Good King Harry: A Novel

by Denise Giardina

Set against the sweeping backdrop of medieval England, Good King Harry brilliantly brings to life one of the most fascinating, conflicted monarchs in history: Henry V. Evoking the sights and sounds of fifteenth-century London, acclaimed author Denise Giardina artfully illuminates the double-edged sword of power--and the momentous events that unfold in the making of a king. . . .

A contemplative soul imbued with a compassion and mental agility beyond his years, young Harry, Prince of Wales--the future King Henry V--is marked early as the object of his father's scorn. For in the eyes of Lord Bolingbroke, his son is but a weak link in the House of Lancaster with a dangerous loyalty to the rebellious Welsh that must be broken.

As Harry reaches maturity, the battle within his heart grows fierce. Torn between the sensitivities of his soul and the uncompromising king he must become, Harry embarks on an odyssey rife with political agendas, sexual intrigue, and military combat--ultimately transforming into the accomplished monarch a volatile England so urgently demands.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, British Literature, 15th Century, Historical, 14th Century, Medieval

416 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1984

About the author

Often labelled an Appalachian writer, or a historical novelist, Denise Giardina describes herself as a theological writer, exploring fundamental issues of faith and belief through literary characters.

Born and raised in the West Virginia coalfields, Giardina is an ordained Episcopal Church deacon, a community activist and a former candidate for the WV state governorship.

Her novels, fictionalizing historical characters and events, have been critically acclaimed and recognised with a number of literary prizes.

Reviews

[Lisa · Rating 1 out of 5]

Good King Harry is a fictional exploration of the life of Henry V, told from his first-person point-of-view. He begins life as a young boy who runs wild in the Welsh town of Monmouth, scorned by an unsympathetic father. But once his father usurps the throne, deposing and murdering the rightful king, Richard II, Henry becomes consumed by the fight to wield power.

Denise Giardina’s main theme is that it’s hard for a good man to be a good king. This is absolutely fascinating and ripe with potential. Rulers are often tasked with making decisions where there is no clear-cut, right/wrong answers. They might, as Henry V did at Agincourt, make a decision that is absolutely repugnant in humanitarian or chivalric terms, but is necessary (or appears so) to ensure the survival of their people. How does one person deal with that responsibility? How do they cope with the costs of their decisions?

Yet it seems Giardina’s theme is only there to give the reader a clumsy moral lesson. Power is bad. If you have power, you will do bad things and become a bad person, no matter how good you are or however good your intentions when you start. I get the feeling Giardina thinks Henry should have taken a dive off the parapets when he was a teenager to preserve his innocence and goodness.

Let’s talk about Henry’s characterisation, then. Henry starts off as an idealised figure. He is effectively a naïve, idealistic pacifist in a brutal world. He does not see social class, he does not understand why anyone would fight each other, he just wants to run free in the Welsh wilds and dream of King Arthur’s return.

It very quickly becomes clear that Henry is the only decent person in the whole stinking world of the nobility. There are some, such as Henry’s father (Henry IV), Richard of York (later Earl of Cambridge), Harry ‘Hotspur’ Percy and Archbishop Arundel, who are outwardly cruel and awful, who bully Henry and look down on him for his strange views. Then there are people such as Henry’s brothers and Isabella de Valois who are simply complicit in their acceptance of their exploitative worldview. Henry alone can see the unfairness in their world and he alone can object to it.

So Henry begins the story as the one person who can see the ills of their world. Because of this, I never quite bought him as a character. He felt too modern and out of place, entirely divorced from his historical context.

It’s ludicrous to imagine, for example, that the real Henry V grew up ignorant of his position or the massive, obvious societal divide in medieval England. He was the grandson of the Duke of Lancaster, the foremost and richest man in the kingdom after the king. I sincerely doubt that he and his brothers were left to run riot in Monmouth in the sole care of a peasant Welsh woman, or that Lancaster was so indulgent during this terrible upbringing. It’s also frankly absurd to expect a reader to buy that Henry V had pacifist leanings and was terrified of battle and any sort of conflict.

