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dannip23 's review for:
The Other Boleyn Girl
by Philippa Gregory
A historical fiction following the sister of Anne Boleyn — Mary, who was mistress to King Henry VIII while he was married to his first wife Catherine. Mary Boleyn was married off at 14 to William Carey, but then catches the eye of King Henry. Her family, hoping to gain favor with the king, encourages the affair. Henry desperately wants a male heir, and his aging wife Katherine has been unable to produce one, so Mary eagerly offers to help. Of course, any children she does have are not legitimate, and she is stuck.
Not knowing the history well, I found it a little hard to follow at times. I took the story as a historical fiction, and took no part for granted (and was actually surprised afterwards how much was based in fact). Of course, there are historical liberties taken with the text, but I was only entertained, not bothered. However, the narrative is very well grounded in a sense of time and place, with lots of descriptions of 16th century life from what they did to what they ate.
The story is incredibly engaging — I found myself intrigued by the basic plot points: King Henry VIII beds young Mary Boleyn, then her sister Anne; Anne becomes queen and then is beheaded. The path that leads to these events is long and complicated, and I eagerly anticipated watching history unfold. I did find it dragged on at points, but overall a compelling read.
Not knowing the history well, I found it a little hard to follow at times. I took the story as a historical fiction, and took no part for granted (and was actually surprised afterwards how much was based in fact). Of course, there are historical liberties taken with the text, but I was only entertained, not bothered. However, the narrative is very well grounded in a sense of time and place, with lots of descriptions of 16th century life from what they did to what they ate.
The story is incredibly engaging — I found myself intrigued by the basic plot points: King Henry VIII beds young Mary Boleyn, then her sister Anne; Anne becomes queen and then is beheaded. The path that leads to these events is long and complicated, and I eagerly anticipated watching history unfold. I did find it dragged on at points, but overall a compelling read.