The Spanish Bride: A Novel of Catherine of Aragon

Tudor Women Series #1

by Laurien Gardner

The queen who married a Tudor and a tyrant. Her name was Catherine. For over two decades, she was Queen of England, until her failure to bear the king a son, her advancing age, and King Henry VIII's obsession with Anne Boleyn cost Catherine the crown, her marriage, and her life. This is her story, told from the point of view of Estrella de Montoya, her trusted maid of honor, who traveled from Spain to England with her, and witnessed the triumphs and tragedies of her amazing life.

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

322 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Laurien Gardner is the penname for the historical author Julianne Ardian Lee. Ms. Lee currently resides in Tennessee and maintains a very interesting blog (filled with wonderful thoughts and anecdotes) on livejournal. She has a website that seems to be up to date as well. Ms. Lee does not have a website for her penname.

Reviews

[Gaijinmama]

To be honest, for me Catherine of Aragon has always been the least interesting of Henry's wives. This book makes me a bit more sympathetic. Man, what a spoiled-brat boy-child Henry was! He totally did not deserve her. The women in his life were often smarter than he was, but once he tired of them that was pretty much the end, and he truly couldn't understand why they were still there standing in his way.
What's the old saying about absolute power corrupting absolutely? Henry was the perfect example.

The writing is a bit simplistic (ugh!! Gardner's use of the word "anymore" in weird ungrammatical places truly ticked me off and made my eighth-grade English teacher turn over in his grave!) but it's still a good story and a fairly quick read. It gives us an interesting view of a time when women of the upper classes were not much more than walking uteri whose lives could very well be over if they couldn't produce a male heir, or dissatisfied their husbands in any way. It's particularly interesting that the story is told from the point of view of one of Catherine's maids. Think about what life must have been like for a lady in the 16th century: Estrella comes to England with the princess, never expecting to see her family in Spain again. She prays that someone of the proper status will offer to marry her, because her only other alternative seems to be sitting around working on her embroidery for the rest of her life, while Catherine sells the ir plates one by one to feed her household, who are basically being held hostage by the King (Henry VII). Despite her genuine affection and loyalty toward her mistress, Estrella has to exercise the skill of carefully manipulating the more powerful people around her because it is her only way of surviving. I won't spoil the ending (although we do know how Catherine ended up...pretty damn miserable but at least she stuck to her principles and wasn't beheaded like her successor, Anne Boleyn!) , but I was happy that once all the royal drama is done our main character finds a bit of happiness.

[M A · Rating 5 out of 5]

When it comes to books, I'm far more likely to forgive eccentricities provided I feel the book concludes well, and "The Spanish Bride" is one of those rare books that bedevilled me through its opening third or so, only to keep me glued to each page throughout the last half. The writing's great, at least some of the history's accurate, and I found myself really enjoying this Tudor Era novel once I understood what it actually was.

"Spanish Bride" isn't a biographical novel of Catherine of Aragon so much as it is the story of Estrella de Montoya, one of Catherine's ladies-in-waiting who accompanied the princess to England to marry Arthur Tudor. Catherine of Aragon is a major character in the novel, but the "heart" of the novel is Estrella's quest for success via "marrying well" according to her station and expectations. While Catherine believes her marriage to Arthur, and later to his brother, Henry, are her destiny, Estrella and Catherine's other maids struggle to cope with their reduced status and shoddy treatment in the English court following Arthur's untimely death and his crafty father's political manipulation.

I found the novel tough to follow because it ricochets through time. A few chapters focus on an event or two occuring in 1505. The subsequent chapter describes Blackfriars. Then we go back to, say, 1506. Then forward to Catherine's virtual house arrest in Kimbolton. Then back to some other past event. If you like your historical fiction linear, this isn't your kind of read. At first I was very annoyed and considered the mixed chapters sloppy and pretentious. But the further along I read, the more I understood that 1) this is Estrella's story, not Catherine's and 2)prominent events in Catherine's life were being used as a foil to Estrella's life. Once I realized where the author was going, I really found myself much more intrigued with the story and wanted to read more.

