The Wives of Henry VIII: The Lady in the Tower

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Summary: Fabulous Rendition of Anne Boleyn
Review: Ann Boleyn was such an interesting person. i really enjoyed how jean plaidy showed her as a strong woman who was denied her first love due to the king's affections rather than some wretchedly ambitious, spoiled, childish brat. i have also read "the other boleyn girl" and this book was much more historically accurate than that one. the sex is also not as g raphic. i thuroughly appreciated this book.

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Summary: The Queen of a Thousand Days
Review: Anne Boleyn is probably one of the most fascinating women in English history. Here, Jean Plaidy brings her to life with a spectacular first-person narrative about who Anne Boleyn really was.

The book begins in the Tower of London; Anne has been convicted of adultery and treason and is waiting for her execution. She then revisits her days at the French and English courts, being courted by the King, and her eventual marriage to him and the birth of her daughter, Elizabeth. Anne tells her story with simplicity, recounting her life at a Court that was filled with seductions, intrigues, murder, and plotting.

The story of the Queen of a Thousand Days is recounted here with unbelievable historical accuracy, as well as remarkable insight into those events which were to shape the course of history. Although it may seem that there is too much history infused into this book, it is necessary because it gives shape to all that these characters say and do. Anne grows from a frightened little girl in the retinue of Princess Marguerite to a lady-in-waiting to Queen Katharine, and finally to Queen of England, seemingly without effort on her part.

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Summary: Good Book
Review: How can a book on Anne Boleyn possibly be boring?? She's arguably one of the most intriguing characters in Tudor history. That said, this book doesn't do her justice. The first 60 pages or so are devoted to lengthy descriptions of minor (or non-existent) characters, digressions, historical notes, and the like. The writing, sad to say, is dry, boring, and generally unappealing. The rising action takes SO long, by the time Jean Plaidy finally decides to introduce a plot, you've lost interest. Don't waste your money on this book. It really isn't worth it.

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Summary: Honestly, now, boring? I don't think so!
Review: I am having trouble understanding why people's complaints with this book are the fact that its "boring." I can name other Anne Boleyn novels that are so much more boring then this. While Jean Plaidy's work are aged, written over 50 years ago, the story of Anne Boleyn is ageless and a true drama even from the plain textbook.

It's been a long time since I've read it, but it was the first Anne Boleyn novel, so maybe that is why I remember it so fondly. The novel opens with Anne in service to Queen Mary, then Queen Claude in France. Then countinues from playing a cruel game on Henry in the garden pretending not to know who he is and have a lengthy conversation with him criticising the English court and praising that of the French, to her end on May 19th, 1536.

A novel that paints a vivid painting of Tudorian life, but a better picture of Anne Boleyn's true charcter. Passionate about everything, arragont and ambitious.

Rating:
Summary: Good Book
Review: I really like this book. It's so interesting and well-written.

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Summary: Not Impressed
Review: I was not impressed with Jean Plaidy's "The Lady in the Tower." Before reading this one, I had indulged in three other works of historial fiction; the first being, "The Other Boleyn Girl," "The Queen's Fool," and the third being "I, Elizabeth." Maybe by contrast of the excellent writing in the three books mentioned above, Jean Plaidy's book seemed less enjoyable. I have not bought any of her other books due to my less than enjoyable experience with the first book.

For starters, I'm a stickler with errors in books. Spelling and grammatical errors really bug me, as I am under the impression the book itself has been edited by professionals by the time it hits the shelves. This book is chock full of mistakes.

The story is the same story you've heard before if you've read this kind of period piece. Jean Plaidy offers nothing 'extra,' so if you know the story already, don't even bother. It is simply written, and very dull.

Jean Plaidy doesn't do the story of Anne Boelyn justice. The only thing this book has going for it is the subject matter: a remarkable and intriguing young woman. Unfortunately, the story of Anne Boelyn can not save this book from the disaster of a less than stellar author.

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Summary: Jean Plaidy was the best
Review: I've always loved Jean Plaidy's books and I'm so happy her Tudor series is being reprinted. The Lady in the Tower is the story of Anne Boleyn. It begins and ends in the Tower with Anne, tired, wiser, and almost ready to die; trying to figure out where things went wrong. Once she was a king's beloved, now that same king was so sick of her that he'd signed her death warrant. How did she fall so far and so fast? Thus, the incredible story begins.
Most biographies, fictional or not tend to skip over her years in France but this one spends quite a lot of time on them and it's to good effect. Anne's life in France helps to explain her actions in England. This is a sympathetic portrait that shows Anne as impetuous, thoughtless at times, and too ambitious but not the evil, scheming seductress that she's been painted as. Brilliant. If you've never read Jean Plaidy, this is a good one to begin with.

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Summary: Explanation of why it's boring
Review: The first half is a lot more detailed and imaginative than the second, when it appears that the author got tired and started rushing through to the end we all know is coming. "I got pregnant, then I lost the child" is not the stuff of gripping psychological drama. Pick up Margaret George instead.

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Summary: A Wonderful Example of True Historical Fiction...
Review: This is the book that introduced me to Jean Plaidy. I have since read at least 30 of her books, and none of them contain the tawdry, psuedo-historical fiction so common today. Being a dedicated anglophile, Jean Plaidy's works have become a starting point to a better understanding of English history. Her bibliographies have become useful aids in this endeavor. "The Lady in the Tower" takes the reader on a journey through the life of one of the most famous women of the Renaissance, Anne Boleyn. I personally enjoyed how she acquired her education, her sparkling wit and her unquestionable finesse at the French court under the tutelage of Marguarite, the tantalizing sister of Francis I of France. I also appreciated the lessons Anne learned early on in life by the treatment of Queen Claude, the experience of her sister Mary, and the skillful management of King Francis. This is also the story of a middle-aged man who had known limitless power for twenty years, and then sees his will thwarted for the first time by God (no sons), his first wife (by not instantly acceding to his wishes as she always had), his trusted Chancellor (Wolsey who simply could not singlehandedly change the political realities of his day) and, finally, by the first exciting woman to say him nay FOR YEARS. The reader sees how not just Anne changes, but also how Katherine of Aragon, Henry & the entire court metamorphose into the unrecognizable shells of the optimistic youths they once were. It's the story of aging, of reaping what we sow.

Rating:
Summary: Real sleeper
Review: This was one evening I will never get back. This book is definately lacking.