Rosie’s #Bookreview Team #RBRT THE LADY ANNE by G Lawrence @TudorTweep #Tudor #HistFic

Today’s team review is from Cathy, she blogs here http://betweenthelinesbookblog.wordpress.com/

Cathy has been reading The Lady Anne , book #2 in the Above all others series by Gemma Lawrence

As with the first book, this one also opens with Anne in the Tower of London awaiting her fate, lost in reminiscences. She recalls arriving in England after her years in France, unhappy and homesick to leave the country and people she loves. And all because her father wants to marry her off to acquire the estates and titles he thinks should rightly belong to his family.

Anne is not at all happy with the situation. She feels more French than English, is afraid she won’t fit in and will be friendless in this country which now seems alien to her. The terrible English weather doesn’t help, adding to her misery. But her childhood friend and neighbour, Thomas Wyatt, soon becomes her ally and champion. Joining the court as a maid of honour to Henry VIII’s Queen, Katherine, Anne becomes very popular and a leader in fashion with her own individual dress sense.

It’s fascinating to read an account of what could have been Anne’s thoughts, feelings and daily life, getting an insight into her character and motivations, to see Henry VIII through her eyes, and also through the eyes of her brother, George, and sister, Mary, both of whom were close to Henry. In some ways Anne is a contradiction, intelligent and sophisticated yet with the romantic ideals of a girl, as shown by her involvement with Henry Percy.

Anne had felt an attraction to Henry for years but only after she re-enters the Court after her banishment by Cardinal Wolsey for her ‘presumptuous and arrogant’ plans to marry Percy, does the attraction flourish as she and Henry were often in the same circles. Although she’s always been envious of her sister’s relationship with Henry, Anne is determined she will be no man’s mistress, not even a King’s.

Anne’s portrayal is realistic and believable and I enjoyed the interactions between Anne and Henry. It’s extremely interesting to read about court life, the intrigues behind the scenes and how false it seems most of the time.

As with the first book, the attention to detail and obvious research is wonderful, clothes, food, manners and court politics, all bringing the past to life vividly.

Book Description

1522, England. 
Anne Boleyn has lived an adventurous youth in the glittering courts of Europe, now, promised in marriage to a man she knows nothing of, Anne has been called home by her ambitious father. She will enter the English Court, to find many admirers courting her. Anne finds potential for love in three men, but there is one… more unexpected than all the others, who claims her heart. 
The beginning of a love which would change the course of English history, and shake the foundations of the Church… 
The courtier’s daughter who captured the heart of a King; Anne Boleyn. 
The Lady Anne is book two of Above All Others: The Lady Anne by G.Lawrence. 

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About the author

I am an independently published author, and proud to be so. Living in a little cottage in Cornwall in the UK, I love where I live as much as I love to write.

The age of the Tudors has been an obsession for me since I was a child, and many of my upcoming books will center on that time, but I also pen the odd dystopian fiction or historical fiction from other time periods. I will be releasing all my titles on amazon, for kindle and then hopefully for print later. 

I studied Literature (with a capital L) at University and usually have twenty or more books I’m currently reading. Reading and writing are about mood for me, and I haven’t found a genre I didn’t enjoy something about so far… 

You can often find me on Wattpad or Twitter when I’m not writing…

Rosie’s Avid Readers #RBRT Sovereign by C.J Sansom #bookreview #Tudors #Mystery

Rosie’s Avid readers are people who like reading and have a book to tell us about, they are the voice of a friend who says ” I just read this book….”

Avid Reader’s Thoughts

Another great insight into life in Tudor times. Mysteries & Murders solved without modern techniques. Although out of sequence with the others I have read in the series it seems not to matter they each stand on their own.

Book Description

Autumn 1541. A plot against the throne has been uncovered, and Henry VIII has set off on a spectacular progress from London to York, along with a thousand soldiers, the cream of the nobility, and his fifth wife, Catherine Howard, to quell his rebellious northern subjects. Awaiting his arrival are lawyer Matthew Shardlake and his loyal assistant, Jack Barak. In addition to processing petitions to the king, Shardlake’s task is to protect a dangerous conspirator until he is transported back to London for interrogation.

But when a local glazier is murdered, things get a little more complicated as the murder seems to be not only connected to Shardlake’s prisoner but also to the royal family itself. Then Shardlake stumbles upon a cache of secret papers that throws into doubt the legitimacy of the entire royal line, and a chain of events unfolds that threatens Shardlake with the most terrifying fate of the age: imprisonment in the Tower of London.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

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Last Child by Terry Tyler

Last Child by Terry Tyler

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Last Child is the much anticipated sequel to Kings and Queens. It’s a modern day take of the loves and lives of The Tudor descendants of Henry VIII. Kings and Queens introduced us to Harry Lanchester, property developer and his six wives again in a mirrored modern day setting. With Last Child we read about similar mirrored lives of his children. Jasper – Edward VI, Isabella – Mary I and Erin – Elizabeth I written with a fictional take which brings these modern characters alive.

It’s a stand alone book but you would get so much more from it if you first read Kings and Queens because many of the characters return in this wonderful tribute. There is an introduction to set the scene and a link to helpful historical notes if it’s a period of history you are unfamiliar with. The book is written in three parts like the reign of the three characters from history and the chapters within are told from the points of view of many of the wonderful colourful players in the story.

With (King) Harry dead, twelve year old Jasper is son and heir to the Lanchester estates, Uncle Ned Seymour is appointed to run the company until Jasper is of age. Jasper and Erin are living in the care of their stepmother Kate who recently married Jasper’s Uncle Aiden. Within the business there are fighting factions, Jim Dudley is assisting Ned but doesn’t get on well with him. Erin and Isabella are divided in whom they support while Jaz, as he likes to be called is really just an out of control teenager raging against life and hormones.

Having lost both his parents Jaz finds it really hard at times to express himself and ex-nanny Hannah Cleveley suggests he uses a Dictaphone as a type of therapy. As a reader it’s a lovely way to reach inside the mind of a teenage boy and shows the pressures he feels life puts on him and how he copes.

When disaster strikes, the door to managing Lanchester estates is opened for Isabella to take over, we have a brief interlude when the storyline turns to the life and events which surround Raine Grey who in history was Lady Jane Grey who reigned for just nine days. I wanted to dislike Raine when we first met her but she became one of my favourite characters by the end.

During Isabella’s time as manager of Lanchester estates, she rules with an iron-fist and an unpopular one too. Desperate to find someone to share her life and to pour her love into she has a holiday romance with Philip Castillo who she meets in Spain. Everyone can see it’s a disastrous choice except Isabella who becomes so intense that it drives her to madness.

Waiting in the wings is Erin, a chestnut haired beauty who has worked hard and is valued by all those around her. A strong supporter of her family and friends, she’s not been left untarnished by the tragic events that surround her life. Seeing so many of those she loves die and aware of the disastrous trail of marriage break-downs that she has witnessed, she vows never to marry despite the constant companionship and on/off relationship she has with Rob Dudley.

I knew the end of the book was near but I wanted to shout NO when I reached the last line, I wanted more. When a book leaves you emotional and begging for more it’s definitely a sign of a brilliant read. Worth everyone of it’s five stars and more.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

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