Through Estrella, we see the limited options of women, even well-born women of rank, during the Tudor era. Estrella, a nobleman's daughter, arrives in England anticipating a glorious future, attending her mistress the Princess of Wales intended to be Queen of England. Her status, position, and connection to Catherine should guarantee her an illustrious court career culminating in an advantageous marriage to an equally privileged, successful nobleman. When Arthur dies young and Catherine's status diminishes -- Henry VII refuses to send her home because he doesn't wish to part with her dowry, but he refuses to make good on the "deal" to marry her to Henry and reduces Catherine's allowance to relative poverty -- all the good times thump to a screeching halt. The beautiful Spanish maids of honor are now young, attractive, unattached ladies whose powerful families are miles away. Their mistress, reduced to pawning valuables to support their meager household, cannot provide them with the entree in English high society or with the substantial dowries needed to attract "the right sort of husbands."

While Catherine draws comfort from her spiritual faith and her indomitable belief she is destined to be Queen of England, Estrella suffers chronic doubts about securing her future and is reduced to considering marriage proposals from commoners. She falls in love with a proper English nobleman only to suffer heartbreak when he abbandons their courtship to marry an English heiress. Her friendship and support of Catherine remains constant through thick and thin and though both women are quite different in their beliefs, sometimes Estrella learns to take a leap of faith herself and avoid selling herself too short.

The overall tone of this book is smooth and calm. The romance elements are delightfully understated. Lots of beautiful language and interesting description make this a good "keeper" and it's worth re-reading. It is scant on dialogue, though.

[Maria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ah, "the good old days" [tongue firmly in cheek]. 3.5 stars. An enjoyable historical fiction, told by the maid of honor of Henry VIII's first wife, Catherine of Aragon. I enjoyed that it focused on the events leading up to her marriage. This period of hardship and anticipation is effectively interspersed with the future time period when Henry asks Catherine to agree that their marriage was improper from the start. The stark reality for women when it came to marriage was very educational. These "privileged" women had no privileges when it came to marriage; they were chattel for their fathers to trade for some family advantage and then they were at the mercy of their husbands. I now want to read the two other books in this series about the wives of Henry VIII.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed the book because it was entertaining enough, but it wasn't spectacular.
The bad:
I'm not a stickler for historical accuracy when reading historical fiction, but this book had a lot of inaccuracies that could have been solved by a five second google search (the way John Fisher died; the characterization of Charles Brandon, duke of Suffolk, among many others). I didn't enjoy reading the story as told through the eyes of the maid, because she simply wasn't a very interesting character and that style of Tudor writing has been done to death. It would have been more interesting to get into the mind of Catherine.
The jumps in time were clumsy and just not very well handled, and the same could be said for the understanding of the time period. The ending was probably the weakest. It felt incongruous to go from Anne's execution to a Harlequin romance style swooning love just pages later.
I think the biggest disservice of the book was done to Catherine. It attempted to paint her in a sympathetic light, which should be easy since her later life was filled with tragic circumstances. The real Catherine was religious and confident, strong in her beliefs and truly a Queen. The book attempts to bring this to life but fails miserably. This queen seems simple minded and often idiotic by constantly thinking of Henry as her white knight and never blaming him for any of his many faults. The book took a strong-willed, powerful woman and turned her into a ninny. I can honestly say it's the first time I've ever disliked a portrayal of Catherine!

The good:
The book was entertaining and an easy read. Parts of the book were highly enjoyable. If you like historical fiction you will probably enjoy this, but there are definitely better books out there.

[Eleanor · Rating 2 out of 5]

S

[Tracy Hall · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm glad I didn't read this first because I don't think I would've read the others. I thought this would be more from KoA's point of view, not one of her ladies-in-waiting

[Stacie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the other books in the Tudor Women Series (A Lady Raised High and Plain Jane.) I didn't dislike the Spanish Bride, I just wasn't overly impressed with it. The book is much more about Estrella, a maid of honor to Catherine of Aragon. It covers the time period when Catherine comes to England to marry Arthur up until the time of King Henry VII's death and then jumps forward about twenty years to the days that King Henry VIII is planning to divorce Catherine, in order to marry his beloved Anne Boleyn. The book, because it is told from Estrella's point of view, is more about Estrella's feelings and life. Princess Catherine came across to me as a cardboard caricature without much emotion, when we know that in real life, she was in fact a very passionate and strong woman. I believe if it was written in Catherine's point of view, we would see more depth with her character. The writer(s) of these Tudor Women books is/are very capable of successfully portraying characters as real and interesting people, however, I felt like the characterization of Catherine of Aragon in this novel fell flat.

