The Tudor Wife

by Emily Purdy

Shy, plain Lady Jane Parker feels out of place in Henry VIII's courtly world of glamour and intrigue-until she meets the handsome George Boleyn. Overjoyed when her father arranges their marriage her elation is abruptly cut short when she meets Anne...

Genres: Historical Fiction, Historical, Fiction, Tudor Period, British Literature, Chick Lit

418 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2010

About the author

Pen name of Brandy Purdy.

Reviews

[Sherrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story of Jane Boleyn, wife of George and sister in law of Anne, she is portrayed, as in history, as a jealous shrewlike woman who betrays her family and ultimately suffers the same fate. The author isn't a patch on Philippa Gregory and has a very fertile imagination but who's to say what really happened!

[Elysium · Rating 2 out of 5]

One day Jane get lost in court and gallant young man comes to rescue and escorts her to her rooms. She finds out his name is George Boleyn and she just can’t get him out of her mind. Jane convinces her father to start marriage negotiations but her father has doubts about the whole thing. But Jane is sure after she and George are married he will fall in love with her and be attentive and caring husband. After the marriage Jane realizes George wants absolutely nothing to do with her. But Jane refuses to accept the situation and soon finds the reason why her husband doesn’t love her, George’s sister Anne.

Wow, that was an interesting book. And not in a good way. When Jane meets George for the first time she instantly falls in love.

"My eyes were so dazzled by the sight of him I almost raised my hand to shield them, but to be deprived of the radiant sight of him would have been unbearable. A god in yellow satin, he was indeed the sun that lit up my life." pg.16

That pretty much sums up the whole book. I just wanted to strangle the woman! Of course it’s because of his fiends, sister or whatever that he can’t love her, because there can’t possible be anything wrong with her can there? She seemed always to be there when something happened and those keyholes must have been huge and walls paper thin.

The sex scenes wasn’t as graphic as I feared but not good either. The whole masque thing with Anne as Salome and Henry Norris in a loin cloth was one thing but I really didn’t need that Anne of Cleves and Katherine Howard scene with pot of honey, even if it was behind curtains. And Derham’s and Kat’s first meeting after Derham came to court with Derham licking juices of his fingers was just bad... And then this:

"To watch you, my darling wife, and to know that you want me, deny it though you will, as much as I want you; and that between your thighs your Little Kitten is hot and dripping wet with lust for me." pg. 386

Aww how romantic. NOT. Just eeww!

The only characters I liked were George and Francis Weston. Have I mentioned I have soft spot for George? Well I do.

I was curious about Purdy’s book on Piers Gaveston but after this I’m so not going there!

[Olga Hughes · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wouldn't even waste a paragraph, let alone a whole review. Steaming hot garbage. Minus twelve.

[chucklesthescot · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jane Parker is being married to rising star George Boleyn, brother of Henry's next Queen, Anne. Jane is immediately jealous of the close bond between George and Anne, especially as her new husband shows no interest at all in her. Jealous Jane then gets an opportunity for revenge by testifying against Anne, sending her and many men including George to the block. Her return to court ends in her assisting young Catherine Howard to have an affair behind the King's back.

This was one of my favourite Tudor books as I have always been interested in the infamous Lady Rochford. I have a biography about her waiting on my tbr pile! I first read about her in Philippa Gregory's excellent novels The Other Boleyn Girl and The Boleyn Inheritance and she was such a great character, full of spite and bitterness and evil intentions. This book goes into more depth about Jane and her obsessive jealousy and the lengths she will go to in order to make George love her, and get revenge on Anne. It's a pity that her planning skills did not see that she was condemning George to death along with Anne!

I can relate to the Jane in this book, happily planning her wedding to a top man at court who she loves, as it is unusual for a woman to get a love match in Tudor times, only to find him cold and uncaring and more interested in spending time with his sister and bawdy friends than her. You can imagine her hurt and misery as she watches him have affairs with other people. And I have a mean streak that likes to imagine getting my own back on people who have done me wrong, so watching Jane in action does give me a sense of satisfaction! I do find myself wondering why she was stupid enough to help Catherine have an affair, knowing the consequences if you get caught.

An excellent book for Tudor fans especially those interested in the Boleyn family. If you like The Boleyn Inheritance, you might want to give this one a try.

[Joyceling · Rating 1 out of 5]

How did I get conned into reading this? Poorly written Rubbish. No way am I going to sample her subsequent books. Be warned.

