At his death in 1547, King Henry VIII left four heirs to the English throne: his only son, the nine-year-old Prince Edward; the Lady Mary, the adult daughter of his first wife Katherine of Aragon; the Lady Elizabeth, the teenage daughter of his second wife Anne Boleyn; and his young great-niece, the Lady Jane Grey. In this riveting account Alison Weir paints a unique portrait of these extraordinary rulers, examining their intricate relationships to each other and to history. She traces the tumult that followed Henry's death, from the brief intrigue-filled reigns of the boy king Edward VI and the fragile Lady Jane Grey, to the savagery of "Bloody Mary," and finally the accession of the politically adroit Elizabeth I. As always, Weir offers a fresh perspective on a period that has spawned many of the most enduring myths in English history, combining the best of the historian's and the biographer's art.
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“[Weir’s] sweeping narrative, based on contemporary chronicles, plays out vividly against the colorful backdrop of Tudor England.”
— Publishers Weekly
“Ms. Weir imparts movement and coherence while re-creating the suspense her characters endured and the suffering they inflicted.”
— New York Times Book Review“Fascinating…Alison Weir does full justice to the subject.”
— Philadelphia Inquirer“Exciting history and fascinating reading about a family of mythic proportions.”
— Amazon.com, editorial review" An autobiography peppered with historical references. Well written, but dry. I could not relate to Schlesinger's experiences which made it difficult to stay interested in the book. I still want to read his historical analyses, as I think he is probably a better historian than memoir writer. "
— Sydney, 1/31/2013" 2006 Christmas present from Jennie. "
— Philip, 1/17/2013Alison Weir is many works of nonfiction and historical fiction, including the New York Times bestsellers Innocent Traitor and The Six Wives of Henry VIII. She has also written historical biographies that include Queens of the Conquest, Queens of the Crusades, and Queens of the Age of Chivalry.