I did, however, enjoy Estrella's story. As one other reviewer noted, I think if the title were different, I would have known more what to expect from the novel.

I was also disappointed that the story did not cover the "happy" years of Catherine and Henry VIII's marriage, the entire novel was a bit dark. I was glad to see that at least Estrella got her happy ending.

[Jean Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Being a Tudor buff, especially a Six Wives buff, I was excited and apprehensive about reading this book. I've read a lot of books about Catherine/Katherine of Aragon and know her story and what the histories tell us about her personality. I am surprised how much I really enjoyed this novel. It was a quick, easy, fun read. What's clever about this is that it's a third person telling of not only Catherine but one of her [fictional] maids of honor. And that maid, Estrella, is a brillant counterpart for Catherine. While Catherine is sure in her convictions about everything, Estrella's character is much more naturally human with her second guessing and fears and her heart being vulnerable.

While it's not entirely historically accurate, the author did a good job of characterization for both the well know characters and the ones in which she had more leeway with. Estrella being her creation is a wonderful character and it's curious that there aren't more historical novels out there from the point of view of the maids of honor.

I really enjoyed this and look forward to reading Ms Gardner's other Tudor novels about the Wives. I would suggest this to both hardcore Tudor fans and those who are wanting to get into that dynasty.

[Paula Dembeck · Rating 3 out of 5]

The name Laurien Gardner is a pseudonym given to a group of women who wrote a series of books about the women of Tudor England, published by Jove Books. This introductory title of the novels on the wives of Henery VIII, tells the story of Henry’s first wife Catherine of Aragon, through the eyes of Estrella de Montoya, one of her ladies-in-waiting. Estrella was one of several teenage girls who accompanied Catherine across the ocean to become the wife of Arthur, Henry VII’s son. Henry had arranged the marriage to seal a powerful political alliance in Europe and get a hand on the generous dowry Catherine would bring with her. These young women knew little of what to expect as they left the warm, dry climate of their homes to live in a damp, cold island and become part of a culture they knew little about. They had never left home or crossed the sea, but were now beginning a long journey which would change their lives. They all had dreams for their future, including finding a handsome husband, starting a family and living a comfortable life.

The story of Catherine is well known. She was the daughter of Queen Isabella of Castile and King Ferdinand of Aragon, a powerful couple whose marriage had united Spain. Catherine’s marriage to Arthur did not endure. He was fragile, in ill-health and their marriage lasted only a short time. Following Arthur’s death, Henry VII, wanted to solidify his political alliance with Spain and hold on to Catherine’s generous dowry, so he arranged for Arthur’s younger son Henry to marry Catherine. Henry was only fifteen at the time and the couple had to wait until he reached eighteen before they could marry. After some foot dragging Henry VII, finally approved the marriage and they wed in 1509. At the time, Catherine was twenty-three.

Their first years of marriage were happy. They were a good match and appeared to be a devoted couple. They welcomed their first child, a daughter Mary. Henry, hopeful for a son and a male heir, was certain other pregnancies would follow, but there were no surviving children from the five pregnancies that followed. As both grew older and Catherine failed to produce a son, Henry feared there would be no one to inherit his kingdom. Desperate for a male heir, he decided to divorce Catherine, so he could move on to a younger woman who would bear him a son. He chose the young and beautiful Anne Boleyn, one of Catherine’s ladies-in-waiting who had charmed Henry with her coy and manipulative ways. She flirted openly with Henry, urging him on, anxious to help him relieve himself of the burdensome problem of his first wife. Driving her was not just her ambition to become Queen, but pressure from her ambitiously aggressive family, who were determined to gain a powerful position in the royal court.

Catherine, a devout Catholic, knew the church did not accept divorce and believed she was on firm ground refusing to step aside. She was stubborn and stuck to her faith and her beliefs which guided her decisions and determined her behavior. She also believed that their daughter Mary could be Queen, although unlike other European countries, Britain had never allowed a woman to grace their throne. Henry sent several emissaries to plead his case with Catherine and convince her to enter a nunnery or step aside. They bullied her and were often rude and threatening, but despite how Henry treated her, Catherine insisted on remaining his wife, convinced at some point, he would come to his senses.

