Monday, November 25, 2019

Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours Book Review: Katherine Tudor Duchess



Katherine Tudor Duchess by Tony Riches

Publication Date: October 1, 2019

Preseli Press

eBook & Paperback; 328 pages

Series: The Brandon Trilogy, Book 3

Genre: Historical Fiction

Synopsis:

Attractive, wealthy and influential, Katherine Willoughby is one of the most unusual ladies of the Tudor court. A favourite of King Henry VIII, Katherine knows all his six wives, his daughters Mary and Elizabeth, and his son Edward, as well as being related by marriage to Lady Jane Grey.

She marries Tudor knight, Sir Charles Brandon, and becomes Duchess of Suffolk at the age of fourteen. Her Spanish mother, Maria de Salinas, is Queen Catherine of Aragon’s lady in waiting, so it is a challenging time for them all when King Henry marries the enigmatic Anne Boleyn.

Following Anne’s dramatic downfall, the short reign of young Catherine Howard, and the tragic death of Jane Seymour, Katherine’s young sons are tutored with the future king, Prince Edward, and become his friends.

Katherine and Charles Brandon are chosen to welcome Anna of Cleves as she arrives in England. When the royal marriage is annulled, Katherine’s good friend, Catherine Parr becomes the king’s sixth wife, and they work to promote religious reform.

When King Edward dies, his Catholic sister Mary is crowned queen and Katherine’s Protestant faith puts her family in great danger - from which there seems no escape.

Katherine’s remarkable true story continues the epic tale of the rise of the Tudors, which began with the best-selling Tudor trilogy and concludes with the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.


Amazon UK | Amazon US

Review:  I've been reading a lot of English history historical fiction right now. I went from Richard III to the Tudors. Katherine Willoughby is definitely an interesting historical figure. ( I actually started reading this book on the kindle app on my phone during a boring night at work)

I was immediately caught up in the story of a woman who lived through all of Henry VIII's wives. Her mother was a lady in waiting to Catherine of Aragon.

If you read any novels about Henry VIII you'll find her mentioned. She was friends with each of his wives and his children. I only wish in this book you'd see more of her interactions with them, especially as she was going to be a Lady in Waiting to Anna of Cleves. I also loved her friendship with Queen Catherine Parr.

This book gives you a chance to really get to know her and she's definitely an interesting person, especially as Henry's children take the throne and she is faced with the trials of being and Reformist in a Catholic nation again.

One thing I find interesting about religion in this period of UK history is how the reformists call their version of...well Catholicism "The True Faith" It has never made much sense to me, as it is an off shoot of well...Catholicism.

Katherine's life was full of ups and downs from the start because of who her mother was and then who her husband was. (Henry VIII's brother in law) She was married young but she never appeared naive.  I loved that she found happiness, though her life was not without trials, because her family had to keep on Henry's good side..and then she had to flee for her life when Queen Mary came to power.

She was definitely an interesting women in history.

This was a wonderfully written novel that was a joy to read, especially for someone like me that devours books that revolve around English history.

Rating: 5 flowers





About the Author



Tony Riches is a full-time writer and lives with his wife in Pembrokeshire, West Wales. After several successful non-fiction books, Tony turned to novel writing and wrote ‘Queen Sacrifice’, set in 10th century Wales, followed by ‘The Shell’, a thriller set in present day Kenya. A specialist in the history of the early Tudors, he is best known for his Tudor Trilogy. Tony’s other international best sellers include ‘Warwick ~ The Man Behind the Wars of the Roses’ and ‘The Secret Diary of Eleanor Cobham’.

For more information please visit Tony’s website and his blog The Writing Desk. He can also be found on FacebookTwitter, and Goodreads.


Blog Tour Schedule
Monday, November 18
Excerpt at Short Book and Scribes

Tuesday, November 19
Guest Post at On the Tudor Trail

Wednesday, November 20
Review at Gwendalyn's Books

Thursday, November 21
Review at 100 Pages a Day
Feature at View from the Birdhouse

Friday, November 22
Feature at Cover To Cover Cafe

Monday, November 25
Review at A Chick Who Reads

Tuesday, November 26
Excerpt at The Book Junkie Reads

Wednesday, November 27
Review at Passages to the Past

Thursday, November 28
Excerpt at Chicks, Rogues and Scandals

Monday, December 2
Review at book frolic
Review at History + Fiction + Spirit

Tuesday, December 3
Review at Nursebookie

Wednesday, December 4
Review at Historical Fiction with Spirit

Thursday, December 5
Review at Donna's Book Blog
Review at Curling up by the Fire

Friday, December 6
Excerpt at Coffee and Ink
Review at A Darn Good Read


Giveaway
During the Blog Tour, we are giving away two paperbacks of Katherine-Tudor Duchess by Tony Riches! To enter, please use the Gleam form below.

Giveaway Rules

– Giveaway ends at 11:59 pm EST on December 6th. You must be 18 or older to enter.
– Paperback giveaway is open internationally.
– Only one entry per household.
– All giveaway entrants agree to be honest and not cheat the systems; any suspicion of fraud will be decided upon by blog/site owner and the sponsor, and entrants may be disqualified at our discretion.
– The winner has 48 hours to claim prize or a new winner is chosen.

Katherine Tudor Duchess


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