But Henry is more realistically drawn than the other people in the narrative, even the good ones. Sir John Oldcastle comes across as a fantasist and religious fanatic after Giardina stopped writing him as Falstaff redux (yes, Shakespeare did originally intend to name Falstaff after the real, historical Oldcastle before his descendants protested, but Falstaff is not analogous with Oldcastle). I’m sure Giardina intended Merryn, Henry’s invented Welsh lover, to be the moral compass of the book, but she came across often as existing just to rail at Henry for his moral failings while I agreed with Henry – she had no idea what she was talking about.

Towards the end, we are introduced to Isabeau, Queen of France, and Katherine de Valois, her daughter and Henry’s queen. Giardina takes every negative report of Isabeau’s behaviour as factual and characterises her and Katherine as grotesque avatars of the sins of female sexuality. Henry, in earlier chapters, slept with uncounted women but his character is not demeaned or lessened by it, just as his relationship with Merryn is held up as true love despite the fact they aren’t married. Thus, Giardina’s characterisation of them comes across as a criticism of female sexuality as opposed a general condemnation of promiscuous behaviour.

Additionally, I have a hard time believing that Katherine would have been left in any situation where she might lose her virginity or engage in frequent, casual sex, particularly as she was raised in a convent, or much less, once she was married, cuckold her husband, the king of England. There is no historical evidence that suggests she committed adultery at all, apart from the misogynistic characterisation of her as oversexed, based purely on the fact that she (gasp!) married a Welshman after Henry’s death. The whole sequence where Katherine tells Henry, to his face, that she has committed adultery and he isn’t the father of her baby (the future Henry VI), before saying that she’s lying is absurd. She would have to be incredibly stupid to play such an infantile, dangerous game – it would have jeopardised their marriage, her freedom and the peace treaty with France.

Finally, the fact that Giardina ends the novel without resolving the question of Henry VI’s paternity is infuriating. There is no reason to suggest it – despite the giant differences in their personalities, there is not a scrap of evidence that Henry V wasn’t Henry VI’s father or that Katherine was an adulterous, treacherous wife.

The quality of the writing itself was fine, sometimes overwritten and overly formal in its attempts to sound like “historical”. I never quite bought Henry’s voice, but that might be because I never quite bought Henry as a character.

There are also horrible moments in the book. In the early chapters, there is a scene in which Henry, as a child in Richard II’s court during his father’s exile (historically, he would’ve been about 12 years old then, his age is largely unspecified), sees Richard’s child-queen, Isabella de Valois, for the first time. Isabella is explicitly stated to be ten years of age (she was actually nine). Henry looks at her and thinks about how pretty he is. The adult sitting next to him (Richard of York, then 23) asks him, basically, if he’s got the hots for Isabella and Henry says yes. Then Richard of York comments on how “lickerish” the thirty-one-year-old Richard II must be to consummate their marriage – if he hasn’t already done it. Now I’m thinking, yikes, some call child protective services because Richard of York is definitely a paedophile. For the record – there is no evidence that the marriage was ever consummated and it appears he doted on her as a father would.

Then, I shrieked in rage when I got to the paragraph where Richard of York then says “well, the king actually prefers boys to girls, so maybe he’ll pay a visit to your bedchamber”. And look, I’m not sure whether this whole scene was meant to be a legitimate scene where we get a moral lecture wherein queerness is conflated with being a child molester, or that Richard of York, the most cartoonish of Giardina’s “bad guys”, is given this dialogue to prove how awful he is. Regardless, the whole scene left me disgusted and angry. It was also completely unnecessary – the only things that come up again are Richard of York is a horrible person.

I enjoyed that some fairly important but also obscure figures, such as Sir John Oldcastle and Richard Courtenay, were fleshed out and given fairly vital parts in the story. I particularly liked the relationship between Courtenay and Henry, though I wasn’t sold on Courtenay’s characterisation as an innocent do-gooder. The historical Courtenay appears to have been fairly politically savvy, clashing notably with Archbishop Arundel during Henry IV’s reign, and there is evidence that rather than being the naïve patsy in Henry’s early negotiations with France as he is in Good King Harry, he was employing spies in the French court. His descendants have recently suggested that he and Henry were lovers, though this is pure speculation and, of course, it’s probably for the best that Giardina couldn’t have known about that given the way she handled Richard II’s queerness.

(But you know what? Give me a ten-novel series about Courtenay spying on the French whilst romancing Henry V because that sounds awesome and more likely than a lot of things in this novel.)

