Not gonna lie, I was stuck at first for what to do for this week's TTT hosted by The Broke and The Bookish. But then it HIT me and I was all, 'oh my gosh, this is so obvious for me, why did I not think to do this?!?!?' Ok so here we go and this should come as no surprise to any of you so here my...
Top Ten Books You Should Read If You Love...
Holla!! I get to fangirl and flail all over the place this week about my favorite historical era!! Eep!
Tarnish by Katherine Longshore--A look at Anne Boleyn when she a young girl, before she was courting Henry VIII and when she fell in love with someone else. It is an AMAZING depiction of Anne Boleyn and this book had me in tears. (Review)
The Boleyn Inheritance by Philippa Gregory--This is one of my favorite books by Philippa Gregory. It is told from the POV of Anne of Cleves, Katherine Howard, and Jane Rochford and kicks ass in all the character development and drama of the time. I freakin' LOVE this book.
The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory--Told from Mary Boleyn's, Anne's sister, POV it tells the story of she herself being Henry's mistress and how Anne eventually stole his heart. You see the agony and stress Anne goes through and while it isn't the best portrayal of the Anne I love, it gives a good overview of the intensity of the time.
The Boleyn King by Laura S. Andersen--OMG I LOVE THIS BOOK. An alternate history if Anne Boleyn (are we seeing a pattern here?) and Henry VIII's son actually lived, oh my gosh amazing! Shit gets cray and in the best and most emotional way. Much to come from me about this book and the series is epic. You have to read it! (Review)
Gilt by Katherine Longshore--Told from the POV of Katherine 'Kitty' Howard's friend, we see the rise and fall of Katherine Howard and her precarious marriage to Henry VIII.
The White Queen by Philippa Gregory--The amazing love story of Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville who were King and Queen before the Tudors took over the monarchy. This family is epic and I love Elizabeth and her story. Time period is before Henry VIII FYI. (Review)
The Lady of the Rivers by Philippa Gregory--Again, 1400s and this is the story of Jaquetta, Elizabeth who is mentioned above, mother. This is one of the greatest love stories ever told and IT'S ALL TRUE! This shit really happened. Thus, why I love historical fiction. *Sigh* (Review)
The Secret Diary of Anne Boleyn--I love this portrayal of Anne. Her inner thoughts as imagined by Robin Maxwell were great and the final moments were totally tear-inducing. (Review)
Innocent Traitor by Alison Weir--Time period of Mary and Elizabeth, Henry VIII's daughters and it tells the story of Lady Jane Grey, who was Queen for 9 days. Beautiful story. Heartbreaking but beautiful.
The Queen's Fool by Philippa Gregory--From the POV of a 'seer' during the tumultuous time of Mary trying to keep the throne and Elizabeth biding her time this book totally kicks ass. I loved the 'seer' element and this book is brutal in regards to the battles it shows. And it made me realize what an absolute batshit crazy bitch Mary is. Bloody Mary, indeed.
Mistress to the Crown by Isolde Martyn--This is the story of Elizabeth Shore who was Edward IV's infamous mistress. I LOVE his Queen so nobody was more shocked than me to read a book from her perspective and LOVE it. It was an amazing insight into her life and story.
Does this make you want to read ALL about the Tudors?
Or maybe just Anne Boleyn?...
I went through a huge Tudor phase in high school where I read all of the Phillipa Gregory's and a few of the other books. What a fun list! Do you have a favorite among these books?
ReplyDeleteOMG THIS IS AWESOME. I need to watch this show first but look at all these recs!! I love all your historical fiction pimping! That was seriously the first thing I loved about your blog back in the day when I first started talking to you..like hardly anyone else liked historical fiction. Now I'm feeling mad at myself because I've not been reading it as much. YOU HAVE INSPIRED ME.
ReplyDeleteI absolute love Philippa Gregory. Especially her Tudor series. I love books that are all about the Tudors or Anne Boleyn.
ReplyDeleteThat's a LOT of Tudor books. I've only seen half the series, but I think I'll like these books anyway - I'm in a historical fiction phase lately. I have heard of Philippa Gregory, but the Lauren Andersen books sounds great too. I guess I'll pick it up. Great list!
ReplyDeleteWell it makes me want to finally finish the show, first and foremost XD
ReplyDeleteYASSSSSS.
ReplyDeleteI loved Tarnish and Gilt AND Innocent Traitor!
Also, I need to keep watching the Tudors. I've seen two episodes which I did indeed like.
Great choice of show for this week's topic (which reminds me that I still have to finish watching The Tudors *oops* Was bounding all over the place with the show)! I haven't read any of Philippa Gregory's books but I've enjoyed Alison Weir's nonfiction titles :) Great list!
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I've never seen the Tudors, but I do love this time period, so will have to check out the books on your list. Thank you for sharing.
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Okay, FIRST OF ALL. I paused and just took a little look at the lovely picture up there for a little while. Because of course. Right? But then I chuckled because NATURALLY all of the books will be Tudor books. I adore you.
ReplyDeleteSo I haven't read ANY Tudor books. At least I can't remember reading any. So what I am is a little overwhelmed at this moment. I need a STARTING PLACE. Because another friend of mine recommended reading something about Boleyn or Tudor or something, and I need a place to start. There's your assignment should you choose to accept it.
Great post. I didn't realize there were SO MANY of these books but I'm thinking there are a million bazillion. (:
Well I suck because I haven't watched this show or read any of these books. And I claim I am a historical fiction fan but I don't think i've read anything from this era! Shame on me. Must remedy!
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