The sixth wife of Henry VIII. And the sixth book in the Tudor Queens series by Alison Weir.
I think I knew far too little about Katharine Parr. She was Henry's last wife. She survived him. She had two husbands before him. She married again when he died only to die herself in childbed. That's about all I knew.
Of course, this is a novel based on the life of the queens. However, there is a lot in it that is history and where we can learn about that time in England.
We see through the eyes of Katharine Parr that women were just a commodity, and not worth a lot for that. At her first marriage, she doesn't even know the husband. Then she has to look for another one because otherwise a woman has no means to live. When she falls in love with Thomas Seymour, she has to marry the king who also wants her. What a life!
In any case, Alison Weir has brought the Tudor queens to life in a way no history book could ever have done. For that, I thank her profoundly.
From the back cover:
"Two husbands dead; a life marred by sadness. And now Katharine is in love for the first time in her life.
The eye of an ageing and dangerous king falls upon her. She cannot refuse him. She must stifle her feelings and never betray that she wanted another.
And now she is the sixth wife. Her queenship is a holy mission yet, fearfully, she dreams of the tragic parade of women who went before her. She cherishes the secret beliefs that could send her to the fire. And still the King loves and trusts her.
Now her enemies are closing in. She must fight for her very life.
KATHARINE PARR – the last of Henry’s queens.
Alison Weir recounts the extraordinary story of a woman forced into a perilous situation and rising heroically to the challenge. Katharine is a delightful woman, a warm and kindly heroine – and yet she will be betrayed by those she loves and trusts most.
Weir, Alison "Six Tudor Queens. Katheryn Howard. The Tainted Queen" (US Title: The Scandalous Queen) - 2020
I have read all of Alison Weir's Tudor Queen books and this is the one about Henry VIIIs fifth wife. I have always read about her as being frivolous which she probably was. But the background about her and her family, I never heard of that.
A poor little girl who lost her mother when she was very young is sent from one place to the next and gets her "education" mainly from other young women who want nothing else than their enjoyment.
Alison Weir lets us see Katheryn Howard from a whole different point of view and that is the main reason why I think everyone who is interested in the Tudors should read the book. In her book about Anna of Kleve she took some liberties and invented "facts" that cannot be proven. Maybe she also did this with Henry's next queen though I doubt it because she even mentioned the stuff she had invented about Anna in her epilogue.
A pleasant read, as always. Looking forward to the book about the sixth and last wife, Katharine Parr.
From the back cover:
"Alison Weir, historian and author of the Sunday Times-bestselling Six Tudor Queens series, relates one of the most tragic stories in English history: Katheryn Howard, Henry VIII's fifth queen.
A naïve young woman at the mercy of her ambitious family.
At just nineteen, Katheryn Howard is quick to trust and fall in love.
She comes to court. She sings, she dances.
She captures the heart of the King.
But Henry knows nothing of Katheryn's past - one that comes back increasingly to haunt her. For those who share her secrets are waiting in the shadows, whispering words of love ... and blackmail.
"Top Ten Tuesday" is an original feature/weekly meme created on the blog "The Broke and the Bookish". This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at "The Broke and the Bookish".
Since I am just as fond of them as they are, I jump at the chance to share my lists with them! Have a look at their page, there are lots of other bloggers who share their lists here.
Most Anticipated Releases for the Second Half of 2020
I'm not necessarily waiting for a certain next book unless it's a sequel. That's especially difficult with German ones since here books first get published in hardback and only years later (at least it seems like it) in paperback.
Anyway, I have checked out recommendations on Goodreads and also looked out for new books by some of my favourite living authors and come up with the following list. Some of the books might not appear this next half of the year but they are about to be published.
Weir, Alison "Six Tudor Queens. Anna of Kleve. Queen of Secrets" (US Title: The Princess in the Portrait) - 2019
Finally, it's the turn of the next of Henry's queens. Queen #4, the German queen.
I was looking forward to this, especially since I had just watched "The Tudors", a series that should really be called "Henry VIII" since it only portrays his life and everyone during his reign, nothing before or after (where we had four other Tudor kings and queens).
I quite liked Anna in the series and already had liked her in "The Six Wives of Henry VIII". Now I got to "know" her a little better.
Granted, Alison Weir took quite a few liberties with spinning this story into an interesting one, I wasn't too happy that she elaborated on some speculations as if they really had happened that way.
Spoiler:
Anna had two children by a lover, only because Henry believes she wasn't a virgin when she got married.
***
But I suppose that's why they call it historial "fiction". Comparing the book to her other novels, I must say I did not enjoy this as much, mainly due to the made-up part. I now wonder how much she invented about the previous queens. She did lose a lot of her credibility.
Other than that, I loved how life both in Germany as well as in England was portrayed, how young Anna came to a foreign country without speaking the language and had to fear for her life when she noticed that she wasn't what the king wanted.
She must have been a strong woman to get through all of this and keep the king's love, something none of his other queens managed. Maybe Jane Seymour would have managed in the long run but we'll never know.
Find my reviews of Alison Weir's other books here.
