I've just finished Philippa Gregory's latest offering in the Tudor period, The Boleyn Inheritance. Suffice to say that the Boleyn inheritance is death & so is this novel to read. It took me about 5 days to get through (where normally I would gobble up a nice Tudor book in 1 or 2 sittings tops) because this is the most annoying book she has ever written.
The focus is on 3 main characters, Anne of Cleves, Catherine Howard, & Jane Rochford. The entire book is written in the first person from each woman's point of view, which I do wish writers would stop doing! Gregory is particularly irksome because she has very short chapters, some only a page or 2, & it is very jarring to have to keep switching back & forth between who's saying "I" all the time like that. I found it hard going because I no sooner settled into Anne of Cleves' head when she would hurl a page and a half of Jane Rochford in immediately followed by Catherine Howard & so on.
She also called Catherine Howard "Kitty", which I have never seen used as a nickname till maybe the 18th century or so. There was lurid voyeurism as Jane had to watch Kitty & Thomas Culpeper have at it The plot was that Jane was Norfolk's minion told to hurl Culpeper at Catherine's head to get her pregnant & assure the Howard ascendancy. Before that she was told to hurl Catherine herself at Henry to break up Anne of Cleves' marriage. Gregory writes Jane as crazy as a bedbug, but I really think one could not be that much of a whack job & still survive 20 years at Court (unless of course one was Henry LOL, who was portrayed as a madman).
Catherine Howard was presented as TOO STOOPID TO LIVE. I mean STOOPID. I mean so stoopid that all she could do was count her gowns & jewels & flirt with boys, that the sole French word she knew was "voila!", that she did not understand what a Bill of Attainder was (now come on, with all the attainding Henry did, who wouldn't know that?)....& remember this is all first person narrative so it sorta turned one's brain to oatmeal
There were also a plethora of historical inaccuracies regarding Court protocol....I actually checked her bibiliography to see if she had cited Agnes Strickland as a source I was also irked when she went on about Jane's recollections of Anne's execution, stating Anne had put her head on the block & raised her arms as her signal to the headsman. Has she never read how Anne died? The French SWORDSMAN? No swordsman worth his salt would ever destroy his blade whacking hard enough to chop a head off on a BLOCK Obviously Anne knelt for this, as that was the way to do it, & there was no block involved. There is also the story about how the headsman tried to distract her from the blow so that she would not know it was coming, so no signal as well.
Catherine Howard was also brought to the scaffold kicking & screaming, which almost never happens. The only person I can even think of who tried to outrun the executioner was Margaret Pole. Jane watched this through her window which conveniently looked out on Tower Green, which also probably didn't happen. About the only thing Gregory got right was that Henry had an Act of Parliament passed to execute insane persons specifically to get rid of Jane Rochford, the perennial Tudor thorn.
I think this is the worst piece of Tudor tripe Gregory has ever penned. Anyone else read this nonsense?
Philippa Gregory's last several books have been more fantacy than historical fiction! I just can't believe it is one of her Boleyn books that Hollywood is making into a movie.
I will have to check my travel pictures, but I seem to remember a block at the Tower when I was there in 1994, with a plaque saying this is where Anne Boleyn was excuted...When I was back there 10 years later it was gone...I just wonder if it could have been put there for the tourists?
Ugh...I couldn't stomach this one either Philippa Gregory needs to get off this first-person thing for one. It really was annoying to read. Robin Maxwell's novels are much better written.
I have almost every book by Robin Maxwell, the only one I haven't read is Signora da Vinci. I didn't mind the Boleyn Inheritance, but I agree that Catherine Howard could not have been that stupid. The phrase 'and what do I have now' really started to annoy me.
I bought The White Queen (probably a mistake) but I haven't read it yet. I loved The Other Boleyn Girl, but after that I didn't really feel the same about the rest of her books.
& so is this novel to read. It took me about 5 days to get through (where normally I would gobble up a nice Tudor book in 1 or 2 sittings tops) because this is the most annoying book she has ever written.
Obviously Anne knelt for this, as that was the way to do it, & there was no block involved. There is also the story about how the headsman tried to distract her from the blow so that she would not know it was coming, so no signal as well.
ReplacedJudymar
