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The Lady in the Tower (1986)

von Jean Plaidy

Weitere Autoren: Siehe Abschnitt Weitere Autoren.

Reihen: Queens of England (4)

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6791633,570 (3.79)17
Fiction. Literature. Historical Fiction. HTML:One of history??s most complex and alluring women comes to life in this classic novel by the
legendary Jean Plaidy.

Young Anne Boleyn was not beautiful but she was irresistible, capturing the hearts of kings and commoners alike. Daughter of an ambitious country lord, Anne was sent to France to learn sophistication, and then to court to marry well and raise the family??s fortunes. She soon surpassed even their greatest expectations. Although his queen was loving and loyal, King Henry VIII swore he would put her aside and make Anne his wife. And so he did, though the divorce would tear apart the English church and inflict religious turmoil and bloodshed on his people for generations to come.

Loathed by the English people, who called her ??the King??s Great Whore,? Anne Boleyn was soon caught in the trap of her own ambition. Political rivals surrounded her at court and, when she failed to produce a much-desired male heir, they closed in, preying on the king??s well-known insecurity and volatile temper. Wrongfully accused of adultery and incest, Anne found herself imprisoned in the Tower of London, where she was at the mercy of her husband a
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This is the second Jean Plaidy I've read and I do enjoy her most of all the Tudor fiction novelists I've read. Her books are fairly clean and pretty straightforward, as far as the history of things goes. There were a few places where I found myself a bit bored---mainly during the years where they were just waiting on tides to change---so not really her fault, but that of history.

I knew the basic story line of Anne's life; but this story brought it to life in a way that I think is very plausible, but one that I didn't necessarily like too much. Plaidy's Anne starts out as a woman of high character, driven to live by her principles, and unafraid of standing on morality. I really liked and admired her character at the beginning---my mind had been changed about her.

But, as soon as she chose to compromise her virtue and allow herself to be betrothed to the King, she became increasingly selfish and spoiled. She spent a lot of time whining about how people despised her for being his supposed concubine and how she hadn't sought that in the beginning, yet she was held to blame. In my opinion, she became completely accountable the moment she decided to begin romantic relations with a married man. I found it interesting that, during the time they were trying to have Henry's first marriage annulled, he seemed to become more patient and compassionate while she became more selfish and paranoid.

The story was really helpful in understanding the politics surrounding Henry VIII's influence on the institution of Protestantism in England. Two of my sons are currently studying this era so it's a topic I'm more interested in than usual this season.

I do wonder how much of Anne's character was based on historical record. She was a woman of virginal and chaste morals in the beginning; and her daughter, Elizabeth I, was thought, by some, to also be a virginal and chaste woman. I wonder how much of that was in response to what she'd been told about the character of her mother. I was also intrigued by the idea that Anne could have influenced Court fashions of the day with her designs to hide her (perhaps made up) mole and sixth nail.

All in all, it was a great read and I'm happy that I have so many more by this author on my TBR for the future. ( )
  classyhomemaker | Dec 11, 2023 |
Ahhh, Anne Boleyn. Where would the Western world be if not for you? Protestantism might never have gotten such a foothold in European (and subsequently American) culture if not for her. Clever, dazzling, and tempestuous Anne Boleyn leads readers on the tumultuous journey of her life from her simple life at Hever Castle at six years old to the Tower Green at 29. All throughout the book, readers get a strong sense of Anne's personality and motivations. In my humble opinion, Anne Boleyn is such a fascinating person that it would be pretty hard to screw up a telling of her life story. Jean Plaidy takes readers on a ride where you alternately sympathize for Anne, cringe for her, and cry for her.

From the beginning, Anne is positioned as being exceptionally bright. At first, she comes across as timid, as she is only a child in the licentious French court. Her observations about those around her are astute, but I could do without all of the giant info dumps about various historical personages like Louise of Savoy and Charles Brandon, both of whom feature very little in the book; yet, you still get pages on their background.

As Anne gets older, she desires to set herself apart. She sees how her sister Mary is treated for sleeping around, and she decides to avoid that fate at all costs. Not only that, when Mary's husband dies, she is left penniless, having received nothing from Henry, despite being his mistress for several years. Poverty frightens everyone. And so, when Anne meets Henry VIII, her resolution doesn't waver. She will not have him if it compromises her virtue.

Plaidy positions Anne's ambitions as a reaction to being slighted by Wolsey who turns down Percy (essentially her boyfriend) for wanting to marry her. I find this cheapens Anne's ambition, and I prefer to think that, while she may have been disappointed in love, ultimately, she wouldn't be happy unless it was at court in the middle of everything.

The curse of being an active player in history is that sometimes you're the "bad guy" as you make all of the wrong decisions. For a lot of people, Anne Boleyn fits that to a T. She picks fights with Katherine of Aragon, is almost cruel to Mary who's a preteen at this time, is vindictive towards her perceived enemies, and she often lashes out verbally to the king. She never learns when to just let things go, and this is her downfall.

