The Shadow of the Pomegranate

Tudor Saga #3

by Jean Plaidy

Whilst the young King Henry VIII basks in the pageants and games of his glittering court, his doting queen's health and fortunes fade. Henry's affections for his older wife soon stray, leaving the lonely Katharine to instead use her marital sway to dangerous foreign advantage. Overseas battles play on Henry's volatile temper, and whilst many his power, rumours of his fruitful affairs are notorious. With no legitimate heir yet born, Katharine once again begins to fear for her future...

Genres: Historical Fiction, Historical, Fiction, Tudor Period, British Literature, 16th Century, Royalty

306 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1962

About the author

Eleanor Alice Burford, Mrs. George Percival Hibbert was a British author of about 200 historical novels, most of them under the pen name Jean Plaidy which had sold 14 million copies by the time of her death. She chose to use various names because of the differences in subject matter between her books; the best-known, apart from Plaidy, are Victoria Holt (56 million) and Philippa Carr (3 million). Lesser known were the novels Hibbert published under her maiden name Eleanor Burford, or the pseudonyms of Elbur Ford, Kathleen Kellow and Ellalice Tate. Many of her readers under one penname never suspected her other identities.
-Wikipedia

Reviews

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

After languishing in England for several years following the untimely death of her husband Arthur, Katharine of Aragon is married to Henry VIII. She has been a pawn in the games of kings for years, and she sees her marriage as a new beginning. She is queen of England now. But little does Katharine know....once a pawn, always a pawn. Everything rides on her producing a son...a healthy baby....a Tudor heir. Henry showers her with love and affection, and Katharine does her best to be a good wife and queen...but there is always the implied threat. Produce an heir....or else.

Or else what?

The Shadow of the Pomegranate is the second book about Katharine by Jean Plaidy, and the 3rd book in her Tudor Saga. It follows Katharine's life from the time of her marriage to Henry until the birth of her daughter, Mary. Katharine learns that the Queen of England can wield some power within court and the kingdom, but she is nothing when it comes to Henry's will. He wants a son....it is Katharine's duty to give him a healthy son. Henry tries to be a good husband and king, but as the years progress with miscarriages, babies who only live a short time, and a healthy daughter....he starts to obsess. No heir. That must be his wife's fault, right? What a precarious position Katharine found herself in! I can only imagine the stress, sorrow and fear that touched her life during those years. The pain of knowing that Henry was turning to mistresses.....that a mistress had given him a son but she could not..... I can't even imagine. Katharine's life runs the full spectrum -- incredibly happy, joyous and powerful to completely sad, abandoned and powerless. Producing baby after baby without the desired result and seeing her husband begin to resent and even dislike her must have been incredibly difficult.

I have been collecting Plaidy's books for years. I am a completist and don't like to read a series until I have all the books on my shelf. That's a bit hard with writers like Plaidy (a pen-name for author Eleanor Hibbert. She also wrote under other names including Victoria Holt and Philippa Carr) because some of her books are long out of print. It finally dawned on me that it is ridiculous to collect an author's works for a decade, and not read any of them! So, with the help of 3 library cards (one metro, two small regional), online resources and buying a few titles still missing, I am finally diving into my Plaidy collection with gusto! I started with the Tudor Saga. I know the history, but I'm enjoying Plaidy's take on events. She takes the historical facts and fills in details -- conversations, thoughts, emotions, intrigue, drama....she puts the humanity and its faults in place. I wish I had started reading much sooner! These books are wonderful!

Plaidy does NOT write historical romance. These books are historical fiction. There is a difference. Plaidy weaves the tale of history, adding in what might have taken place between key figures. The main portion of the story is not romance, sex, etc.....the crux of the story is the history. What happened? Why? What was the result? How did the historical figures involved feel about it? Sure, there is some sex, emotions, relationships, drama....because we are dealing with kings, marriages, politics, and human lives. Readers who want a bit of history but more kingly bedroom antics need to turn to a romance writer's books. Those who are looking for history with just a tiny touch of sex and sin will enjoy Plaidy's works. It's all about the history, baby. Not Henry VIII's naughty bits. I'm not saying there is anything wrong with naughty bits.....just don't want readers to be disappointed that there are no heaving bosoms and passionate embraces in these books. Naughty bits are implied, but never dangle freely, if you know what I mean.

