The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory Rating: 
I should first say that I am a big fan of historical fiction. I’ve read many books from different time periods. This was the first book I’ve read about Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII besides grade school biographies. That being said, I did not enjoy this book very much. It was way too long. I understand that the telling of this story would have to be long, it takes a rather large back story and a struggle over many years for Anne Boleyn to eventually become Queen. (It’s not a spoiler, everyone knows what happened.) I understand also that the author needed us to connect with the narrator, Mary Carey (was a Boleyn, then a Carey, then a Stafford) which required exposition into her life that really didn’t further the Anne Boleyn story, but by page 400 I was ready to be done. Anne’s character is not likable at all and she is a big part of the story. I know that the author didn’t have much choice of what her character would be like but if you’ve heard one tantrum haven’t you heard them all? Was it necessary to have so many? I was also surprised by the lack of smut in this book. I thought it was going to be a romantic story but really it wasn’t very sensual at all, that must have been all the family meetings to determine the next move. The end of the book was hard to come to grips with too. I know it’s a fixed ending that everyone knows about ahead of time but it was so rushed.
This book made me very sad for women in those times. Being a part of a royal court seemed so cool but it was a lot of work. There’s backstabbing and manipulation at every turn. No one is allowed to just be themselves. The family is always pulling strings and every move, every word is coldly calculated to get into the good graces of the King. Women tried to push themselves at the King, to be his mistress was a great honor, but you had to be married first because then who would want you afterward? If you were married your husband was richly rewarded with land or an Earldom or even a Duchy. What did the woman get out of that? Nothing, she was at the whim of her husband’s generosity or maybe some trinkets or a new dress from the King. And what if the King no longer favors you? Well you’re out and make room for the next girl, even if she’s your sister! The plotting of the families was amazing. It’s like a hostile takeover of a company. Put the pawns into position, bide your time and you were richly rewarded. Then the whole court was full of your family, sisters and cousins, brothers and nephews. The object of the game was to get as much as you could and be sure that it could not be undone, in case the King’s favor turned in the direction of another family.
The moral of this story was be careful what you wish for. Anne Boleyn wanted to be Queen so she turned the King into a tyrant. Of course, his majesty probably had some tyrannical tendencies already but she pushed him to do what no one before him dared do. He created the church of England, had his marriage annulled so that he could marry Anne Boleyn and then when he wanted free of her, she was charged with a number of things and executed. She turned him into the man who was capable of going against the Pope but that also meant he was capable of having her executed and he did. She became consumed with the power of being the Queen but failed to understand that everything she did to get to the throne would also lead to her undoing. If only she could have had a boy, but instead she had Queen Elizabeth I.
Overall this book exposed me to a time and a lifestyle I had no previous knowledge of and I appreciate that, I guess it’s not the books fault that I didn’t care for this type of life at all. Have you read it? What did you think?
Up Next: The Sorceress by Michael Scott
