Tudor: The Family Story

Rating: 5 Stars

Review:

How refreshing to read about the Tudors from their true beginnings, and not simply Henry VIII's reign and beyond. There was so much I never knew about the family prior to Henry VII defeating Richard III at Bosworth, and I do consider myself fairly well-read on all things Tudor.

I was hesitant at first to read this however, because I've read previous books by de Lisle and found them to be rather slow moving. Not so here, I couldn't put it down even as her subject moved from Henry VII into familiar territory.

The family is fascinating, though whenever I read about Elizabeth I find myself wanting to pull my hair out and scream at her, "Get married already so your family's reign can continue!!!" Alas, no amounting of shouting at her ever works.

Speaking of Elizabeth, I've always had a soft spot for Elizabeth the child that I simply don't for Elizabeth the adult. I know part of this is because her mother is Anne Boleyn, whom I quite despise. The larger part though, is that her sister and predecessor Mary is often portrayed as the evil one, compared to Elizabeth's goodness. People seem to forget that Elizabeth had many more executed than did Mary - not to mention she had the nerve to execute a fellow monarch in her cousin, Mary Queen of Scots.

The text it not always in-depth, but for the time span it covers, one can't expect that or this one volume might have become a thousand pages. But it does its job well, weaving a story through centuries to how this great dynasty came to pass.