henry VIII was, I am glad his changeable nature was highlighted here. The focus on Nan and how she had served all the Queens in Henry VIII's court, including her sister now (I thought the ladies-in-waiting would change more frequently than that), and the warning signs she picked up on was something I liked to see included and I wish we could have a book on someone like that, someone out of the political view and so properly able to observe what was going on. I think Gregory did well in showcasing how confusing it could be in the court of Henry VIII because you weren't sure what he was supporting at what point and you didn't know what was going on in his head and how he expected things to go his way and nothing was ever his fault when they didn't. I think for someone who picked and chose his queens like his clothes and went back and forth on Protestant and Catholic values so much it made your head dizzy, this book did well to showcase his nature. The plot was interesting and fast-paced and even though I knew she wasn't arrested at the end or killed, I still read on because I wanted to see how she managed to do some expert manoeuvring to get out of it.
Things I disliked about the Henry VIII portrayal was how much she focused on his obesity and how unattractive he was. I mean, I'm sure with oozing leg sores he wasn't what Kateryn would have chosen in a husband, but his weight didn't need to be brought up every other page like it was. The fact that he had five dead wives, two sent to their deaths at his hand, was enough to make Kateryn disgusted and fearful of him and I was glad to see the book look at that as well. The humiliation scene between Henry and Kateryn was not necessary, made me feel a little ill and it would have been fine if it had been removed from the book altogether.
Kateryn herself I liked. The only part I didn't care for was when she was thinking about Seymour, but that was more personal preference than anything else and knowledge about what was in the future for her and Seymour, but thankfully it didn't come up too much. She seemed smart and put together and even when she reacted with emotion at times, you could completely understand why. I wish she would have let go of the fantasy that the King wouldn't kill her because he loved her and she hadn't done anything wrong (didn't stop him before) a little sooner but that was more general annoyance. Her relationships with everyone were complicated and I especially liked what she thought of the three royal children, it's a shame we didn't see it continue after Henry's death.
A thoroughly enjoyable historical fiction book, four stars!
I'm not an expert on this historical period but I do remember key parts. From what I heard about Thomas Seymour, I do not particularly like him and I was glad he wasn't in the book that much, and while I feel this book really tried to slam it home how repellant Henry VIII was, I am glad his changeable nature was highlighted here. The focus on Nan and how she had served all the Queens in Henry VIII's court, including her sister now (I thought the ladies-in-waiting would change more frequently than that), and the warning signs she picked up on was something I liked to see included and I wish we could have a book on someone like that, someone out of the political view and so properly able to observe what was going on. I think Gregory did well in showcasing how confusing it could be in the court of Henry VIII because you weren't sure what he was supporting at what point and you didn't know what was going on in his head and how he expected things to go his way and nothing was ever his fault when they didn't. I think for someone who picked and chose his queens like his clothes and went back and forth on Protestant and Catholic values so much it made your head dizzy, this book did well to showcase his nature. The plot was interesting and fast-paced and even though I knew she wasn't arrested at the end or killed, I still read on because I wanted to see how she managed to do some expert manoeuvring to get out of it.
Things I disliked about the Henry VIII portrayal was how much she focused on his obesity and how unattractive he was. I mean, I'm sure with oozing leg sores he wasn't what Kateryn would have chosen in a husband, but his weight didn't need to be brought up every other page like it was. The fact that he had five dead wives, two sent to their deaths at his hand, was enough to make Kateryn disgusted and fearful of him and I was glad to see the book look at that as well. The humiliation scene between Henry and Kateryn was not necessary, made me feel a little ill and it would have been fine if it had been removed from the book altogether.
Kateryn herself I liked. The only part I didn't care for was when she was thinking about Seymour, but that was more personal preference than anything else and knowledge about what was in the future for her and Seymour, but thankfully it didn't come up too much. She seemed smart and put together and even when she reacted with emotion at times, you could completely understand why. I wish she would have let go of the fantasy that the King wouldn't kill her because he loved her and she hadn't done anything wrong (didn't stop him before) a little sooner but that was more general annoyance. Her relationships with everyone were complicated and I especially liked what she thought of the three royal children, it's a shame we didn't see it continue after Henry's death.
A thoroughly enjoyable historical fiction book, four stars!
it was a 3 stars until the last part which was exciting and tense
overall a good book and i feel well educated on the tudors
overall a good book and i feel well educated on the tudors
So I started this book and I was for some reason very surprised on the insight we got into Kat's feelings. i got bored of the book shorting after and didn't read it for ages. I picked it up again and I loved it. Gregory made it REALLY seem like Kat wrote the book. Even though I knew how the history ended it felt like I didn't!
I enjoyed this, I had no idea Catherine Parr was one of the first to start translating and writing in English, so it was really interesting reading more about that part of her life. I did find that the pacing was a bit slow in this which meant a lot of repetitive internal monologues. However, I still enjoyed reading it and learning more about Catherine Parr, but it’s not my favourite of the series.