A NIGHT OWL REVIEWS BOOK REVIEW | Reviewed by: Danya
Jane Seymour started out as a Maid of Honor to Catherine, Henry the VIII"s Spanish wife. She watched Catherine struggle to give Henry the prince he so strongly desired, and fail multiple times. Anne Boleyn, another of Catherine's Maids, schemed her way to Henry's affections, overthrowing a marriage and the Catholic church, only to fail herself in the goal of a prince for England. Jane Seymour finds herself the object of the king's attraction in his obsessive goal of a son, but Jane isn't sure she's willing to throw away her hopes for love. Carolly Erickson is one of the best known names in English historical entertainment, and "The Favored Queen" is her latest offering. Filled with intrigue, scandal and sex as only King Henry's court can do it, this book will keep you eagerly reading to the end. While at times the novel seems loose with reinterpretation, it is fictionalized history, and should be read for enjoyment. Fans of historical entertainment won't want to miss this book.
Dec 26, 2011 | 9780312596903
5 - Rare Top Pick | 4.5 - Top Pick | 4 - I Liked It | 3.5 - Enjoyable | 3 - OK | 2.5 - It just didn't click
Book Blurb for The Favored Queen
From The New York Times bestselling author of The Last Wife of Henry VIII comes a powerful and moving novel about Jane Seymour, third wife of Henry VIII, who married him only days after the execution of Anne Boleyn and ultimately lost her own life in giving him the son he badly needed to guarantee the Tudor succession Born into an ambitious noble family, young Jane Seymour is sent to Court as a Maid of Honor to Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIII’s aging queen. She is devoted to her mistress and watches with empathy as the calculating Anne Boleyn contrives to supplant her as queen. Anne’s single-minded intriguing threatens all who stand in her way; she does not hesitate to arrange the murder of a woman who knows a secret so dark that, if revealed, would make it impossible for the king to marry Anne. Once Anne becomes queen, no one at court is safe, and Jane herself becomes the victim of Anne’s venomous rage when she suspects Jane has become the object of the king’s lust. Henry, fearing that Anne’s inability to give him a son is a sign of divine wrath, asks Jane to become his next queen. Deeply reluctant to embark on such a dangerous course, Jane must choose between her heart and her loyalty to the king. Acclaimed biographer and bestselling novelist Carolly Erickson weaves another of her irresistible historical entertainments about the queen who finally gave Henry VIII his longed for heir, set against the excitement and danger of the Tudor Court.
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