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3.78 AVERAGE
3.78 AVERAGE
have to admit this one of the better novels from gregory as it looks at catherine parr, henry's last wife and queen as enjoy the struggles between the different factions for the direction of the church and how intelligent a woman could in the age of men.
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Katherine Parr, sixth and final wife of Henry VIII, was known for her piousness in the reformation faith and for her scholarly interests as well as for surviving the deadly attentions of King Henry. This book, unfortunately, gives little more insight into her life or her personality, factual or fictional. There is a great deal of fear and tension conveyed, but the book becomes wordy and repetitive, feeling bland or dull, and eventually there is nothing left but the awful tension of wondering how many more pages you'll have to turn before the old bastard finally gasps his last.
I think the great failing of this work is that a protagonist must have agency: they must take action to move themselves forward through their stories, and they must save themselves from the risks that a good story inevitably inflicts. Katherine Parr survives by bowing to her husband's will increasingly, watching passively whenever he tramples over her or demeans her, and eventually allows her will to be broken in order to live. There is no agency there, and that means that there isn't really much of a story--just a recounting of one woman's unfair and gross suffering under her tyrant of her husband.
I think the great failing of this work is that a protagonist must have agency: they must take action to move themselves forward through their stories, and they must save themselves from the risks that a good story inevitably inflicts. Katherine Parr survives by bowing to her husband's will increasingly, watching passively whenever he tramples over her or demeans her, and eventually allows her will to be broken in order to live. There is no agency there, and that means that there isn't really much of a story--just a recounting of one woman's unfair and gross suffering under her tyrant of her husband.
I probably would've given this book 5 stars, but I read ACOTAR right before this one, so it seemed a bit boring sometimes in comparison. I sometimes found it hard to connect to Kateryn Parr, but I liked how this story was a bit different because she actually outlived Henry VIII. I think this is the 7th Philippa Gregory book with him in it and it was interesting to see him go from a spoiled child to a whiny old man who was "not afraid of dying."
I liked how this book lacked Gregory's classic over-repeating everything throughout the book. There were a couple of instances, but not enough to annoy me. It wasn't one of my favourites, but in terms of writing, it's one of the better Philippa Gregory books.
I recommend this one!
I liked how this book lacked Gregory's classic over-repeating everything throughout the book. There were a couple of instances, but not enough to annoy me. It wasn't one of my favourites, but in terms of writing, it's one of the better Philippa Gregory books.
I recommend this one!
Having read many Philippa Gregory novels in the past, it is my opinion that this is her best work to date. The Taming of the Queen navigates that complicated boundary between feminism and history, particularly at a time when women labored under significant external restrictions, and were encouraged towards internal misogyny. In some ways, Katheryn Parr's story almost feels like an apology for the unsympathetic portrayals of Anne Boleyn and Kitty Howard found in her earlier books.
The aging Henry VIII in this novel was terrifying, repulsive, and absolutely spot-on to how I imagine him in his later years: pain turning him especially cruel and paranoid. At the same time, I liked how Gregory didn't outright villainize Henry, allowing him his moments of love, kindness, and generosity. It felt true to how many abusive relationships/marriages are: a few shining moments inside what is otherwise a grim, oppressive darkness.
For a story whose ending I already knew, I still remained on the edge of my seat, tittering from the suspense. In short, this is historical fiction at its finest. And I freaking loved it.
The aging Henry VIII in this novel was terrifying, repulsive, and absolutely spot-on to how I imagine him in his later years: pain turning him especially cruel and paranoid. At the same time, I liked how Gregory didn't outright villainize Henry, allowing him his moments of love, kindness, and generosity. It felt true to how many abusive relationships/marriages are: a few shining moments inside what is otherwise a grim, oppressive darkness.
For a story whose ending I already knew, I still remained on the edge of my seat, tittering from the suspense. In short, this is historical fiction at its finest. And I freaking loved it.
informative
slow-paced
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Even though I know the history and knew what was going to happen in the end, this book had me on the edge of my seat! It was that good. I loved Kate's arc, and Henry was a truly terrifying villain.
Much of the book deals with Kate becoming the first woman to be published under her own name in England. Every woman author should read this book, it will give you the heart to continue <3
Much of the book deals with Kate becoming the first woman to be published under her own name in England. Every woman author should read this book, it will give you the heart to continue <3
This is probably one of my favorite Philippa Gregory books after The Other Boleyn Girl. . I don't even really know why. It's no different than her other books. It's about King Henry's last wife before he died.
It starts out almost kind of boring, though. Kateryn Parr is in love with someone else but the King decides that he will marry her. So of course, she has no choice. She marries the King. It actually turns out to be a pretty good deal at first. The King lets Kateryn do basically whatever she wants. She also rules as regent because Henry is pretty sick at this point.
But things turn sour, as they normally do with this King. He gets fed little lies about Kateryn and what she has been doing. So he has to tame her, hence the title. Luckily, Kateryn survives this because King Henry finally dies. .
It really is such a good book. I've always wondered about the last wife, the one who survived. It's nice to learn about her and about Henry's last days. I highly recommend this book for any history buffs.
It starts out almost kind of boring, though. Kateryn Parr is in love with someone else but the King decides that he will marry her. So of course, she has no choice. She marries the King. It actually turns out to be a pretty good deal at first. The King lets Kateryn do basically whatever she wants. She also rules as regent because Henry is pretty sick at this point.
But things turn sour, as they normally do with this King. He gets fed little lies about Kateryn and what she has been doing. So he has to tame her, hence the title. Luckily, Kateryn survives this because
It really is such a good book. I've always wondered about the last wife, the one who survived. It's nice to learn about her and about Henry's last days. I highly recommend this book for any history buffs.
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes