Parts of the beginning of this were very detailed history which I really enjoyed but very early on there was too much emphasis on sexual scenes. It soon became overwhelming and I read quickly, hunting for the historical details but they were few and far between. I have read this author many times more and have not been disappointed but this book sadly was a big let down for me. It was an Advanced Reading copy. In ( )

Neither Mary nor Elizabeth comes across as even remotely appealing. The tone of the whole thing is very gossipy and lurid. And having Elizabeth and Thomas Seymour have sex is just too much! ( )

Mary was England's precious jewel, the surviving child of the tumultuous relationship between Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon. However, when Henry fell passionately in love with the dark-eyed Anne Boleyn, he cast his wife and daughter aside.

Henry and Anne's union sees the birth of Elizabeth. Mary is soon declared a bastard, stripped of all royal privileges, performing the lowliest tasks. But, there is something about Elizabeth. And Mary soon grows to love her like a sister.

After the passage of three years, and Anne Boleyn's execution, Henry can no longer bear the sight of his female heir. With the birth of a son, Edward, both Mary and Elizabeth seem destined for oblivion. But as history will show, fate had something far more elaborate in store.

My Thoughts:

This was quite an easy book to read about the two princesses Mary and Elizabeth. The story was told by both Mary and Elizabeth.

As with previous books by Emily/Brandy Purdy there is the sexy scenes and a lot of it was focused on the alleged affair between Elizabeth and Tom Seymour. What did niggle me was the very repetitive ‘Cake and Ale’ and I didn’t keep reading the same little rhyme over and over.

The book wasn’t over taxing and didn’t seem to go and do like some historical fiction out there. Overall it was quite a pleasant read about the two women. My own thoughts is that they both loved each other but didn’t always like each other.

Any Tudor fans out there will find this book quite readable and it makes change not to get too bogged down. ( )

http://bookwormchronicles14.blogspot.com/2011/12/tudor-throne-brandy-purdy.html ( )

The Tudor Throne is written in the first person narrative, giving both Mary and Elizabeth's points of view. I'm generally not a big fan of changing points of view back and forth in a novel, but I think the author, Brandy Purdy, did a nice job of it.

For me, the story got off to a slow start. I think beginning with Mary and her austere, disapproving undertones made it feel draggy, even though it was just a few pages. Also, the history as presented by Ms. Purdy was not all factual. Even though this is a work of fiction, it's historical fiction, so I prefer such books to be as factually correct as possible.

Given that, the book gave an excellent depiction of the religious and thus political struggles between Mary, Elizabeth, and their brother Edward. The danger of the times in having differing religious views as the crown is clearly shown; as is the juxtaposition of the crown having differing religious views as the majority of the people. It's interesting reading about a time where religion and politics were so closely tied together.

This is a good book for historical fiction fans who want to read for just sheer enjoyment. Do beware that there are some graphic sexual scenes, so this wouldn't be appropriate for everyone. Also, FYI, this book is published in the UK as Mary & Elizabeth by Emily Purdy. ( )