[Redfox5 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Why I ever get tire of books about the Tudors? I don't think so! I can't get enough of this period in history. It's the most exciting and scandalous time in British history!

The story of Anne and Katherine Howard is told through the eyes of Jane Parker. I tried really really hard to see things through Jane's eyes, I tried to sympathise with her. I mean we have all been prone to the green eyed monster from time to time and have suffered with unrequited love but I just couldn't. My love for Anne is to strong. And I still hated that biatch!

The author put a couple of new racy twists in the story. Katherine and Anne of Cleves becoming lovers. Jane and Cromwell having a child. Shocking. I'm sure people who love historical accuracy will be throwing down this book and calling it trash but I don't mind history being altered for entertainment value. There is also a particularly grim moment where Henry wipes his willy on Anne's hair after he's finished with her. What a charming man he must have been!

Overall this book was very entertaining and I didn't want to put it down. Makes me want to re watch the Tudors all over again, not that I haven't watched it more times than I can count.

The only thing that annoyed me, and this has nothing to do with the story. It must have been the publishers idea is that this book is actually called 'Vengeance is Mine' and the authors name is actually Brandy. So the title and the authors name has been changed just for a British audience. Do they really think the Brits are such snobs that we wouldn't read a book by someone called Brandy?

[Helene Harrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review - I preferred this one of Emily Purdy's books to Mary and Elizabeth. Purdy seems to have very slightly twisted the historical record to allow her historical license. Very cleverly written and recommended to anyone interested in the Tudor era. It was very clever from the perspective of Jane Boleyn (nee Parker), Lady Rochford. There is a lot of controversy surrounding her, particularly as to the roles she played in the downfalls of Anne Boleyn and Katherine Howard, and whether she really was mad at the end of her life. It wouldn't surprise me. Hence, why this book drew me in. Seeing Anne in particular from someone's point of view who was in the family, but on the fringes of her circle, offers us a completely different view.

Genre? - Historical / Romance / Drama

Characters? - Jane Boleyn / Anne Boleyn / Thomas Cromwell / George Boleyn / Katherine Howard / Henry VIII / Henry Norris / William Brereton / Mary Boleyn / Thomas Boleyn / Francis Weston / Mark Smeaton / Jane Seymour / Anne of Cleves

Setting? - London (England)

Series? - N/A

Recommend? - Yes

Rating - 18/20

For discussion questions see my blog https://bookbloggerish.wordpress.com/...

[Aoife · Rating 3 out of 5]

The ill-fated tale of Anne Boleyn and Katherine Howard told by a woman who served them both -Jane Parker, Anne Boleyn's sister in law and a woman who turned her over to her killers.

This was an interesting take on the tale of Anne Boleyn. Once you're read one story about the Boleyn's, they all start to blend in to each other and it probably takes a lot for one to stand out. This didn't stand out and it took me a while to get into (maybe just the bitterness of each word being told by Parker. The hate and disgust was very evident throughout, which I guess meant it was written well). I enjoyed this book for what it was though and I would recommend anyone who likes some Tudor novels to pick it up.

[Veena · Rating 4 out of 5]

ANNE BOLEYN is a historical character that has astonished me, and I am sure many others. After watching different series and documentaries I was very much obsessed with the Tudor queens, Anne Boleyn especially. When I came across this book in a recent sale I instantly knew learning about the queens from a lady-in-waiting’s perspective is going to be something else! I started reading this book as soon as I bought it. This is definitely a piece of art that anyone interested in the English royalty must read!

for complete review, visit:
http://acupofcoffeeandafairytale.blog...

[Ashley Thompson · Rating 1 out of 5]

I thought this book was awful. When your main character needs to peep through keyholes (every couple of pages!) and hide in closets (multiple times!) just to keep the plot moving forward... ugh. Possibly the worst Tudor book I've ever read.

[Kirsty Hewes (hewes_books_are_these) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m a massive fan of Tudor History. I’ve read most of Phillippa Gregory’s Novels and enjoyed them. This particular author came up on my suggested list so when I saw this in a local book warehouse sale I grabbed it to read.

The plot:
Tudor England. King Henry the Eighth is on the throne and unhappy in his Barren marriage to the Queen Catherine of Aragon. Jane Parker: a lady in waiting at court (and the whom the story is told for her perspective) narrates the key aspects of this period in time and marries into the Boleyn Household as wife to George. The annulment of Catherine of Aragons marriage, Anne Boleyn’s Rise & Fall and the wives in between that and Katherine Howard. It also documents her jealously and hatred of her husband’s George’s relationship with his sister and how this is the crux of many of her actions before she herself heads to the block.