Awesome book! I pause before moving on to the next book, The King's Secret Matter. We all know what happens next.....and I'm not sure I'm ready to read Plaidy's account of the King's treatment of his first wife. I need to watch some Disney channel and read a couple middle grade books to clear my head before I delve into the last years of Katharine's life. Henry was a bit of a wanker.....and Katharine paid the price for disappointing him. Such a sad story....

Wonderful book!! I'm loving this series!

[BAM doesn’t answer to her real name · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audiobook #247

[Carol, She's so Novel ꧁꧂ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have struggled to find Plaidys recently & was delighted to find this one in a second hand book store.

There is no one as good as Plaidy at creating the feeling of mistrust & unease that minor royals & coutiers must have felt in Tudor times. Fascinating watching Henry the VIII change from a rash & petulant boy, to a terrifying tyrant.

[Annelies - In Another Era · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this one A LOT. 4,5 ster

Jean Plaidy (een pseudoniem) stierf in het jaar dat ik werd geboren. Ze heeft ontzettend veel boeken geschreven over mijn favoriete periodes in de geschiedenis. Ik wou haar dus zeker een kans geven, maar ik verwachte een verouderde visie op de gebeurtenissen.

Dit boek gaat over de eerst jaren in het huwelijk van Katherine en Henry. Ik weet zeer goed wat er in deze periode politiek gezien allemaal gebeurde, maar las er nog nooit over. De meeste boeken beginnen bij Anne Boleyn.

Oké, ik heb genoten. Het boek is geschreven vanuit Katherine's standpunt, maar heel wat andere personages doen hun zegje. Sommige standpunten vond ik heerlijk verfrissend. En het boek focust op hun huwelijk, maar schuwt het politiek plaatje zeker niet. De relatie met Spanje, Frankrijk, de Nederlanden en de bijhorende verdragen en oorlogen worden grondig toegelicht. En dat vormde voor mij een ideale mix.

En verouderde visie? Ik was op veel vlakken akkoord met haar neerzetting van de personages. Behalve op 1 punt, waar een bepaald personage ineens heel jong wordt voorgesteld. Jammer, dat haalde me even uit het verhaal. Haar ware leeftijd had het verhaal ook niet minder goed gemaakt. Maar echt een detail, want dat personage wordt in dit boek nog maar 1x vermeld. Enfin, verder echt een foutloos parcours wat mij betreft.

De schrijfstijl is heel feitelijk en misschien wat cliché, maar ik neem zeker nog meer boeken van haar op.

[Tracey · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice Tudor read , told from the points of view of both Henry VIII and Katharine of Aragon.

[June · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Then he began to pace up and down again.....a lion, not sure of his strength, but aware of the cage that enclosed him. The bars were strong, but his strength was growing. One day, he knew, he would break out of the cage. Then there would be nothing - no person on Earth to restrain him."

The Shadow of the Pomegranate follows on from Katharine, the Virgin Widow - not only focusing on poor Katharine of Aragon, Henry VIII's long-suffering first wife; but the politics in Europe, involving Katharine's father, Ferdinand of Spain (and his duplicity and sneakiness), and Louis of France, highlighting Henry's embarrassment and rage at being tricked and used by both these countries.

"His face was suffused with rage. The tyrant was bursting his bonds. The metamorphosis was taking place before the eyes of the Queen. The vain, good-natured boy was showing signs of the brutal egocentric man."

Poor Katharine has an unenviable life. She undergoes numerous pregnancies in Henry's quest for a son - most of them resulting in a still-birth or miscarriage - and is accused (by her husband) of conniving with her father in order to serve Spain and ruin England....

"But he cut in: 'I do not forget. I know full well that you have been in league with your father, whispering in my ear, tempting me to this or that project...knowing all the while that it was to your father's benefit...and not to mine'.

'Henry, I swear this to be untrue.'

'Swear if you will. But who trusts a Spaniard?'

'You talk to me as though I were a stranger....and an enemy.'

'You are a Spaniard,' he said."

On top of all of this, she then discovers that her beloved husband is having a "fling" with one of her ladies-at-Court, Bessie Blount, which in its turn has an outcome which "twists the dagger" into Katharine's rather fragile future. To me, Henry appears a very unlikeable character, self-centred, and extravagant - as demonstrated by the decadent and elaborate masques he would hold; the very opposite of his father, Henry VII. Despite all this Henry VIII is a popular King - seen as a "golden boy" - and boy! Does he know it!

