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My Lady of Cleves by Margaret Campbell Barnes
My Lady of Cleves by Margaret Campbell Barnes
My Lady of Cleves covers the life of Anne of Cleves from right before her marriage to Henry VIII until his death in 1547. The story opens with an agitated King Henry VIII, talking with his ministers about his need for a new wife after the death of his third wife, Jane Seymour in childbed. Among the candidates are the Duchess of Milan and the Cleves Princesses. The Duchess of Milan has already replied with Only if I had two heads! Smart girl!
Hans Holbein is sent to Cleves to paint both Anne and her sister, Amelia. Once there he becomes quite smitten with Anne and they begin a friendship. He paints a flattering picture of her because that is the way he sees her. Unfortunately, Henry does not see the same way and is almost instantly put off by Annes looks and hard mannerisms. Henry likes the petite type (go figure!).
We follow Anne through her short marriage to Henry, her annulment, retirement to Richmond Palace, Henrys next marriage to Katherine Howard and her eventual downfall. Anne even plays a part in the infamous scene where Katherine is desperate to talk to Henry and goes screaming for him through the halls of the Palace.
Anne seems to resign herself to her fate; after all she still has her head! She genuinely enjoys the life of a Princess of England; she can come and go as she pleases and has no husband or man to answer to. In seeing the freedom that Anne as a woman had, that had to have been a big impact on Elizabeth I, who always said she would never have a master.
My Lady of Cleves was an interesting look into a woman that survived marriage to Henry VIII. Anne is very likeable and I think she would have made a wonderful Queen, had she been given the chance. I wish the story was longer and covered the time during Marys rule as Queen - I would have liked to have heard Annes thoughts on Bloody Mary.
Margaret Campbell Barnes is also the author of Brief, Gaudy Hour, a novel on Anne Boleyn.
Note: Anne of Cleves died at Hever Castle on July 16, 1557. She lived 10 years past Henry. Her tomb is in a hard to find place in Westminster Abbey.
Overall: 4/5
Song: "Sweet Dreams" by Tori Amos
Hans Holbein is sent to Cleves to paint both Anne and her sister, Amelia. Once there he becomes quite smitten with Anne and they begin a friendship. He paints a flattering picture of her because that is the way he sees her. Unfortunately, Henry does not see the same way and is almost instantly put off by Annes looks and hard mannerisms. Henry likes the petite type (go figure!).
We follow Anne through her short marriage to Henry, her annulment, retirement to Richmond Palace, Henrys next marriage to Katherine Howard and her eventual downfall. Anne even plays a part in the infamous scene where Katherine is desperate to talk to Henry and goes screaming for him through the halls of the Palace.
Anne seems to resign herself to her fate; after all she still has her head! She genuinely enjoys the life of a Princess of England; she can come and go as she pleases and has no husband or man to answer to. In seeing the freedom that Anne as a woman had, that had to have been a big impact on Elizabeth I, who always said she would never have a master.
My Lady of Cleves was an interesting look into a woman that survived marriage to Henry VIII. Anne is very likeable and I think she would have made a wonderful Queen, had she been given the chance. I wish the story was longer and covered the time during Marys rule as Queen - I would have liked to have heard Annes thoughts on Bloody Mary.
Margaret Campbell Barnes is also the author of Brief, Gaudy Hour, a novel on Anne Boleyn.
Note: Anne of Cleves died at Hever Castle on July 16, 1557. She lived 10 years past Henry. Her tomb is in a hard to find place in Westminster Abbey.
Overall: 4/5
Song: "Sweet Dreams" by Tori Amos
- MLE (Emily Cotton)
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- princess garnet
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I'm reading this book at the moment. I like how Hans Holbein gets plenty of stage time. Not to give anything away, he only appears in the 1st chapter of The Boleyn Inheritance.
Observation so far: pace not as quick as TBI but you can get a fuller picture of Anne's view at her life in England
Observation so far: pace not as quick as TBI but you can get a fuller picture of Anne's view at her life in England
Last edited by princess garnet on Wed September 10th, 2008, 9:23 pm, edited 1 time in total.
[quote=""amyb""]Thank you for the compliment! I am still new to this reviewing thing, so I appreciate the encouragement![/quote]
Good review, but I agree about when you're first starting out writing these things. It's not as easy as it seems!
I read this a couple of years ago and if I recall pretty close together with PG's The Boleyn Inheritance. It was fun comparing the two. She's got one about Richard II I read recently that was quite good as well. I'll look up the title if anyone's interested.
Good review, but I agree about when you're first starting out writing these things. It's not as easy as it seems!
I read this a couple of years ago and if I recall pretty close together with PG's The Boleyn Inheritance. It was fun comparing the two. She's got one about Richard II I read recently that was quite good as well. I'll look up the title if anyone's interested.
It sure is tough and the poeple here don't help my self-esteem because all of you ROCK at reviews, especially you Misfit! But I learn a lot from all of you, so I am grateful for the wonderful resources I have here.
BTW - I would be interested in reading something on Richard II. Thanks!
BTW - I would be interested in reading something on Richard II. Thanks!
Last edited by amyb on Thu September 11th, 2008, 12:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.