The romance between Henry and Merryn wasn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be, but it did drag on and felt unrealistic, particularly when his father, against all expectation, approves of her. Not that this meant he treated his son any better.

Being published in 1984, it feels somewhat unfair to call it out for being historically inaccurate since I have little understanding of what was “known” then. However, that’s never stopped me before. It is clear that Giardina draws on some of the tropes of the Battle of Agincourt that are not necessarily accurate. The relationship between Henry’s parents, Henry IV/Bolingbroke and Mary de Bohun, is depicted as unloving and businesslike and they rarely see each other, while modern historians characterise it as fond and loving because they were often together. Likewise, Giardina’s Henry IV has many, many mistresses, but this is not borne out by historical record – his only known illegitimate child was born between his two marriages.

The Badby execution, in which the then-Prince Henry witnesses and intervenes in the burning to death of a heretic, is depicted as being presided over by the villainous Archbishop Arundel, but was in actual fact presided over by Richard Courtenay (I can’t help but wonder if Giardina switched the two because it wouldn’t match her depiction of Courtenay). On another bizarre note, Henry says he doesn’t want to give command to Thomas during his second campaign in France, as Thomas has never held a command post before – despite the fact that the historical Thomas held command positions during their father’s reign and in Henry’s first French campaign – he actually commanded the second camp during the siege of Harfleur, overseeing the mining operations and it was Thomas, not Henry, who received the offer of surrender.

All up, I found this a frustrating read. 1.5 stars.

[Jane · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fictional biography of Henry V of England from boyhood in Wales until the time of his dying--through the three reigns: Richard II, Henry IV [his father] and his own. I guess Shakespeare's portrayal [and the Kenneth Branagh movie] have ruined other concepts for me. I was disappointed; the novel started out promisingly enough, but most of the middle section, the annoying maudlin romance with Welsh shepherdess, Merryn, and its conclusion was artificial and contrived. The last part of the novel did improve somewhat after he was declared king upon his father's death. It covered his war in France--Agincourt was well done--and his unhappy marriage to Katherine and political maneuverings. Merryn hovered like a specter over the whole novel and pretty much spoiled it for me. It was too hard to believe this Henry was real; he was too perfect--and--a pacifist. Did the author use him as a mouthpiece for her own feelings? He was also oblivious to social class, which sounded wrong in that era. I couldn't connect with anyone in the novel. I felt as though only the barest outline of Henry's story were based on history: that much more than half was strictly fiction. I wish the author had included an Author's note; perhaps she shied away from one, not wanting to admit most of the story was made up. The novel was a pedestrian effort.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very well written first-person account of the life of England's Warrior King, Henry V. Giardina effectively opens the book as Henry lies dying and reflects upon his life in a long flashback. This is not a retelling of Shakespeare's Henry, but more of a mirror where the reader learns of Henry's motivations and the internal conflict between the atrocities of war and his devout faith.

Giardina makes a good attempt to stay close to the actual historical record with the exception of creating a great love affair between the king and a Welsh shepherdess. While I liked the character of Merryn, I did find the relationship a bit contrived and unrealistic. The scenes depicting the events leading up to the battle at Agincourt were some of the best in the book.

The book and story held my attention for the most part, though it did drag a bit here and there. Giardina's style was effective in creating a long ago era while still being easily readable. The writing itself is really quite beautiful and moving. All in all, recommended for lovers of medieval historical fiction or those fascinated by the War of the Roses that may be traced back to the seizing of the throne by Henry IV.

[George · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book in the bookcase of a B&B my wife and I were staying at. I casually picked it up and could not put it down. I read half of it in two days. Since the book belonged to the B&B and I couldn't take it with me when we checked out, I tracked it down at the local library and eagerly finished it in short order. I loved this book! It is Henry V's life story, told from his point of view, and it was immediately engaging. Denise Giardina takes you inside the struggles, frustrations and motivations and triumphs of the young king-to-be. Although largely conjectural, the book is well-researched and historically accurate, and really gives you a strong feeling for the perilous times that were early 15th-century England. It is also a kind of mirror-image to Shakespeare's Henry V in that it subverts the transition from "wastrel" youth to strong and noble king with complexity and subtlety. In this novel it is his intelligence and rebelliousness against the typical "chivalrous" and noble attitudes of his time, not his acceptance of them that makes him a such a great king, and such a great character.