From the back cover:
"A GERMAN PRINCESS WITH A GUILTY SECRET.
The King is in love with Anna's portrait, but she has none of the accomplishments he seeks in a new bride.
She prays she will please Henry, for the balance of power in Europe rests on this marriage alliance. But Anna's past is never far from her thoughts, and the rumours rife at court could be her downfall. Everyone knows the King won't stand for a problem queen.
ANNA OF KLEVE THE FOURTH OF HENRY'S QUEENS
HER STORY
Acclaimed, bestselling historian Alison Weir draws on new evidence to conjure a startling image of Anna as you've never seen her before. A charming, spirited woman, she was loved by all who knew her - and even, ultimately, by the King who rejected her.
History tells us she was never crowned. But her story does not end there."
Another description:
"Bestselling author and acclaimed historian Alison Weir tells the little-known story of Henry VIII’s fourth wife, as a grieving king chooses a bride sight unseen in the fourth novel in the epic and intrigue-filled Six Tudor Queens series. Newly widowed and the father of an infant son, Henry VIII realizes he must marry again to insure the royal succession. Now forty-six, overweight and unwell, Henry is soundly rejected by some of Europe’s most eligible princesses, but Anna of Kleve - a small German duchy - is twenty-four and eager to wed. Henry requests Anna’s portrait from his court painter, who enhances her looks, painting her straight-on in order not to emphasize her rather long nose. Henry is entranced by the lovely image, only to be bitterly surprised when Anna arrives in England and he sees her in the flesh. She is pleasant looking, just not the lady that Henry had expected. What follows is a fascinating story of this awkward royal union that had to somehow be terminated tactfully. Alison Weir takes a fresh and surprising look at this remarkable royal marriage by describing it from the point of view of Queen Anna, a young woman with hopes and dreams of her own, alone in a royal court that rejected her from the day she arrived."
I'm also a little annoyed with the book itself. I ordered it and received an edition that is totally different from the others that I already have although there is one that would fit in the series. I probably should have checked better before reviewing this but it still is annoying that there are always so many different covers around - even in the same country.
The cover I have looks a little more like chick lit. This would be the one that fits into my collection:
Weir, Alison "Six Tudor Queens: Jane Seymour. The Haunted Queen" - 2018
This was a book about Queen #3 in the series "Six Tudor Queens".
We meet Jane Seymour while Anne Boleyn is still alive, follow her through King Henry's courtship and everything involved, her family wanting her to encourage the King to fall in love with her so they can move higher in society, the other ladies observing what's going on, her own feelings. Alison Weir calls her the "Haunted Queen" and you can understand why this is a good description.
Jane Seymour had initially served Katharine of Aragon whom she loved and always regarded as the "True Queen". When she was forced to leave that household and serve under the new wife of Henry VIII, she did not do that voluntarily. That must have been so hard since those women shared everything.
We know that nobody is certain how those women lived their lives exactly but Alison Weir has a great talent to make us understand how it might have been. We learn so much about the life in their time and we can imagine how it all came to pass.
While reading this, I kept wondering what would have happened, if Jane Seymour had lived, if she hadn't died after giving birth to her first child. Maybe she would have had more male children who would have taken over after Edward died? Maybe Henry VIII would only have had three wives? After all, he is buried beside her.
I also liked how the author explained at the end, why she wrote the book the way she did, why she described Jane Seymour this way and not in a different way.
Eleven days after the death of Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour is to marry the King.
She has witnessed the danger and deceit that lie behind courtly play, and knows she must bear a son . . . or face ruin.
Queen Jane must step out of the shadows cast by Katherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn, but, in doing so, can she expose a gentler side to the brutal King?
Jane Seymour The Third Of Henry's Queens
Her Story
History tells us how she died.
This spellbinding novel explores the life she lived."
Find my reviews of Alison Weir's other books here.
Weir, Alison "Six Tudor Queens. Anne Boleyn. A King's Obsession" - 2017
After having read "The Six Wives of Henry VIII" and "Six Tudor Queens. Katherine of Aragon. The True Queen", I had to read the story of the next queen, probably the most well-known and disputed one of King Henry's wives, Anne Boleyn. A wonderful portrayal of a young woman who seemed to have it all, at least for a while.
Just as the story about Katherine of Aragon, this one is told from the point of view of the new queen, Anne Boleyn. We hear about so many other facts about her life and can understand her a little better, I believe. Was she really the woman who wanted to break up a marriage for the sake of her own advantage, to become queen, and was she thereby responsible for the creation of the Church of England? Or was she simply just another playball in men's politics, a way for her father advance into higher royal circles and thereby getting richer and more important, a new toy for the king to play with?
We may never know the real truth behind her but Alison Weir gave us the chance to have a look at her from a different side, to try to get to know the real Anne Boleyn. The author has a great knowledge about the Tudors and therefore is able to bring them closer to us.
When I was younger, I always wondered how this despotic king managed to find six women who were willing to marry him but I have since learned that getting married back then wasn't the same as it is today, certainly not in the royal and aristocratic circles. I am really looking forward to reading about the other four wives in the next books.