Overall, I highly recommend this Tudor novel about one of the most important women in Western history. It's a nuanced and sympathetic portrayal of Anne Boleyn while also criticizing her more outlandish actions. Anne was far from perfect, but that doesn't mean, we as readers, won't stop sympathizing with her. Once she found herself at the mercy of the king, she became determined to make the best of her situation so that she came out on top. She almost succeeded. Should we begrudge her that because she was so proud? I don't. ( )
  readerbug2 | Nov 16, 2023 |
My favorite version of Anne Boleyn that I've read so far! Almost every other book I've read--especially the infamous The Other Boleyn Girl--play up the smear campaign that accompanied and brought about her downfall. Jean Plaidy, however, lets Anne have our sympathy even as we cringe (along with her) at her forwardness.

Admittedly, I have read this book before. The first time it was lent to me by a friend in high school, and it's one of the few times that I can remember relating so strongly to some aspect of a fictional character.

I did notice some odd repetitions on this read-through, though I forgot to flag them. There were occasional turns of phrase that would be repeated a page or two after its first use, and in a similar situation. I also found the occasional use of historical (or nearly historical) phrases a bit jarring, since the language came out a bit more stilted--in large part, I think, because people rarely talk the way they write. For example, when Anne arrives at the Tower of London, she falls on her knees and says, "Oh Lord God, help me. Thou knowest I am guiltless of that whereof I am accused." It smacks of a contemporary written account, both because of the language and because Plaidy doesn't have Anne speak often of her faith as a personal matter.

But these are both small complaints for a book that I really do enjoy...so much so that I decided not to keep track of all the quotes I like, just a few choice ones. If you're a fan of Tudor history and historical novels, definitely give this one a go.

Quote Roundup

p. 193
-- "I had no hard feelings toward those who had thought it necessary to bring this case."
-- "You could not have been expected to have hard feelings against yourself," I reminded him.
-- [Henry] frowned. That was one thing I had to learn about him. In the midst of the most blatant hypocrisy he could delude himself into believing what he was trying to make others believe. It was extraordinary that a man of his intellect could do that. It showed an unusual dexterity of the mind.

p. 308
It was in my nature to assume an excess of gaiety when the future might be fraught with danger.

p. 341
It was not as if I loved him. I knew him too well for that--though sometimes I felt a kind of contemptuous affection for him. He was such a strange man that one could not help marveling at him. It was that cruelty and selfishness alongside the sentimentality, the conscience which did in truth plague him, even though he manipulated it and set it going in the direction best suited to his needs. ( )
  books-n-pickles | Oct 29, 2021 |
This book tells the history of England during the Tudors through the voice of Anne Boleyn. As a review of history, I found the book good but as a novel it was lacking. First person narrator has its limitations. Anne was a young girl mostly growing up in the French court so was aware of the games played in the aristocracy. She describes herself as having little interest in sex but she had a whole lot of interest in gaining power and prestige. She was wise and kept her mouth closed as a young girl but as a woman she had a quick temper and tongue that did not keep its peace. How could there be such a change in personality. With youth there should be more irrational behavior and with maturity this should improve. Not in the case of Anne. I am not interested enough to read anymore in this series. At least at this time.
Rating 2.4 ( )
  Kristelh | Mar 24, 2021 |
Anne Boleyn's side of the story. It was a good read. ( )
  VhartPowers | Dec 27, 2018 |
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» Andere Autoren hinzufügen

AutorennameRolleArt des AutorsWerk?Status
Plaidy, JeanHauptautoralle Ausgabenbestätigt
Falcón, DianaÜbersetzerCo-Autoreinige Ausgabenbestätigt
Zvěřinová, ZdeňkaÜbersetzerCo-Autoreinige Ausgabenbestätigt

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Fiction. Literature. Historical Fiction. HTML:One of history??s most complex and alluring women comes to life in this classic novel by the
legendary Jean Plaidy.

Young Anne Boleyn was not beautiful but she was irresistible, capturing the hearts of kings and commoners alike. Daughter of an ambitious country lord, Anne was sent to France to learn sophistication, and then to court to marry well and raise the family??s fortunes. She soon surpassed even their greatest expectations. Although his queen was loving and loyal, King Henry VIII swore he would put her aside and make Anne his wife. And so he did, though the divorce would tear apart the English church and inflict religious turmoil and bloodshed on his people for generations to come.

Loathed by the English people, who called her ??the King??s Great Whore,? Anne Boleyn was soon caught in the trap of her own ambition. Political rivals surrounded her at court and, when she failed to produce a much-desired male heir, they closed in, preying on the king??s well-known insecurity and volatile temper. Wrongfully accused of adultery and incest, Anne found herself imprisoned in the Tower of London, where she was at the mercy of her husband a

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