The Red Queen (Philippa Gregory)

You know I love the British monarchy and historical fiction, so I knew I would like this book. The Red Queen is the story of Margaret Beaufort, a lady of the House of Lancaster, during the War of the Roses. She spends her life fighting to secure the throne for her son - the future King Henry VII. The White Queen is Margaret's primary adversary as the two royal houses of England battle it out.

Not a book that everyone would love (I recommend the Tudor books first), but I still enjoyed it!

Read: February/March 2011

Bonus: got this from the library!

The Red Tent (Anita Diamant)

We read this for Book Club in February and I really enjoyed it. I listened to it in the car (is that cheating?) on a drive to visit Sara in Houston. The Red Tent tells the biblical story of Jacob's four wives - Leah, Rachel, Bilhah and Zilpah - and his daughter Dinah. In the Bible, you read about the rape of Dinah and how Jacob took revenge by requiring the Canaanite tribe to be circumcised and then slaughtering them all in their sleep. This fictional interpretation re-creates the life of Dinah and describes the events from her point of view. This was the second time for me to read this book and I really enjoyed imaging the story behind the short biblical account. It also inspired me to study Genesis again to compare. Highly recommend!

Read: February/March 2011

Innocent Traitor (Alison Weir)

I listened to this book during my commute, which took several weeks, but I thoroughly enjoyed it and learned a lot about Lady Jane Grey. Alison Weir has written several biographies on the Tudors, so I feel like her novel is very accurate, even if some of the events are fiction. You really feel sorry for Jane and how her family made her take the crown and then abandoned her when she was named a traitor. Overall, a very good book, especially if you love Tudor history like I do.

Listened: March/April 2010
Length: 17 discs (that almost as long as Harry Potter!)

Sarah's Key

My friend Sara gave me this book for my birthday. It is about a Jewish girl whose family was part of a round up of Jews in Paris in WWII. She locks her little brother in a cupboard in their apartment so that he will be safe, but her family is sent to the camps and she has to escape to try to find him. The story goes back and forth between Sarah, the girl, and a journalist in current time who is doing a story on the anniversary of this little-known round up in Paris (called the Vel d'Hiv). The journalist, Julia, uncovers Sarah's secret and how it links to her family. I learned a lot about WWII and how Jews were treated in France, which is not something you usually hear about. The story was sad and heavy, but I'm very glad I read it. It is not one I will forget anytime soon.

Length: 330 pages
Time: August 5-15
Up Next: Twenties Girl by Sophie Kinsella

The Virgin's Lover

I'm not quite as interested in Queen Elizabeth as I was in Henry VIII's wives, but this was still a good book and I learned a lot. It actually made me want to learn a little more about Elizabeth's reign, in particular why she never married. This book covers the first few years of her time as queen, which was more tumultuous than I thought. Definitely worthwhile if you like Philippa Greggory's other books!

Plot: Elizabeth becomes queen and falls in love with Sir Robert Dudley...but he's married and she's queen...drama

Read: February 2009

Related Books: The Other Queen (next chronologically)

Next Up: Something Blue

Philippa Gregory Books

I love the books about the wives of Henry VIII by Philippa Greggory. She really brings the queens to life and makes you relate to them. I don't know what order they were published in, but I recommend reading them in chronological order:

The Constant Princess

This is the sweet, sad story of Katherine of Aragon, a princess of Spain who first married Henry VIII's older brother Philip. When Philip died, she hung around England until she managed to marry Henry and become queen. I loved reading about Katherine's love story with two brothers and her quest to be England's queen.

The Other Boleyn Girl

This book focuses on Anne Boleyn's sister Mary, who was one of Henry's mistresses before Anne lured Henry in and convinced him to divorce Katherine and separate from the Catholic church. Even though its a little long, the book is sooooo good! The author really brings out the relationship between the two sisters and the king and the struggle of the Boleyn family to rise (and stay) in power. So so so good.

The Boleyn Inheritance

This picks up after Anne Boleyn is killed and after wife #3 (Jane Seymour) dies in childbirth. Henry picks wife #4, a German princess, from a painting and when she shows up, he does not like her at all. So then Kitty Howard, Anne Boleyn's cousin, flirts her way on to the throne instead. Its written from the perspective of wife #4, wife #5 and Anne Boleyn's sister-in-law. Very interesting (although a tad long). It really makes me think Henry VIII was off his rocker toward the end of his reign. Too much power.

If you read these, let me know what you think!

After these books, read The Queen's Fool (about Henry's children and their ascent to the throne), then The Virgin's Lover (about Queen Elizabeth, I'm reading this right now) and then The Other Queen (about Mary Queen of Scots, this one is still on my list to read).

The Queen's Fool

I adore Philippa Gregory books. I love learning about the Tudor monarchy. After reading the description of this book, I felt sure it wouldn't live up to her other books. But I was very wrong. This one begins shortly after Henry VIII dies and covers the reign of his son Edward, the coup d'etat of the Lady Jane Grey, and the sad reign of Henry's daughter Mary. It also gives you an idea of how Jews lived through the tumultuous Tudor times. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this one.

Plot: Hannah Green, an undercover Jew, becomes a Fool in the Tudor court and witnesses the rise and fall of Edward, Lady Jane Grey, Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth.

Read: October 2008

Related Books: The Virgin's Lover (next chronologically) and the Boleyn books, which come before it

Next Up: Twilight