Catherine has always been painted as a martyr, the very religious woman who was pushed aside by her husband, but stubbornly refused to go. However this narrative creates a very different picture of her as well-educated, politically astute and loyal. She firmly believed she was, and always would be, Henry’s wife, no matter what political machinations her husband created to remove her from his life and the British court. She endured a long, painful and humiliating ordeal to prove her point, which ultimately proved her undoing. In 1536, when Catherine was fifty, just three years after her marriage to Henry was annulled, she died, still referring to herself as “The Queen”.

Estrella tells not only Catherine’s story but her own. It is one of a naïve young girl who arrives in a foreign country, does not speak the language but must adapt to her new home. She longs for a suitable marriage and a family, but events place many roadblocks in her way, her illusions about her new life are shattered and her dreams are dashed.

This proves to be an easy read, unencumbered by too many historical details that it burdens the basic thread of the narrative. However the story jerks back and forth in time, and although the times and dates are noted at the beginning of each chapter, these temporal leaps become annoying. They do not transition easily, making the pacing choppy. It would have been more preferable to have this account of history provided in one continuous narrative flow. Apart from this criticism, this volume proves a welcome addition to the historical fiction from this era of British history.

[Shiv · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read a previous novel by the fantastic author Laurien Gardner based on Anne Boleyn called ‘A Lady Raised High‘. I loved it and couldn’t put it down and I still have fond memories of reading that novel, and that was over a couple of years ago! I am such a Tudor fiction nerd, that I am pretty sure that I have most of the Tudor historical fiction as an electronic copy or a physical copy, but if I don’t have it, it is on my Amazon wish list. So when I discovered on Amazon that there was another Tudor historical fiction book, but this time based on Catherine of Aragon, I purchased it straightaway!

‘The Spanish Bride’ starts with Catherine of Aragon, her maids-in-waiting and the rest of her party travelling to England for Catherine’s upcoming nuptials with Prince Arthur, the heir and first son of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York. However, the novel follows Catherine’s journey and struggles not through Catherine’s point of view, but from the point of view of her maid-in-waiting, Estrella de Montoya.

As the reader, we see how Catherine was eager for her marriage to Prince Arthur, only to see him die a couple of months after their marriage which led into Catherine basically being a political foreign prisoner of Henry VII, so that she can used for his purposes at a further date. However, Catherine sees the young Prince Henry (the future Henry VIII) as her white knight in shining amour who will come to rescue her, but as nearly everyone knows from their history lessons at school, things for Henry and Catherine don’t go to plan and end up turning sour. Estrella is a good and faithful servant to her mistress, but her life does not go to plan either, as she suffers many losses throughout her life, but only ever truly loved one man in particular.

I enjoyed this novel as I personally loved how the novel was structured, as the book started with Catherine crossing over to England in 1501 and played out her story during her marriage with Arthur and the developments after Arthur’s death. Although, the next part of the story fast forwards to 1527 and onwards, to play out Henry’s decision to divorce from Catherine and marry Anne Boleyn which leads to the Reformation of the English Church. Both storylines are intertwined as they have similar themes of loss, and how Catherine loved Henry and also believed that he was influenced by others and will find his way back to her.

Despite showing the similarities between Catherine’s life from 1501 and Catherine’s life from 1527 onwards, the novel was interesting as it also showed the contrasts between the two stages of her life, as after Arthur died, Catherine struggled as her father barely did anything to help her and she became poor as she had no money to be able to pay her household or feed herself and her household. Also, the novel also shows the suffering that Catherine had to endure with Henry VII, but for all the longing and hope that Prince Henry was going to be her saviour, in the end Henry turned out to be the cause of her suffering until the day she died by saying that after over 20 years of marriage they were never married and declaring their only living child; Mary, illegitimate.