A wonderful novel.
From the back cover:
"The young woman who changed the course of history. Fresh from the palaces of Burgundy and France, Anne draws attention at the English court, embracing the play of courtly love. But when the King commands, nothing is ever a game. Anne has a spirit worthy of a crown - and the crown is what she seeks. At any price. ANNE BOLEYN. The second of Henry's Queens. Her story. History tells us why she died. This powerful novel shows her as she lived."
Find my reviews of Alison Weir's other books here.
After reading "Six Tudor Queens. Katherine of Aragon. The True Queen", I discovered that Alison Weir is not just going to write a book about every single one of Henry VIIIs wife but that she has already written a description of all their lives. In this book. I just had to go and read it.
Just as in the novel I read, we get to know the characters very well. There is so much information here about the six ladies who were married to Henry VIII as well as a lot about the king himself and the children. You get a complete picture of the Royal Tudor family, not just the Tudors but all their contemporaries, the European Royal families, the people and families of influence a the time. At the beginning of the book, you find a chronology beginning with the Battle of Bosworth in 1458 and ending with the accession to the throne by Elizabeth I. in 1558. At the end there are several family trees of the families involved. There is so much to learn and Alison Weir makes it so easy to get into the lives of the people living at the time. I sometimes got confused with people having two different names, e.g. if someone is a Duke or an Earl he is named by his title but he also has a Christian name and you only see the relationship to his family by that name. But, the author has thought about that, as well. There is an Index at the end that gives you all the names and pages where they are mentioned.
I always found the Tudors interesting but this book taught me more than all the other books and documentations I read about them. A well written non-fiction book that reads almost like a novel and comprises everything you would look for in almost every other genre. Love and friendship, birth and death, murder, intrigues, betrayal, religion and politics and, of course, politics. What else do you need to find a fascinating book?
From the back cover:
"One of the most powerful monarchs in British history, Henry VIII ruled England in unprecedented splendour. In this remarkable composite biography, Alison Weir brings Henry's six wives vividly to life, revealing each as a distinct and compelling personality in her own right. Drawing upon the rich fund of documentary material from the Tudor period, The Six Wives of Henry VIII shows us a court where personal needs frequently influenced public events and where a life of gorgeously ritualised pleasure was shot through with ambition, treason and violence."
Find my reviews of Alison Weir's other books here.
Weir, Alison "Six Tudor Queens. Katherine of Aragon. The True Queen" - 2015
I always found the Tudor period captivating, I have read about Elizabeth I in Margaret George's great Novel "Elizabeth I" and other works about the Virgin Queen, I have read Hilary Mantel's novels "Wolf Hall" and "Bring up the Bodies" where I learned about the Boleyns, Thomas Cromwell, I have read about Shakespeare in the time of Elizabeth I. but I have never read a whole book about Katherine of Aragon, I have always seen her through the eyes of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, the "old" wife who didn't want to get divorced and therefore forced her husband to break with the church.
Now here is a chance to see it all through Katherine's eyes, learning her side of the story, how she came to England to become the wife of Henry's brother Arthur first but then was taken by Henry after his brother died. Only to be cast aside when she couldn't provide a male heir.
This novel certainly makes us more acquainted with Katherine, her life, her love, her desires, her problems. She was a strong woman, courageous, someone who tried to make the best of what life threw into her way but in the end, her husband was more powerful. Not better, not stronger, he just had more power behind himself.
Alison Weir manages to write about all this and more, how life in Tudor times was, especially in the court, of course, but she introduces so many characters that you can well imagine life anywhere, you even think it was better to be poor and have nothing to do with aristocracy at all.
So many occurrences during Katherine's life determine history and the way we live today.
What if?
Katherine of Aragon had died on her way to England?
Prince Arthur had not died?
Prince Arthur had died before marrying Katherine?
Prince Arthur had died after having had a son?
Katherine had not married Henry after Arthur died?
One of Katherine's sons had survived?
Ann Boleyn had married at the French court?
Henry and Ann Boleyn had never met?
Ann Boleyn had died of "the sweat"?
Queen Mary had not died?
If either of these incidents had or had not occurred, there would be no Anglican church today. At least not the way Henry created it.
It's interesting to follow Katherine's life and ask yourself those questions. A phenomenal book.
"A Spanish princess. Raised to be modest, obedient and devout. Destined to be an English Queen. Six weeks from home across treacherous seas, everything is different: the language, the food, the weather. And for her there is no comfort in any of it. At sixteen years-old, Catalina is alone among strangers. She misses her mother. She mourns her lost brother. She cannot trust even those assigned to her protection. KATHERINE OF ARAGON. The first of Henry’s Queens. Her story. Acclaimed, bestselling historian Alison Weir has based her enthralling account of Henry VIII’s first wife on extensive research and new theories. She reveals a strong, spirited woman determined to fight for her rights and the rightful place of her daughter. A woman who believed that to be the wife of a King was her destiny. History tells us how she died. This captivating novel shows us how she lived."
Find my reviews of Alison Weir's other books here.