I love Jean Plaidy's books - and as with this book's predecessors, The Shadow of the Pomegranate is very well written. I learn a lot from her novels and would recommend them to anyone - historical fiction fan or not. Now to the next in the Tudors series......

[Kyrsta · Rating 3 out of 5]

Please visit my blog for my full review:
http://bookchateau.blogspot.com/2012/...

This story begins shortly after the marriage of Katharine of Aragon and King Henry VIII and tells the tale of their tumultuous marriage, their desire for heirs and Katharine’s battle between pleasing both her husband and her father at the same time. Book 2 in the Katharine of Aragon trilogy but works as a stand-alone novel as well. Like her other novels, it was very well written and I really enjoyed the story. It was a little slow to begin with but it definitely picked up about half way through the novel.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am continuing to read through Jean Plaidy's,the Tudor Series bit by bit as I like to read different genres. I think her writing style is so easy to read and the factual stuff is easy to absorb.

I can't really say any more other than her books are superbly written and anyone interested in the Tudor dynasty, should read this series, even though there are several other authors out there who have written on this topic.

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

This instalment of Plaidy's Tudor series sees Henry VIII beginning to turn from a glittering boy into a sly, selfish young man. This novel begins to track the decline of Katharine of Aragon as well as the political struggles across Europe at the time. An enjoyable historical novel whereby you cannot help to feel sorry for poor Katharine of Aragon.

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

The more I read novels about Henry VIII the more I grow to dislike the man.
This was a great book, you can not help but feel sorry for poor Catherine of Aragon. Poor devoted soul who put up with so much for so little reward.
Good read for those who like English history.

[Eunice Cleofas · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book at a second-hand bookstore. Since the bookstore is a bit short on some historical fiction authors I like, I decided to take a book from an author I do not know but is related to my interest -- 15th-16th century England. Alright, well, I skimmed through the pages and like I expected, it's about Catherine of Aragon. I bought t and it took me about 4 months before I begin to actually read the novel.

It was a pretty good novel, but I expected it to centralize Cathrine of Aragon. Even though it did not fulfill my expectations, it went beyond that and I actually loved how the events in the novel were presented. It was a turn-around for me to actually like third-person perspective novels (I started hating third-person perspective novels after reading a terribly written third-person perspective novel).

Reading the plot from the back of the book, I felt disappointed. Just to be clear, it said something about Catherine being neglected and due to neglect, she decided to engage in dangerous political affairs (?).

Spoilers begin here:

Neglect only began halfway through the novel when the king started having mistresses, and throughout the entire novel, I never saw Catherine engaging on dangerous political affairs. Rather, she was passive and never took a dangerous step. In fact, through half of the novel, Henry acted the opposite of neglect on Catherine.

Well, putting aside the plot at the back of the book, it was still a great book. I loved how a third-person perspective novel can change the way we see each character. You do not grow to hate a character, but instead, understand them as human because humans sin. (In all of the novels that depicted Henry VIII's reign as king, I managed to not like him in all of them. I liked him well enough before he became king, but after that, it went downhill for me. He is indeed a terrible husband both in history and fiction).

Maybe, I shall start reading Jean Plaidy's novels if I could find some copies around here. She intrigued me with her writing on this one. She has a great list of novels which I hope to read when I have the time and the book I should like to read from her.

Now, it's time to read another book.

[tinalouisereadsbooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Whilst the young King Henry VIII basks in the pageants and games of the glittering court, his doting queen’s health and fortunes fade. Henry’s affection for his older wife soon strays, and the neglected Katherine decides to use her power as queen to a dangerous foreign advantage.

Overseas battles play on Henry’s volatile temper and whilst many his power, rumours of his fruitful affairs are notorious. With no legitimate heir yet born, Katherine once agin begins to fear for her future.

My Thoughts:

This is the third in the tudor saga by Miss Plaidy. The story takes up with Henry still married to his first wife Katherine. King Henry still shows a lot of affection for his queen but they are still child and heir less. This isnot for the want of trying but Katherine has several failed pregnancies and still born babies. During his time in france Henry does eventually stray but katherine learns to turn a blind eye. Then along comes Bessie Blount who does give Henry what he wants, a son .

As with all Jean Plaidy books they are well researched and full of historical detail. I did get a little bored with Henry’s time in France and with the constant battles. I much prefered the story when it revolved around Katherine and Henry. I did learn from this book that Henry was madly in love in with Bessie Blount and had a fairly long affair with her. I always thought that his time with Bessie was very short lived as with all his mistresses. I do have another book TBR about Henry and Bessie called The Queen’s Rival by Diane Haeger which I shall look forward to reading.