The main characters in the novel is Catherine of Aragon (obviously as the novel is about her), and her lady-in-waiting Estrella. Both of them are very likeable characters as they both suffered throughout their lives, and with how the author have written these inspiring and strong women, you cannot help but empathise with them and sympathise the pain that they have endured. Whilst reading the novel, you can get the sense of the strong bond and a close friendship that both the women had throughout their lives. Catherine of Aragon has been documented throughout history as being a brave, loyal and a fighter right until the end of her days! ‘The Spanish Bride’ novel manages to capture that personality perfectly by depicting Catherine as a hopeless romantic and in certain situations, tries to think more positively about the situation and certain individuals. When Henry decided to appeal to Rome for a divorce, Catherine held strong and remained regal throughout the trial and separation from her daughter. Catherine was also depicted throughout the book putting the needs and well-being of the people of England first, making sure that she judged situations carefully before she took any form of actions in protest against her husband or to improve her situation.

The author clearly demonstrated her Tudor knowledge and turned historical events, into a historical fiction drama but in a way that is believable but dramatic nonetheless! I highly enjoyed this book, and would recommend this novel to anyone would like to read about the trials and tribulations of Catherine of Aragon, and would like to read about strong women in history!

[Manuela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nicely written, credible despite a few anachronisms and tear-jerking scenes, a well-rounded and sympathetic portrait of Catherine of Aragon, especially in her first years as newly arrived bride of Arthur Tudor, and afterwards queen to Henry VIII. However, I did not like the jumps years ahead and then backwards in time, or that the story starts with Anne Boleyn's execution, who is a secondary character and which has nothing to do anymore with Catherine's own story, as Catherine had been dead for a few years before Anne was executed.

Catherine is described as an old-fashioned, incredibly regal, patient and forgiving woman, almost a footrug by today's standards, who forgave her second husband all his infidelities, his growing indifference towards their child, Mary Tudor, and his estrangement and ultimate cruelty towards herself. It was difficult to sympathize with her sometimes, but then, when you "see" her as a foreign, alienated woman in a strange country whose customs and language she had a hard time learning, a woman raised with chivalrous, god-fearing Medieval values that were being fast swept aside by the more human-centered, individualistic values of the Renaissance times, you begin to understand her better, and feel sorry for her. She is not just an unhappy queen; her story is almost the embodiment of dying times, caught in the turbulences of the Reformation and the rise of the future British naval empire, slowly replacing her own Spanish kingdom.

Anyway, it is an easy and interesting read, and I found it easier than any of the Allison Weir Tudor books. It is not too demanding on those whose English isn't perfect, and it's bit less romantic and silly than Philippa Gregory's usual historical chick-lit. I would recommend this book for anyone interested in learning more about Henry VIII's first, Spanish queen.

[Kara · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story is told from the POV of a Spanish lady in waiting who served Catherine of Aragon.

I was surprised and a little disappointed that Gardner went with a fictional lady in waiting, when the actual entourage that came with Catherine is a.) so well documented and b.) all full of their own dramatic backstories and lives. Still, clearly Gardner had a specific plot and behind-the-scenes "romance” (I use the word loosely, considering how unromantic the male love interest is) she wanted to tell, so she made up several fictional Tudor couturiers to fit the pieces.

From the lady Estrella’s viewpoint, we get a ringside seat of the first three of Henry’s wives, and they are all perceived by Estrella as exactly on point. Catherine of Aragon is exasperatingly saintly, never willing to bend a spiritual principle, no matter the earthly circumstances, much to Estrella’s baffled awe. Anne Boleyn is the scheming house-wrecker who stole Henry away and proceeded to ruin everything. And Jane Seymour is plain and dull.

There was an interesting twist to the standard retelling of how time is played with, shifting back and forth between the beginning of Catherine’s first marriage and the end of her second, which added quite a bit of tension to the story.

A good retelling of the historical events, although the historical characters were a bit one note, and the fictional characters felt unnecessary.

[tinalouisereadsbooks · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is first book in a trilogy about the first three wives of Henry VIII. This book is about a fictional maid of honour to Catherine of Aragon called Estrella. The story weaves from past to present and begins with Cathetine coming to England to marry Prince Arthur. The reader also gets Estrella's story and her observations around Catherine.

Unlike some historical fiction this version was very light and didn't bog me down. As much as I like Philippa Gregory and Alison Weir their books can be a bit heavy and can become a little too much at times. This book was very different, nice and light and a quick read.

