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bennettanneb 's review for:
The Constant Princess
by Philippa Gregory
Gregory is in top form in this book. I found the narrative style compelling, while others have found it jarring -- I enjoyed the shift from perspective to perspective.
I wouldn't necessarily say I learned a lot about Katherine of Aragon -- Gregory is still prone to play fast and loose with historical fact. But there is a lot we don't know about Katherine. Having just finished The Six Wives of Henry VIII by Alison Weir, I thought the differences in motivations between the Katherine she documents and the Katherine imagined by Gregory very interesting.
Weir believes Katherine's marriage to Arthur truly was not consummated, as she asserted. Gregory, obviously, chose a different, perhaps more romantic, perspective. I consider it a possibility -- I can certainly see Katherine's potential motivation for declaring the marriage as unconsummated, as it left her available for another beneficial marriage where she would be Queen, whereas if she returned home a widow her prospects were not as likely to end with her as queen. She also had every reason to fight Henry regarding the end of the marriage. She was the daughter of Isabella, ruler in her own right, and I find it unlikely that she would have easily given up her daughter's right to the succession.
Historical quibbles aside, the book was a fun read, and the time I spent with it certainly wasn't wasted. As long as you don't ask Gregory to give you a history lesson, you can't go wrong with her books.
I wouldn't necessarily say I learned a lot about Katherine of Aragon -- Gregory is still prone to play fast and loose with historical fact. But there is a lot we don't know about Katherine. Having just finished The Six Wives of Henry VIII by Alison Weir, I thought the differences in motivations between the Katherine she documents and the Katherine imagined by Gregory very interesting.
Weir believes Katherine's marriage to Arthur truly was not consummated, as she asserted. Gregory, obviously, chose a different, perhaps more romantic, perspective. I consider it a possibility -- I can certainly see Katherine's potential motivation for declaring the marriage as unconsummated, as it left her available for another beneficial marriage where she would be Queen, whereas if she returned home a widow her prospects were not as likely to end with her as queen. She also had every reason to fight Henry regarding the end of the marriage. She was the daughter of Isabella, ruler in her own right, and I find it unlikely that she would have easily given up her daughter's right to the succession.
Historical quibbles aside, the book was a fun read, and the time I spent with it certainly wasn't wasted. As long as you don't ask Gregory to give you a history lesson, you can't go wrong with her books.