Overall for me this was a good read and I enjoyed it more than the previous book and I do know that in the next instalment I shall meet Anne Boleyn. I have only dropped a star because I did feel that it was a little bland compared to todays historical novels and was a little boring during the battle sections.

I would recommend this book to anybody who enjoys tudor history or to anyone who wants to read about the tudors but I would say to read them in order to get a fuller picture

[Glafira Osypets · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book “The Shadow of the Pomegranate” tells the story of the relationship between Henry VIII and his first wife, Catherine of Aragon. It begins with the marital bliss of Henry and Catherine and ends with the birth and official recognition of the king’s illegitimate son, Henry FitzRoy.

Vain and self-absorbed, Henry becomes disillusioned with his wife because of her inability to give him a male heir. Catherine, worn out by constant miscarriages and childbirth, aged prematurely. Meanwhile, Henry was drawn to young, pretty, carefree ladies-in-waiting. When Bessie Blount gave birth to a son, Henry concluded that the fault was not his own.

In this novel, Catherine is portrayed as a modest, obedient, and dignified queen — yet by the end, Henry no longer values these qualities. Beyond the royal couple’s relationship, the book also vividly depicts the political situation in Europe at the time.

[Sue Law · Rating 3 out of 5]

Second in Plaidy's series on Katharine of Aragon, this starts with the teenaged Henry VIII choosing to marry his brother's virgin widow despite the difference in their ages and against the advice of his senior advisors. We follow Katharine through a series of disastrous pregnancies while her husband grows up from boisterous youth to paranoid adult desparate for a son and heir and looking for reasons why the lack of success is someone else's fault. This episode ends with the baptism of Henry's first healthy illegitimate son (by Elizabeth Blount) shortly after Katharine's last miscarriage of a male foetus. Katharine is required to attend, and the threat to her is clear.
Steadily paced and well readable.

[Trisha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written and interesting, I enjoyed this one more because it focused on the early years of her marriage to King Henry. Most often, Katherine of Aragon is either presented as the young widow of Prince Arthur, who is forced to live in poverty at court, or as the sad queen who fights for her place as Queen when Anne Boylen makes a play for the crown. This novel was an interesting telling of the early years of their marriage, the struggles to have a son, and Henry’s lack of maturity - and how his naïveté was used against him by other rulers to manipulate him. It also went into his relationship with Bessie Blount. My only complaint is that this author tends to get stuck on a specific word or phrase and use it repeatedly throughout the entire novel.

[Jessica Hooley · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5* it was a nice good read, better than meh, but not quite good. Nothing outstanding happened and I felt I needed that since it wasn't exactly the nothing book either. Just felt it was a list of events and I didn't care enough for anyone or anything to make it a better rating. But also seeing the relationship develop was decent

[Joy Norman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the book and enjoyed the fact that it was told by Henry's point of view and Katherine's . It shows how much power is destructive in the wrong persons hands and how easily we can be deceived if we believe that a person has our best interests at heart

[Rebecca Hill · Rating 3 out of 5]

There will be no review at this time

[Heaven Claussen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful series!

[Shelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh.

[Briana · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a little slow to begin with but it definitely picked up about half way through the novel.

[Ali · Rating 3 out of 5]

Better than the previous book, it was interesting to see both Henry & Katherine’s POV.

[Makoto Neuer]

Puedes leer sobre Catalina de Aragón, puedes leer sobre Ana Bolena y entender a ambas pero nunca a Enrique VIII

[Kitten · Rating 3 out of 5]

Magic Squares 2020: A book older than 50 years.

[Anjella · Rating 1 out of 5]

Fuck this was awful. Trite and dated. A quick read thankfully.

[foolscap · Rating 3 out of 5]

Audiobook.

A little less expansive than the previous two books; I wish a little more focus was thrown on the Boleyn family. Eagerly awaiting Cromwell's arrival now.

Onward.

[M · Rating 2 out of 5]

Better than the last one, but these characters still don't feel real.

[Michele · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know the story of Katherine of Aragon, but Plaidy does such a good job of telling it.

[Tia · Rating 1 out of 5]

Felt miserable for Kate. Henry still a douche. What in the hell happened?

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Shadow of the Pomegranate showed Katherine's slow decline and Henry's slowly growing disinterest better than anything else I've read.