What I didn't enjoy so much was Estrella's story. For me I wanted to read more about Catherine as sometimes I can overlook her as I like to read about Anne Boleyn more. A lot of Catherines life was missed out and could have been added if not for Estrella's story which didn't interest me at all. Infact I skipped some pages to read just about Catherine.

I do have the next two books in the series and find I'm not looking forward to reading them if they are the same format as this one. I would recommend this book to any historical fiction fan if they want something a bit light.

[Kailee Bates · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although this book took me forever to read, I still enjoyed it! I absolutely loved the steadfast character of Catherine and Estrella’s human tendency to mess up was lovely to read. However, I was not expecting the amount of blood and gore that was in this book! I don’t enjoy bloody descriptions, but there were several throughout this book. Despite these and the few inappropriate scenes, the rest of this book was pretty enjoyable. Although it did take me longer to finish the final 2 chapters, the twist of Hilsey asking Estrella to marry him drew me back in again to see what she would say. Altogether, I did enjoy this book despite the few moments that were more uncomfortable to read.

[Della Tingle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Being a fan of all things Henry VIII, thjs Catherine of Aragon novel does not disappoint. However, it is not the best book about Henry’s first wife I have read. I did especially enjoy reading about Estrella, one of Catherine’s maids of honor.

Catherine on Henry: “I’m afraid men never grow up; they only come of age.”

[Rose McDonald · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written and very enjoyable and gave me a better perspective if Catherine Henry the 8th wife. The story focused on her life and kept Henry and history in the background as we know about that era. Enjoyed it and would recommend if you enjoy that period of history. Not sure many if us living in this century would be able to be as dignified as they were.

[Rosie Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fabulous read I hope the rest on the trilogy are as good

[Melanie Gamboa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book! I gave it 4 stars only because the end was a little long, but would highly recommend!

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so good! I feel like I learned more about Catherine of Aragon than I knew before. She truly stood up for herself, her beliefs and God.

[Nina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Take a deep breath. Smell the misty dew covered grasses and the clean crisp sunlight unobstructed by pollutents. Transport to a time of corsets, flowing skirts, and daggers sewn into linings. A time when a womans future relied on her relations, her cunning, and her dare. Catherine of Aragon -appears- to be the center of attention in this book but actually isn't. The center of attention lies with Estrella. The maiden who has lived caring for Catherine for most of their lives. Estrella is forced to watch the humiliation of a woman who stands for her virtue and honesty, while praying for a solution to come soon and rescue them from a very perilous situation.

At first I found it a bit tedious to read the book from an 'outsiders' perspective. I didn't respect Estrella's role, I took it for granted that she would probably be some weak, uninteresting character who was there just to add some validity to the context. I was wrong. I got deeper into the book and bit my lip as the events unrolled. I became comfortable with the time warps and the shifts in chapters. I enjoyed picturing the descriptions given and I could almost swear that when I read the book, I could breathe the same air, that it was clean and that the sun was warm but not scorching. On the days when the descriptions were cold and wet, I felt the cold, the wetness. At times I wanted to hold onto Catherines skirt like a girl clinging to a sister she was so close to losing. Other times I wanted to hide behind Estrella and take part in her strength.

The book is not perfect but the characters swallowed me up and made me more and more curious. Were they traitors? Who would be heartbroken next? Where will politics and religion draw a line and allow humans to be humans? How long will Catherine and her maids be held as bounty for bartering trades amongst two viciously selfish kingdoms? It really is a fascinating read. It stopped being an outsiders view when I saw how quickly the things Catherine was going through was affecting her maids, and how it would slowly flow out to involve and affect two nations.

If you yearn for a time when anything could happen and fairytales were half-true, with a strong and determined heroine, a taste of history, and a hunger for the unique, this book might be for you.

[Brianna · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is Catherine of Aragon's story as told by her maid. Not only does it cover the time period of Anne Boleyn's rise (and demise), but it covers the period before Catherine's marriage to Henry, after her husband the eldest prince died, and her future was uncertain, her living arrangements poor. I've read a lot of historical novels about Henry VIII but never one describing the period between Catherine's marriage to her brother and her marriage to him, so this was a nice change.

