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A review by littleredhat
A Contemporary Asshat at the Court of Henry VIII by MaryJanice Davidson
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Whilst suffering a migraine at an English Renaissance Faire, American ex-pat Joan Howe takes an experimential new pill, and finds herself at the Field of the Cloth of Gold. Not a recreation... the real event!
This kickstarts a series of adventures back to Tudor times, where Joan, hired by scientists of debatable ability, sanity and morality, is sent to retrieve other "losties" - fellow 21st Century people hurled back through the centuries. She winds up meeting, and intervening in, the lives of King Henry VIII, Catherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn. But can Joan keep her head - literally! - whilst finding her losties... and just maybe, whilst finding love with her handsome Tudor companion, Thomas, or charming scientist, Warren?
This was a really funny sci-fi romp, and it was amusing to see how an American author views England and our society. (We all have expensive Tudor family heirlooms in our attics, you say? Ours must have been stolen, then! 😄) Even the title has a very American feel! Joan has the classic heroic tragic past, but is far from a Mary Sue - proving funny, fallible and relatable. If, like me, you have a knowledge of Tudor history, you're likely to enjoy the alternate timeline hints and "what ifs" posited through the plot, and some brilliant twists are worked in, too!
The romance aspect is sweet, but not overdone - never quite turning into a full-on Mills and Boon story, which is good. Although Joan is a perfectly capable solo heroine, I was rooting for my preferred couple right from the start. And kudos to Morgan Hallett for performing both the Midwestern USA and regal English accents so well!
This kickstarts a series of adventures back to Tudor times, where Joan, hired by scientists of debatable ability, sanity and morality, is sent to retrieve other "losties" - fellow 21st Century people hurled back through the centuries. She winds up meeting, and intervening in, the lives of King Henry VIII, Catherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn. But can Joan keep her head - literally! - whilst finding her losties... and just maybe, whilst finding love with her handsome Tudor companion, Thomas, or charming scientist, Warren?
This was a really funny sci-fi romp, and it was amusing to see how an American author views England and our society. (We all have expensive Tudor family heirlooms in our attics, you say? Ours must have been stolen, then! 😄) Even the title has a very American feel! Joan has the classic heroic tragic past, but is far from a Mary Sue - proving funny, fallible and relatable. If, like me, you have a knowledge of Tudor history, you're likely to enjoy the alternate timeline hints and "what ifs" posited through the plot, and some brilliant twists are worked in, too!
The romance aspect is sweet, but not overdone - never quite turning into a full-on Mills and Boon story, which is good. Although Joan is a perfectly capable solo heroine, I was rooting for my preferred couple right from the start. And kudos to Morgan Hallett for performing both the Midwestern USA and regal English accents so well!