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3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
Really enjoyed this book and the three different female perspectives it brings to the stories. Each are so different and intriguing.
This book covers the part of Henry VIII's life that I knew little about: wives 4 and 5 (Anne of Cleves and Katherine Howard). All I can say is, I'm glad I didn't live in Tudor England. Absolute madness! Well-written and engaging...I felt sympathetic to all the main characters (Henry excepted).
The third book in the Tudor Court series, The Boleyn Inheritance focuses on Henry VIII's fourth and fifth wife: Anne of Cleves and Catherine Howard, as well as Jane Boleyn, duchess of Rochford and a prominet lady at the court. Anne of Cleves is a German duchess who has lived all her life under her brother's authority. She's happy to move away from him and to England, even though she doesn't speak the language.
After her wedding, however, Anne is disappointed: her husband is old and tired, and can't even manage to have intercourse with her. He considers her plain and undesirable, plus she obviosuly can't bring him an heir. Anne would like to live closer to little prince Edward and the princesses Mary and Elizabeth - but Henry considers Elizabeth a bastard, and Mary is also in disgrace.
Among the ladies at the queen's court, fifteen-year-old Catherine Howard (cousin of Anne Boleyn) is able to catch the king's eye with her beauty and flirting. The duke of Norfolk, Catherine's uncle, tries to take advantage of this fact in order to put Catherine on the throne, in order to gain power for the Howard family. He also has Jane Rochford at the court, in order to spy on the queen. In just a few months, the king divorces from Anne of Cleves and marries Catherine Howard instead. While Catherine keeps behaving flirtatiously, she has an affair with the king's valet and is accused of treason.
Told in the alternating point of views of three women very different from each other, The Boleyn Inheritance is tightly knit together. Anne of Cleves is innocent and naive. She escapes the accusations of witchcraft and ends up being considered a sort of duchess, a "sister" to the king. Jane Boleyn's accusations brought her husband and sister-in-law to the scaffold and she's always feeling remorse about it, even though she did it with the idea of saving her husband's life. She is cunning and astute, and following the instructions she receives from the duke of Norfolk. However, she os deceived by him in the end.
Catherine Howard is a silly, young girl. She's barely fifteen when she marries Henry. She's young and revels in her power over men, in the pretty dresses and jewels she receives from the king. Her past, however, quickly comes back to haunt her. She is accused of not being a virgin when she married the king, and also having an affair. This time, Jane Boleyn does not survive the scandal.
I love Philippa Gregory's writing, I love learning about the Tudor court. I will be reading the next books in the series.
After her wedding, however, Anne is disappointed: her husband is old and tired, and can't even manage to have intercourse with her. He considers her plain and undesirable, plus she obviosuly can't bring him an heir. Anne would like to live closer to little prince Edward and the princesses Mary and Elizabeth - but Henry considers Elizabeth a bastard, and Mary is also in disgrace.
Among the ladies at the queen's court, fifteen-year-old Catherine Howard (cousin of Anne Boleyn) is able to catch the king's eye with her beauty and flirting. The duke of Norfolk, Catherine's uncle, tries to take advantage of this fact in order to put Catherine on the throne, in order to gain power for the Howard family. He also has Jane Rochford at the court, in order to spy on the queen. In just a few months, the king divorces from Anne of Cleves and marries Catherine Howard instead. While Catherine keeps behaving flirtatiously, she has an affair with the king's valet and is accused of treason.
Told in the alternating point of views of three women very different from each other, The Boleyn Inheritance is tightly knit together. Anne of Cleves is innocent and naive. She escapes the accusations of witchcraft and ends up being considered a sort of duchess, a "sister" to the king. Jane Boleyn's accusations brought her husband and sister-in-law to the scaffold and she's always feeling remorse about it, even though she did it with the idea of saving her husband's life. She is cunning and astute, and following the instructions she receives from the duke of Norfolk. However, she os deceived by him in the end.
Catherine Howard is a silly, young girl. She's barely fifteen when she marries Henry. She's young and revels in her power over men, in the pretty dresses and jewels she receives from the king. Her past, however, quickly comes back to haunt her. She is accused of not being a virgin when she married the king, and also having an affair. This time, Jane Boleyn does not survive the scandal.