What I liked about the book:
* The period of time: I’m a massive fan of anything Tudor related so this was enough to keep me interested as I like the difference in interpretations of key historical events and characters.
* The telling of the story from Jane Boleyn (Lady Rochford’s) Perspective. She was a key character at court who is often dismissed as a jealous conniving shrew and overlooked in history. I think she’s fascinating as she was witness to so many key turbulent events during a tumultuous point of history, as well as around so many intriguing historical figures. It was a great eye opener to things she may have seen or encountered, and adds a perspective to a little know person in history.
* the fate of Catherine Howard: it makes you realise it was just a silly little girl who had no clue what she let herself in for and then paid the ultimate price of loosing her life.

What I disliked about the book:
* the portrayal of Anne Boleyn as spiteful, sarcastic and literally marrying Henry because she was told too. I didn’t like the authors interpretation of her character.
* the authors ability to randomly add inaccurate plots (Lady Rochford and Cromwell being intimate and having a child together, Anne of Cleves and Katherine Howard having a night of lesbian passion, involving a jar or honey-really?) it just felt a bit weird to have aspects like that thrown in, with no relevance to history.

[Erica · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 rounded up to 3.

You know how some historical retellings are amazing works of art, wrapping fact and fiction into a beautiful, sensually rich offering where even though you know things have been exaggerated or dates moved about to fit a better narrative, it all swirls around you and you wish it were all true because it's just so darn gorgeous and thrilling (film wise think "Elizabeth").. and some retellings are just about factual enough around all the sex scenes to get away with it (The Tudors)? Well this sits just below the Tudors.

It started off well, but over half the book was dedicated to the events around the rise and all of Anne Boleyn, and that meant over half the book was spent with Jane the protagonist telling us just how much she hated Anne. And Anne's brother, George. Who just also happened to be Jane's husband. Who she loved obsessively.

This was basically the book. Oh, and she went mad and Katherine Howard was a slut who slept with practically everyone she knew including Anne of Cleeves (?!)

Nope, it's back down to 2 stars just for that.

The whole book is written in an easy style though, so it was quite quick to get through and it was diverting, but I think I was hoping for a more highbrow experience.

[Paula · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is an easy read and whilst I am all for poetic license I do find some of the historical facts doubtful. Lady Rochford is an interesting character and was a prominent figure at the Tudor Court as she was sister-in-law to Anne Boleyn. I am sure that she was well aware of what was happening on a day to day basis at court but in this novel she gets to witness it first hand by hiding in every cupboard or behind every pillar imaginable. I was not keen on the chapters relating to Anne of Cleeves and Katherine Howard as they are mainly about sex which again Lady Rochford witnesses first hand. If you like a steamy historical novel then this one is for you. The description of Lady Rochford's madness before her execution is however well written as she obviously felt guilt about giving evidence which condemned Anne Boleyn and her brother George so to be haunted by them would not be surprising.

[Leanne London · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it brought to life the myths and gossip of the Tudor era in the point of view of someone who was in the forefront of it all.

Through the minds eye of George Boleyn's wife, we are transported to a time of danger, politics and power. A view of jealousy of a sibling relationship, Catherine of Aragon who was faithful to her faith until the end, the 'ugly' Anna of Cleve's and Katherine's naivety, it all shows a dangerous time to be a royal woman... Anna of Cleve's had the right idea making sure to smell if the rumours are true!

Jane Boleyn was found to be insane, her need to be loved by George and rejected, made her seek revenge and in the end during her downfall, have delusions and hallucinations. In this context, her mental state could have been shown to be more dire.

But overall, was really entertaining.

[Gemma · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love reading about the Tudors and so went into this book with fairly high expectations but perhaps Philippa Gregory has ruined them for me because I just couldn’t lose myself in this book. The main character Jane was written extremely well as I despised her, she was weak, delusional and obsessive but I despised her to the point where I didn’t want to read her story anymore because she was so loathsome. The sex scenes in the last third of the book seemed out of context with the rest of the book and were cringy to the point of being uncomfortable to read (and I’ve read the 50 Shades trilogy! Ha ha) Sadly I won’t be rushing to pick up anything else from this author.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn’t enjoy this as much as I thought I would. I’d hoped for a new take on Jane Boleyn but it felt like a retelling of the Ann Boleyn story just with the odd reference to Jane’s thoughts and feelings when the author remembered and I felt the chapters on the other wives were the same. She felt very 2D as a character. I also questioned some of the accuracy (although I’m far from a historian) for example the references to Ann’s extra finger and the wen on her throat, which made me question whether other aspects were also inaccurate. I do appreciate it is fiction, but I think that it needs to be as true to the known facts as possible.

