“The Taming of the Queen” by Philippa Gregory is a carefully crafted
historical fiction that features Kateryn Parr, the sixth and last wife of King
Henry VIII. The novel describes life in a cruel tyrant’s court. The monarch
subjects everyone to his ever-changing murderous whims enhanced by the chronic
unremitting purulent ulcer in his leg.  A snippet highlights the king’s
character: “He has no idea of the value of life. He has no idea of anything.
When we finally won, it was a massacre. Two thousand townsmen and women and
children trailed out on the town past him as he sat high on his horse, in his
Italian armor. They went out in the wind and rain with nothing, not even a bag
of food. He swore that they must walk all the way to the French lines at
Abbeville; but they lay down and died on the road as his troops looted their
homes. He is a killer, Kateryn, he is a merciless killer. It all vanity, a vain
conquest. He has no idea that it isn’t a great victory. He knows only what he
wants to know. He believes only what he wants to think. He hears only what he
orders. Nobody tells him the truth and he would not know it if it were spelled
out for him in the blood of his victims.”

The epoch’s religious paranoia unfolds throughout the chapters as the new
queen suffers her lack of love for the king and his constant doubts about
anyone’s love for him, including his wife’s and children’s.  The author
shows commanding creativity with the intimate images of the royal couple’s toxic
relationship.  Attempts to slander the queen with heresy and treason keep
readers in suspense as this clever, ahead-of-her-time woman manages to survive.

I recommend this book. It is entertaining and informative. Philippa Gregory
has brought to life the horrors at the court of King Henry VIII. If you know of
any other ancient royal story you like to share, please add a comment to this
post.