I love Philippa Gregory's writing, I love learning about the Tudor court. I will be reading the next books in the series.
dark
emotional
sad
medium-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
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Since watching The Crown on Netflix, I have been wanting to dive into the world of the British monarchy. The best way that I know to do that is with Philippa Gregory, so I picked back up on the Tudor series with The Boleyn Inheritance. The inheritance that the title references is what was passed to Jane Boleyn - Anne Boleyn's sister in law. Jane is one of the women that gave evidence against Anne and her brother George (Jane's own husband) that led to their deaths. Jane inherited a title and a small pension, but since the death of her husband she has been living in a village and she desperately misses the court. But luckily, her conniving uncle, the Duke of Norfolk, has found a place for her with the new queen.
Henry VIII's latest wife, Jane Seymour, has died in childbirth and he is on the hunt for his latest conquest. He takes his bids and then sends an artist out to draw sketches of the top contenders so that he can make his final choice. When I type it out, this sounds like a reality show! But really, becoming the next queen of England on the Tudor court usually takes all of the feminine wiles that you see displayed on The Bachelor - and then some.
Henry surprisingly chooses Anne of Cleves - a twenty-something from Germany who is desperate to get away from her controlling and abusive brother and mother. Anne is different than the typical queen who Henry is drawn to, and their relationship is a challenge from their very first encounter.
New to Anne of Cleves' court is little Kitty Howard, a fourteen year old related to the Duke of Norfolk and Jane Boleyn. She quickly becomes a pawn in the Duke's chess game and the family once again seeks the throne. And of course, at this point Henry is nearing 50 and is no longer the handsome man that he was when he became King and married Catherine of Aragon. He stinks, literally. He has a festering wound on his leg and his teeth are rotting out of his head. He's gorged himself on whatever food he wants, so he's gained an enormous amount of weight. These women are subjected to his every whim of desire and it's how they react to it that determines their fates.
One of the things that I like about Gregory's work is that she repeats facts multiple times; normally that would drive me crazy in a book, but it's so helpful in these because the story line can quickly get confusing and it's hard to remember who's who. I have to admit that I LOVE these books. They're a bit risque, but I just fall into this opulent world of beauty and power. While these women actually led miserable and fearful lives, I do wonder what it would have been like to be dripping in pearls and diamonds and wearing the latest fashions. But I can be superficial at times. In fact, after watching The Crown and reading this, I went on a pinterest spree and pinned a ton of royal interior decorating pictures, trying to figure out how to make my house look like a palace (which is impossible).
All in all - this was very enjoyable and I intend to pick up the next in the series at the library ASAP.
Henry VIII's latest wife, Jane Seymour, has died in childbirth and he is on the hunt for his latest conquest. He takes his bids and then sends an artist out to draw sketches of the top contenders so that he can make his final choice. When I type it out, this sounds like a reality show! But really, becoming the next queen of England on the Tudor court usually takes all of the feminine wiles that you see displayed on The Bachelor - and then some.
Henry surprisingly chooses Anne of Cleves - a twenty-something from Germany who is desperate to get away from her controlling and abusive brother and mother. Anne is different than the typical queen who Henry is drawn to, and their relationship is a challenge from their very first encounter.
New to Anne of Cleves' court is little Kitty Howard, a fourteen year old related to the Duke of Norfolk and Jane Boleyn. She quickly becomes a pawn in the Duke's chess game and the family once again seeks the throne. And of course, at this point Henry is nearing 50 and is no longer the handsome man that he was when he became King and married Catherine of Aragon. He stinks, literally. He has a festering wound on his leg and his teeth are rotting out of his head. He's gorged himself on whatever food he wants, so he's gained an enormous amount of weight. These women are subjected to his every whim of desire and it's how they react to it that determines their fates.
One of the things that I like about Gregory's work is that she repeats facts multiple times; normally that would drive me crazy in a book, but it's so helpful in these because the story line can quickly get confusing and it's hard to remember who's who. I have to admit that I LOVE these books. They're a bit risque, but I just fall into this opulent world of beauty and power. While these women actually led miserable and fearful lives, I do wonder what it would have been like to be dripping in pearls and diamonds and wearing the latest fashions. But I can be superficial at times. In fact, after watching The Crown and reading this, I went on a pinterest spree and pinned a ton of royal interior decorating pictures, trying to figure out how to make my house look like a palace (which is impossible).
All in all - this was very enjoyable and I intend to pick up the next in the series at the library ASAP.
dark
emotional
informative
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I guess I should have realized this would be a glorified Harlequin Romance novel. It has been interesting but I'm not sure I could really recommend it. I do have a fascination with Henry VIII and will continue to read more---elsewhere.
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes