Summer Reading #15
The Constant Princess by Philippa Gregory, detailing the early life and marriages of Catarina of Spain... aka Queen Katherine of England... aka Henry VIII's first wife... aka Bloody Mary's momma.
As most "historical" fictions go, this was rather good. There were constant transitions between a third person narrative and Katherine's thoughts, which were interesting. Seeing Henry's first wife as the daughter of Isabella and Ferdinand, capable of leading a nation into battle without a husband, explains both her daughter, Bloody Mary, and Elizabeth. Even though both women lived without her most of their lives, the legend of her-- breaking tradition to wear armor and fight the Scots-- was obviously well-known to both Queens. I didn't realize before that her parental tradition from Spain had such a large affect on the two following Queens of England. Perhaps one day I will do actual research myself and read actual historical texts... most of what I'm thinking may just be fiction. :p
I plan on reading the whole trilogy (the rest of Henry's escapades, basically) but, with semester starting up again soon, I'm not sure if I'll get the chance. Plus, I doubt that the following two books with be as interesting. I'm bloodthirsty, war is much more exciting than court drama.