Charlie Fenton’s Reviews > Le Temps Viendra: A Novel of Anne Boleyn, Volume I > Status Update

‘abandoned Anne to fend for herself as best as she could. A sinister heaviness took shape in my breast. Whilst the King avowed his love for Anne Boleyn, showered her with fabulous jewels and other riches, written songs in her honour and poetry that glorified her divine womanhood, the simple and awful truth was that, at the first sign of trouble, Henry had fled without her, with scant regard for her safety.’

‘Unexpectedly, I found my gaze locked with that of the Queen who, unbeknownst to me, had been standing watching us as we awaited His Majesty's arrival. It was a private moment, shared between two women who were locked in a vicious and deadly battle for the love of one man. Katherine looked down on me imperiously with a fury in her eyes that she saved only for Anne.’

‘It was his eyes above all else that I remember most during that first meeting, for they were alive with love and unrequited passion. In that moment, I knew that I meant the world to Henry and that he would turn his kingdom upside down to have me as his own. I also understood how unjustly Anne had been condemned for causing all that would later happen—the break from Rome and the Reformation.’

‘This was to be the first of many times in
the days and months ahead that words would tumble forth without my understanding of whence they came. Every time this would happen, it seemed as though I was being guided from beyond my understanding by Anne herself. It was from these experiences that gradually over time, I would also come to know more of the real Anne Boleyn.’