I wasn't expecting much out of this book -- having picked it up at the dollar store -- but it was a pleasant diversion into the time period. It didn't dissolve into a romance novel, as some historical fiction tends to, and the characters were strong and consistent.

[Vicki Tate · Rating 3 out of 5]

I truly enjoyed the novel; however, I have a special interest in this particular time period as well as in the wives of Henry VIII. I find Catherine of Aragon an intriguing figure and the most religious and faitful of all of Henry's wives. Her devotion and refusal to relinquish her title as queen while Henry sought Anne Boleyn was both courageous and dangerous; however, Catherine never wavered in her firm belief that Henry was her husband, recognized by God, and thus not to be set aside. Her stalwart and unflagging faith separates her from all of the others.

The book was dry in spots and vacillated between the present and the past; nevertheless, it was easy to follow, although with less action than would have otherwise impelled the plot forward at a better pace.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting look at the role of noble women in the 1500's and I appreciated the intimate look at Catherine of Aragon's deep and abiding faith and sense of justice. The editting was a little distracting as they hopped from chartacter and time period, but that could just be because I like things to go in order. :) It is a quick and easy read, and there was a twinge of harlequin style romance to it, but still think it's worth your time for the window into the precarious lives of women, even those from powerful and wealthy families.

[Renae · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yes, I get that the latest rash of Tudor books are meant to vilify Anne and paint Catherine as a long suffering, faithful wife who loved only God more than her husband. Who knows if it is true (I actually love the idea that she might have "gotten together" with Arthur), but man, does it take the drama and excitement away from the story. Luckily, this book is told from the POV of one of Catherine's ladies-in-waiting, so there is some excitement, which is good, because the Catherine/Henry storyline is a snooze.

[Miranda · Rating 3 out of 5]

What I find so interesting with historical fiction is all the vastly different ways the characters are portrayed. Either good or evil. Wrongly accused, misunderstood or a plotting witch.

This book was actually a fairly decent bit of writing. It wasn't too flowery or silly. The story was interesting to me for it's the first I've read with Catherine of Aragon as the main character but it isn't told from her point of view. The book was entertaining and it was interesting to see this particular author's adaptation but the story overall didn't hold my attention too readily.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

At first, I wasn't a fan of this book. We had one chapter of them as young girls and then it fast forwarded 20 years to Henry trying to divorce COA. I've read enough of THOSE years, I wanted to read more about Catherine's young life! Luckily, every few chapters it would switch back to show Catherine's short life with Arthur and her subsequent years of waiting for Henry. I ended up really enjoying the alternating timeline and it was nice to see another side to Catherine. I liked the maid who actually told the story, though the ending did seem a bit off.

[Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Spanish Bride is the story of Estrella de Montoya, a maid to Catherine of Aragon. I have read many novels set during the reign of Henry VIII, and while I enjoyed this one, it had some weaknesses for me. The chapters bounce around in time, going back and forth between the years prior to Catherine's marriage to Henry, through her death. I couldn't see the reason for this and it diminished my enjoyment of the novel. I also found the writing style somewhat heavy. Overall, not a bad book, but there are others about this period that I've enjoyed more.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

First this book was kind of slow. Then it was kind of fast and little too sexy. Then it was depressing, but true. And finally there was a happy ending. Except there wasn't a build up to the happy ending, so it felt all forced and awkward. I guess what I've learned is that I'm super happy not to be a female noble in the 16th century, because I think I'd have to choke a bitch. But I already knew that.

[Wen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was an easy read. While it did not shead any new light on the story of Catherine of Aragon is was enjoyable. This story it told from the view point of Estrella, one of her ladies in waiting. It is a look at what their lives were from coming from Spain for Catherines marriage to Arthur, to living in very poor conditions for many years, to marriage to Henry VIII and to Catherines being put aside in favor of Ann.

[Elisha (lishie) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a quick, enjoyable read. It told the story of Catherine of Aragon from the viewpoint mostly of her lady in waiting, Estrella de Montoya. The chapters alternated between Catherine & Estrella as young adults (beginning with their arrival from Spain to England) and their later life, after Catherine became queen and then was "replaced" by Anne Boleyn.