Anne of Cleves: Unbeloved

by D. Lawrence-Young

England. 1537. Henry VIII’s beloved third wife, Jane Seymour, has just died in childbirth. The king needs a new wife. Shown a flattering portrait of Anne of Cleves, Henry commits himself to marrying her. As soon as she arrives in England the lovesick and impatient king rides through the night to meet his future wife. This rushed and unplanned rendezvous has shocking results. He thinks that she looks nothing like the sweet and innocent Anne he saw in the portrait; she is shocked at his coarse and impulsive behaviour. Now Henry wants to renege on his promise - but the king must also do right by his kingdom. Thomas Cromwell, his wily adviser, is asked by Henry to provide a solution to his problem. The fate of Anne hangs in the balance. Will the blameless and wronged wife have her hopes fulfilled, or will she be sent to the Tower and share Anne Boleyn end? Recommended for fans Alison Weir, Philippa Gregory and The Tudors. Praise for 'Anne of Unbeloved'. …very easy and enjoyable read, filling in my ignorance of one of Henry’s lesser-known wives. Iain K. Burns. Past Chief Executive of Macmillan Group (Worldwide)D.Lawrence-Young is the author of numerous historical novels, including 'Six Million Accusers', 'Catherine Howard' and 'Arrows over Agincourt'.Praise for Anne of Unbeloved.…very easy and enjoyable read, filling in my ignorance of one of Henry’s lesser-known wives. Iain K. Burns. Past Chief Executive of Macmillan Group (Worldwide)

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

282 pages, Paperback

Published November 6, 2018

Reviews

[Anne Of Cleves · Rating 1 out of 5]

what did you just call me

[LINDA Rowland · Rating 5 out of 5]

What amazing story

I did not know a lot about Anne of Cleves
Only that she was wife number four of Henry the eighth it was a great book one that told her story throw her eyes . It's a book that people who love history should read

[Clare Alderman · Rating 2 out of 5]

To say this book is suppose to be about Anne of Cleves the author spent more time telling us repeatedly that Henry was fat and bad tempered and that many of his advisors were scared to say the wrong thing. Okay tell us this once, as his health deteriorated let us know it is getting worse, but otherwise it is like the author is treating us as we are stupid. Even people who are do not have much knowledge around the Tudors will have the basic understanding that Henry VIII was not a nice person.
The opening of the book was promising but then the majority of the book is not from Anne's point of view, it would have been much better if the author had alternate the POV instead of the vast of the book being from Cromwell's or other male POV to suddenly switch back to Anne's at the end. The book begins with Anne saying this is my life but much of what happened was played behind Anne's back and she would have been unaware of it. This book had so much promise that it didn't follow through with and didn't do Anne of Cleves justice at all.

[Soozee · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm afraid I didn't enjoy this book as much as I expected to. I have read a lot of non-fiction and historical fiction books around this period, and was pleased to see the spotlight fall on Anne of Cleves as she is an often overlooked figure.

The author clearly had researched the life and times of Anne, and the characters she was likely to have met, so I couldn't fault his timelines. However, the style of writing did not draw me in. At times the short sentences read more like a 'Ladybird' book than an historical piece. He was keen at times to present facts rather than to weave a story. The 'conversations' between characters just didn't ring true - there was no cadence of language, no phrases to make one feel one was in the sixteenth century. The addition of 'milady' just wasn't sufficient.

So overall a rather disappointing read and I feel there is still an opening for someone to shed real light on the life of this rejected wife, who clearly was clever enough to keep her head and indeed her riches when dealing with one of the most mercurial and spoilt monarchs our country has fostered.

[Kara · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a tough book to rate - some parts of it were excellent, but other parts were so clunky they were downright painful to read.

The beginning and end sections are "I" POV from Anna of Cleves as she recites the events of her life, sounding more like an animatronic Anna in an interactive Disney exhibit on the six wives, rather than a real character.

The middle section is 3rd person POV, which mostly works better, but people still go around telling each other everyone's life stories in some very cringe worthy As-You-Know-Bob dialogue.

The story works best when it just unfolds in the moment without trying to show off to the reader all the research Lawrence-Young clearly did.

There is a good story here, buried underneath a lot of clunky exposition.

[Cassie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really wanted to love this. More of summary retelling of events than an actual story. I was hoping for a novel with interesting points of view and a look into Anne's life, all I really got was Anne's view of the same tired historical events that you can find in any Tudor era book. Felt unpolished. Wouldn't recommend to someone who already has a grasp of this time in history, or to someone looking to learn more about Anne of Cleves.

[Christine Cazeneuve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Best of them all

Anne of Cleves was a remarkable woman and this book pays her great homage. If you have read much about the Tudors then there won't be anything really new here until you get to after Henry's death. That was the part of the story I really enjoyed. The book is never boring even for someone who has read so much on the subject. I really like this author's writing style.

[Cathy Johnston · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve always liked Anne of Cleves

This book, while enjoyable, is a fantasy of Anne’s life. She is the least documented of Henry’s wives because she had the good sense to survive. Once she moved into private life, the only factual knowledge we have of her is what is documented in court records.

I did like this book, but if you’re looking for an in-depth study of Anne, this isn’t it. In fact you’ll probably have a difficult time finding it.

[Wendy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just ok

This isn’t as much a book about Anne of Cleves as it is a book about Henry VIII’s wives as told from Anne’s point of view. Either there isn’t enough information about her to be able to flesh out a fictional story or the author just didn’t leverage the information that exists. Seriously, it’s basically just gossip told to Anne about the other wives and then she dies.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anne of Cleves

I don’t know how much was fact & how much was fiction. Personally, I don’t care. This was a very good read. I found the authors point of view very kind when it came to the wives of Henry VIII

[teresa allen · Rating 3 out of 5]

An OK read, not memorable

[Laura Clarey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok but got bored in places

[Joshua Santos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

We always here about King Henry VIII's other wives that we tend to overlook Anne of Cleves. This book gives you her perspective and she lived out her life in England

[derick prentice · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good read, enjoyed it very much.

[Richard Tramonti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Overall a good read. A first person account of a historical figure can be tricky. I’ve always been fascinated by Hans Holbein the Younger’s famous portrait of Anne and how an obscure princess from a small duchy in Germany was plucked out of obscurity to become queen of England. She did pretty well for herself considering only being married to the tyrant king for six months. The “Kings Sister” as she was known after her marriage was treated well by Henry. She became one of the most wealthy women in England and was a favorite at Court. Most of all, she kept her head! It’s sad stain on history on how women were treated as nothing more than political pawns by the nobility. I often wonder if he stayed married to Anne and they had a son… the spare Henry wanted so badly would have become king after Edward’s death. Interesting to contemplate.