[Andrea Johnson · Rating 1 out of 5]

I think this book contained just about all the Tudor myths - Anne Boleyn had a big birthmark, 6 fingers and gave birth to a monster. Catherine Howard is a stupid whore who opens her legs for anyone, including ANNE OF CLEVES - yep, Catherine also cheated on Henry in this book with his ex wife.

The ‘German accent’ that is used for Anne is atrocious and Jane Boleyn seems to appear in impossible places all the time, including Anne Boleyn’s cupboard so she can narrate everything.

This is just me, but American spelling really irritates me in books set 500 years ago in England.

All in, bloody terrible.

[Isobel Gilbert · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have previously enjoyed the historic style of novel - particularly about the Tudors (The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory I really liked)- but this one was nowhere near as good. There is some good clarification of timelines and court connections but the story itself was only ok. I know that Henry the VIII's court was bawdy already without having so much of the lewdness spelled out for me. (and how many times can one woman write the word 'cunny' into one novel?) Not as good as others in the genre that I have read.

[Rinske · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a romanticized novel based on real history about 4 of Henry VIII's six wifes through the eyes of a lady-in-waiting. The lady in question is Jane Boleyn, sister in law to Anne Boleyn and instrumental in her downfall. The whole book centers around her jealousy of Anne and the love between Anne and her brother (Jane's husband).
In the end, this jealousy also causes Jane's downfall.

The book is nicely written, good pace, with eye for historical detail. All in all a nice read.

[Elaine Hargrave · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tudor Wife is a well written book on the well known lives of Anne Boleyn mostly. Writing from the view of George Boylen's wife. Jane has been lady in waiting at court to five of Henry's wives and has a penchant for listening at key holes. Jane's own story is included in the writing of this novel. Well worth the read. We all know the gruesome ending of some of the Queen's of Henry's court. This is gossip from the inside.

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found one minute it’s going really slow then the next 10 different things where happening all to fast. It’s a good book to read to get a different prospect with some true facts but a lot of filling the gaps. Jane fell in love with a man who didn’t even look at her, the book more about a jealous women who always got her way when she was child but couldn’t get over not getting her way as an adult and paid the price with her live in the end.

[Alison Hodgson · Rating 1 out of 5]

Terrible! I hardly ever discard a book without finishing it but it was awful. I enjoyed it at first and found the life of Jane Boleyn interesting but the author then messed with history in many of the ways she described events with no historical rationale. I may have been able to forgive it if it was well written but it wasn’t

[Norah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it factual at times maddening ruthless and yes at times I had a chuckle to myself.well written and kept you in till the end... if you love Tudor England with all its drama intrigue and saucy going ons this is a must. Loved it.

[Lois Anne Slater · Rating 3 out of 5]

An entertaining read but accurate??

It was a good read but given the other information out there about Anne Boleyn, Catherine Howard and Anne of Cleves, I would question it's accuracy in places.

[Cassie · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is the story of the wives of Henry VIII as told by Jane, Lady Rochford, sister in law to Anne Bloleyn .
There is an awful lot of poetic licence taken by the author and it's not written particularly well, but it was good enough to quench my need for a bit of historical reading for a bit.

[Verity Megginson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book obviously isn’t very historically accurate but it really is a good read for history lovers. I literally couldn’t put the book down and finished it within a day. The main character Jane is very self absorbed though and I didn’t like that but apart from that I really enjoyed the book

[Maureen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed reading about all the characters in this book, loved the intrigue and scandals

[Elizabeth Ann Cyrus · Rating 5 out of 5]

The last book i read by Emily Purdy, i did not enjoy. However this book was much better. I have never looked at Jane before or considered her view.
A wonderful book

[Leonor Laluna-Tan Seng · Rating 3 out of 5]

different perspective from Philippa Gregory novels but I still liked how it showed the story of that time

[Carol · Rating 1 out of 5]

Total rubbish. Sleazy. Invented. No research carried out.