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| Random House UK Ebury Publishing 2014 |
The idea of an alternate Tudor history
has long fascinated me. There’s always been the hopeful glimmer of
what might have happened had Anne Boleyn not miscarried of the boy who would
have been her saviour. In The Boleyn
King, Laura Andersen imagines what English history would have been like if,
indeed, Henry and Anne’s son had survived.
The boy king, Henry IX, known as
William, is about to come into his majority leaving aside his mother’s brother,
George, who has acted as the young king’s regent, since Henry VIII’s death.
William’s mother Anne Boleyn , now the dowager queen, still retains her charismatic hold over the English
court.
What I found fascinating in this interpretation,
and we must remember that this is indeed historical fiction, was the way that life at the
English court was presented in such realistic detail, with the major historical
characters still keeping the faults and foibles for which they have long since been known.
Mary, is still aloof and largely unmanageable, whilst Elizabeth remains the shrewd
operator, hopelessly, in love with Robert Dudley.
The story is told through the
eyes of two main protagonists. Minuette, is a sweet and loving creature, closely attached to Elizabeth as one of her ladies in waiting, and Dominic, William’s
closest male confidante, all have been friends since childhood. Now in
early adulthood, this story charts their lives and loves, the dangers they all face
from being so close to the crown and of the people who would see them all destroyed.
Overall, this is very readable romantic
historical fiction. It delivers a nice blend of deadly intrigue combined with shades
of romance, which I found to be quite refreshing. The story kept my attention from
the beginning and, if I’m honest, being a Tudor purist, I enjoyed it, rather
more that I thought I would.
The Boleyn King is the first in a
series of alternate Tudor history novels:
The Virgin's Daughter - 2015
for the chance to read and review this book.
~***~
Oh too have such an imagination! This does sound really interesting!
ReplyDeleteThanks Peggy - it's not set in your beloved Scotland but well worth a read if you like 'imagined' English history !!
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