[Perry Alexander · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was very up and down. There were moments where I couldn’t put it down, and there were moments when I wanted to throw it across the room out of boredom. The historical accuracy is questionable, though that is usually the case with these types of narratives. I am glad it wasn’t just a carbon copy of the Shakespeare play, as marvelous as that is. The author succeeds most when she is describing basic human experiences, felt through the eyes of a man who leads an anything but basic life.

[Dustin Lovell · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Chivarly dead? Perhaps not! Perhaps it is the last battle to purify it. To rid it of hypocrisies ere this new age you speak of overtakes us.”—Earl of Warwick to King Henry V

In Good King Harry, Denise Giardina explores the life of Prince Hal/Henry V in the 14th and 15th centuries. Told in first person, the book covers Hal's childhood, including his rejection by his father and his time at King Richard II's court, his adolescent years campaigning in Wales against Owen Glyndwr, and his eventual ascension to the throne and retaking of English lands in France, ending the book with his death.

Throughout the story, Giardina explores the themes of courtliness and chivalry that characterized politics and war at the time, and how and why Harry would largely depart from both. She also shows the growing conflict between the Lollard movement and the English Catholic Church which would, a century later, become the Protestant Reformation. Generally following the historical timeline, though with definite nods to Shakespeare's dramatizing of it (dividing sections with quotes from Shakespeare, including truncated version of some of King Henry's great speeches), Giardina presents a compelling and sympathetic perspective on the conflicts and complexities of King Henry. Her Harry must maintain a balance between the courtliness of Richard II and the populism of Henry IV, as well as manage the transition out of the age of romantic chivalry while striving to maintain its best traits.

This account is a compelling and captivating piece of historical fiction, and I would imagine it would be as enjoyable for readers who are not familiar with Shakespeare's Hal as it was for this one who is.

[Tania · Rating 4 out of 5]

King Henry V of England comes to life in this fictional account of his life from childhood until the moment of his death. Written in the first person, Giardina seeks to unearth the moral conflict raging beneath the hard surface of a warrior king. Good King Harry first introduces Henry V as a child, loosed upon the Welsh countryside, and slowly develops him into man and King, all the while speculating on his most private beliefs and feelings. The author seeks to make Henry V a relatable character, and even a sympathetic one, and in that she succeeds. Through his wild youth, his longing for paternal acceptance, and his education on governance, there is a fire within the young man that burns bright. When true love consumes him, there is a softening of his personality in the best of ways, even for one who would be King. When grief overtakes him, there is a piety living within that tempers his actions. Finally, when success could easily turn his head from long-held beliefs, there is a strength of character, slowly gained through all that came before, that continues to cast a favorable light upon King Henry V.

Good King Harry is a fascinating portrait of King Henry V. His good deeds are preserved in the telling even as a more complex personality emerges. The demands of his position, first as heir and then as crowned King, led to an interesting internal struggle that continued throughout the novel. I found it both entertaining and informative. The end of the edition I read included a reader's guide sharing Q&A with the author as well as suggested questions for book clubs and study groups to tackle.

[David Shelby · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of if not the best Giardina novel, this story of war and drama fleshes out Henry V with incredible clarity. While the book may have its slow parts, it makes for a powerful read nonetheless, as Harry wrestles with his father, his brothers, the church, his devotion to the English people, and his love for his childhood home in Wales. Of course, the hundred years war is always exciting.

[Mia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Despite what I found to be a weak plot line regarding Henry's relationship with Katherine, I found Gardenia's ear for 15th century dialogue very musical, utterly convincing and kept me under its spell. Much like the Henry in this novel, I keep my own counsel and rate this 5 stars, for none other than the cadence of Giardina's beautifully wrought first-person narrative.

[Rick Hodges · Rating 4 out of 5]

Giardina writes this tale in a hybrid of the English King Henry spoke and modern English, and it works. You feel immersed in his world, but without stumbling over every other word as when reading Shakespeare. It makes this love story projected onto a historical character very compelling and real.

[J. Bryce · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got past the goofy archaic language use and ended up REALLY enjoying it.

