"And most of all, she loved the way that books could transport her from her otherwise mundane and stifling life and offer the experiences of a hundred other lives.
Through books she could see the world."
Through books she could see the world."
--Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, & Jodi Meadows, My Lady Jane
Genre: YA Historial Fiction, Alternate History
Genre: YA Historial Fiction, Alternate History
Publisher: Harper Teen
Pages: 512
Publication Date: June 7th, 2016
Source: ARC provided by author on ARC tour
We all know how much I am obsessed with the Tudor era. While this book is not about Anne Boleyn, it does feature my fourth favorite historical lady--yes, I rank them, got a problem with that? And FYI being number four is quite high--and I could not have been more excited when I found out these lovely authors were going to rewrite her story. After Anne Boleyn, she is the lady I most need to have a different ending to her historical story. These authors did just that.
Jane Grey is a quiet girl. She loves books, it's her identifier. Her best friend and cousin is King Edward, son of Henry VIII. She is newly betrothed to Gifford Dudley. She's pretty pissed about this. But thus is life in 1500s. She has no say unfortunately. To add insult to injury, in this alternate history magic is amidst. Some people are gifted--or cursed depending on your viewpoint--by being Edians or people who can turn into animals. Henry VIII was one, to his surprise, but even so, those people are prejudiced against and live in secret. Gifford is one of these people. While most people can control their change, unfortunately he cannot. That's all I'll say on that as to avoid spoilers but it adds an interesting component to their love story.
The love story. So Jane and Gifford are not a love match, it is arranged, neither party is happy about this but both parties are pleased by their respective spouse when they meet one another. Gifford is known for being quite handsome so Jane assumes he's a playboy based on his reputation. Jane is equally beautiful to Gifford, surprising him because she had 'nose stuck in a book' syndrome and wasn't sure what he was getting into. Secrets are kept. As well as feelings..but they have this amazing 'approach with caution' attitude towards one another because they both like each other but neither have the balls to say it. I loved this. They both got so huffy about their feelings and never wanted to say anything, it was adorable without being frustrating.
While I didn't expect their relationship to be so engaging, I also didn't expect to have so much of Edward in this book. Yay!! I have pretty much a non-opinion about him history-wise as he was born to Henry's most useless and weak wife...eh, well I hate Catherine a lot, too but that's another story. OK, so he's born to Jane Seymour and Edward dies as a young boy King because like his mother, he is also weak and useless. But this story gives me such a different perception of him and I loved it. I loved his personality, his character, everything. I loved his dynamic with his dog and some people he meets. It was such a nice surprise while reading and added a lot to the book I felt.
My only minuscule gripe was that I felt like the book got a little long in the second half. Some plot points seemed to be drawn out and a few situations seemed a little unnecessary but it all fits together regardless. But for the most part, I was engaged with this book the whole way through; I loved reading an alternate version of a story I have come to know and love. Well, I love Jane but no so much how her story actually ends and all that, but you know what I mean.
Jane Grey is a quiet girl. She loves books, it's her identifier. Her best friend and cousin is King Edward, son of Henry VIII. She is newly betrothed to Gifford Dudley. She's pretty pissed about this. But thus is life in 1500s. She has no say unfortunately. To add insult to injury, in this alternate history magic is amidst. Some people are gifted--or cursed depending on your viewpoint--by being Edians or people who can turn into animals. Henry VIII was one, to his surprise, but even so, those people are prejudiced against and live in secret. Gifford is one of these people. While most people can control their change, unfortunately he cannot. That's all I'll say on that as to avoid spoilers but it adds an interesting component to their love story.
The love story. So Jane and Gifford are not a love match, it is arranged, neither party is happy about this but both parties are pleased by their respective spouse when they meet one another. Gifford is known for being quite handsome so Jane assumes he's a playboy based on his reputation. Jane is equally beautiful to Gifford, surprising him because she had 'nose stuck in a book' syndrome and wasn't sure what he was getting into. Secrets are kept. As well as feelings..but they have this amazing 'approach with caution' attitude towards one another because they both like each other but neither have the balls to say it. I loved this. They both got so huffy about their feelings and never wanted to say anything, it was adorable without being frustrating.
While I didn't expect their relationship to be so engaging, I also didn't expect to have so much of Edward in this book. Yay!! I have pretty much a non-opinion about him history-wise as he was born to Henry's most useless and weak wife...eh, well I hate Catherine a lot, too but that's another story. OK, so he's born to Jane Seymour and Edward dies as a young boy King because like his mother, he is also weak and useless. But this story gives me such a different perception of him and I loved it. I loved his personality, his character, everything. I loved his dynamic with his dog and some people he meets. It was such a nice surprise while reading and added a lot to the book I felt.
My only minuscule gripe was that I felt like the book got a little long in the second half. Some plot points seemed to be drawn out and a few situations seemed a little unnecessary but it all fits together regardless. But for the most part, I was engaged with this book the whole way through; I loved reading an alternate version of a story I have come to know and love. Well, I love Jane but no so much how her story actually ends and all that, but you know what I mean.
Reserved Seating
If you love the Tudors, alternate tellings of history, and my girl Jane Grey...this book is for you.
If you love the Tudors, alternate tellings of history, and my girl Jane Grey...this book is for you.
I honestly found it incredibly fun (and refreshing) to read about this alternate history for Jane! It was nice to have humor injected into her story, as well as some creative liberties taken with what "really" happened ;) I'm glad you wound up enjoying this one as well!
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