Frances brutally punishes her on the slightest pretext, and Jane is happy to escape to the household of Queen Katherine Parr, King Henry’s sixth wife. A Tudor Mommie Dearest, Frances hardens her heart against Jane for failing to be born male. A minor throughout, Jane is subject to the whims of corrupt and ambitious adults bent on exploiting her bloodline to advance their own agenda. In setting her first novel around Lady Jane, daughter of Henry VIII’s niece, Frances, Weir must surmount two major historical constraints first, that Jane’s fate is known, and second, that Jane, though precocious and unusually well-schooled for a girl of the time, is a necessarily passive character. Who better to rehabilitate her than Weir ( Queen Isabella, 2005, etc.), author of numerous works of popular history, five of which concern the Tudor dynasty. Lady Jane is often viewed as merely pathetic.
In the author's note at the end of the book, Alison Weir writes: "It is my sincere hope that the story that has unfolded in these pages has both enthralled and appalled you, the reader." It did both magnificently.Weir’s erudition in matters royal finds fictional expression in the story of England’s briefest reigning sovereign, Lady Jane Grey. The book is filled with the gossip, intrigue and conspiracies of court life with such vivid descriptions that the story just pops-making you feel as if you're living in the middle of it. Ellen, her loving and trusted nursemaid Frances Grey, Duchess of Suffolk, Jane's hateful mother Queen Katherine Parr, the sixth wife of Henry VIII who took an interest in Jane and John Dudley, the man who wrested the crown, albeit temporarily, from Princess Mary, the rightful heir. The entire book is written in the first person but from the viewpoint of several people, including Lady Jane Grey Mrs.
When her marriage is consummated, she is brutally raped by her husband. She was physically and emotionally abused by her mother, but found solace in books and learning-highly unusual for a young girl of these times. The great-niece of King Henry VIII, Jane was the eldest of three daughters in a time when only sons were wanted. Author Alison Weir masterfully tells the life story of Jane Grey, known as the nine-day queen of England. Even students of British history who know how this story ends will find this fictionalized version (that is solidly based on historical facts) a riveting and even mesmerizing read.
0 kommentar(er)