Now to find a real bio on Henry of Monmouth.

[Joanne Williamson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Historical fiction that leans too far to the fiction side for my taste.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

I nearly cried at the end, though I'm not really sure why, though I suspect it has to do with somehow becoming more emotionally involved than I had expected, or maybe just not enough sleep... Regardless, the book was more involving than one would expect from a historical fiction novel. It drew readers in with interesting characters and situations, a touch of romance alongside some serious discussion of topics that remain meaningful even today. I liked the complexities of this book, especially Giardina's questions about the integration of religion and politics. It certainly made for some interesting discussion. I also enjoyed what felt like a more complex portrayal of Henry, since he usually is just made out to be Mr. Perfect, especially in Shakespeare with his noble king persona. A good read for historical fiction lovers and those who just like good fiction.

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Good King Harry" brings us Henry V as Shakespeare never showed him: a compassionate man of the people, as well as a soldier.

Starting with his boyhood in Wales and ending with his death, Henry's tale is told in the first person. The book is obviously well-researched, teeming with historic figures and events. The author brings the early 15th century vividly to life, warts and all; she shows the challenges and failures as well as the triumphs along Henry's way to the crown.

Highly recommended for the history buffs on my list.

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

As is indicated by the title, this novel is a fictional biography of Henry V, told from his point of view. It's a fairly straightforward narration, focusing on Henry's struggle with the competing and often conflicting demands of remaining true to his personal principles and being a good and effective king. The demands of the crown are heavy and numerous, and so are the standards of just behavior that Henry holds himself to. I watched the Kenneth Branagh movie of the Shakespeare play this weekend as an accompaniment to the book, and they did indeed go well together.

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

The one thing that always distrubed me about Shakespeare's Henry V, was the woman. Why, in a story about war, and all the referrences to the politics of war, the consequences of war, the results, why, did there have to be a love interest. Giardina's Good King Harry explains the reasons perfectly. The prose in Good King Harry often brought me to tears. Just beautiful writting. And a beautiful take on a very old story. Wonderful book.

[Squire Whitney: Hufflepuff Book Reviwer · Rating 3 out of 5]

In her first novel, Denise Giardina utilizes a fantastic historical concept in order to explore complicated questions of morality. Giardina’s characterization is as smart as ever—and I found myself somehow particularly enthralled by Tom’s character. That said, the narrative is severely dampened by its snail's pacing. Good King Harry contains moments of brilliance, but you have to slug through a great deal of monotony to get there.

[Brenna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the writing style of Ms. Giardina and therefore, I enjoyed the book. It isn't one of my favorites in the traditional sense, but it has to be one of the most complete stories of Henry V's life I've read thus far. I do have so many questions I would love to ask-especially with no Author's Note. Oh well.

[Christopher · Rating 5 out of 5]

i picked this up in the newark airport of all places before a 7 am flight i think it was. saw the title out of the corner of my eye and bought it after reading the back. very good book, especially for historical fiction buffs such as myself. got me thru a flight all hung over.

[Stuart Lutzenhiser · Rating 3 out of 5]

Following the life of Henry V from his early yout as the eldest son of Henry of Lancaster to his father's rise as Henry IV to his crowning as Henry V. The battle of Agincourt is center of the plot. There are ficticious subplots to flesh out the subject. I enjoyed it but was left wanting more.

[Karri · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm really enjoying this. Family obligations and the advent of baseball season have forced me to slow my reading down. I hope to finish this weekend!

[Jack · Rating 3 out of 5]

Adequate for background history (that's why I read it) but a bit tedious as a first person "memoir". Nowhere near as powerful as Pargeter's works.

[Andrea Schwartz]

An interesting fictional look at the life of Henry V--made me wish I remembered more of my British history. Felt it slowed down toward the middle of the book.

[Adam Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like this one the best of Giardina's books.

[Georgette · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good, though light book about Harry and his subsequent ruling of the kingdom, not to mention his marriage. Wish it had more to it, it's a small book. Well written, yes, but slight.

[Terry · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel depicts Henry V as a conflicted king who tried to aid the poor and commoners, but kept having to compromise his principles.

[Bonnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am still reading this one, but so far I would give it a least 4 stars. I really like the way Giardina writes. I am also enjoying the history of Henry V.