Tuesday, June 10, 2008

The Other Boleyn Girl by Phillippa Gregory

The three Boleyn siblings begin their rocky road to fame at a young age. Mary, the narrator of the tale, Anne and George are all players in their Uncle, Thomas Howard, the Duke of Norfolk schemes to advance the family.

Mary is the first to catch the eye of Henry VIII. Although newly married and barely fourteen, she is to put aside her husband, her regard for Queen Katherine and become the King’s mistress. But after several years and having borne two children, Henry’s attention begins to wander and when the family thinks Mary can no longer hold him, Anne is instructed to entice the King. But Anne is not one to be satisfied as a mistress, like her sister, she has her eye on a higher goal – to displace the childless Queen. Her schemes and those of her Uncle will send the country into turmoil.

Gregory pulls into focus all the rumour and scandal that circle around the Boleyns and the political maneuvering of the court of Henry VIII. All three of them twisted by the weight of power and status put on them by the Duke of Norfolk. But Anne's ruthless desire and machinations for the throne and to produce a legitimate heir drives her with a force that will make even her family turn from her.