Book picks similar to
The Queen's Promise by Lyn Andrews


historical-fiction
historical
tudor
fiction

Pour the Dark Wine


Dinah Lampitt - 1989
    The story of the rise and fall of the Seymours was dramatic in its own right and her imaginative skills and impeccable research cast new light on one of the most exciting periods in English history.The Seymours were one of the most powerful families under the Tudors. Jane became Henry VIII's third wife. Thomas married his widow and engaged in an ambiguous relationship with the young Elizabeth while Edward became Protector but ended his life on the scaffold.This novel reinterprets the role of Jane and looks in detail at the life of Thomas, the most glamorous of the Seymours. Introducing into the story the astrologer Zachary, the illegitimate son of the Duke of Norfolk, who played a pivotal role in the Sutton Place trilogy, Dinah Lampitt has given us her strongest novel yet, a triumph of storytelling based on actual historical fact.

The Other Tudors: Henry VIII's Mistresses and Bastards


Philippa Jones - 2009
    'The Other Tudors' examines the extraordinary untold tales of the women who Henry loved but never married, the mistresses who became queens and of his many children, both acknowledged and unacknowledged.

The Virgin's Daughters: In the Court of Elizabeth I


Jeane Westin - 2009
    When the young queen is smitten by the dashing Robert Dudley, Katherine must choose between duty and desire-as her secret passion for a handsome earl threatens to turn Elizabeth against her. Once the queen becomes a bitter and capricious monarch, another lady-in-waiting, Mistress Mary Rogers, offers the queen comfort. But even Mary cannot remain impervious to the court's sexual tension-and as Elizabeth gives her doomed heart to the mercurial Earl of Essex, Mary is drawn to the queen's rakish godson...

Shadow of Persephone


G. Lawrence - 2019
     Daughter of the nobility, cousin to a fallen Queen, Catherine Howard rose from the cluttered ranks of courtiers at the court of Henry VIII to become the King's fifth wife. But hers is a tale that starts long before the crown was placed on her head. A tale of tragedy and challenges, predators and prey; the story of a young girl growing up in a perilous time, facing dangers untold. The fifth wife of Henry VIII would end her life on the block, like her cousin Anne Boleyn... But where did her story begin? Shadow of Persephone is Book One in the series The Story of Catherine Howard, by G. Lawrence The Author's thanks are due to Julia Gibbs, proof reader, and Amelie Designs, cover artist.

The Life of Thomas More


Peter Ackroyd - 1998
    Thomas More (1478-1535) was a renowned statesman; the author of a political fantasy that  gave a name to a literary genre and a worldview (Utopia); and, most famously, a Catholic martyr and saint.Born into the professional classes, Thomas More applied his formidable intellect and well-placed connections to become the most powerful man in England, second only to the king. As much a work of history as a biography, The Life of Thomas More gives an unmatched portrait of the everyday, religious, and intellectual life of the early sixteenth century. In Ackroyd's hands, this renowned "man for all seasons" emerges in the fullness of his complex humanity; we see the unexpected side of his character--such as his preference for bawdy humor--as well as his indisputable moral courage.

Sons of the Blood


Robyn Young - 2016
    The battle for a crown is about to become a fight for the world.Bastard son, mercenary soldier, protector of the rightful king, seeker of a secret more treacherous than any in Christendom: Jack Wynter is destined to live in dangerous times.In England, the Wars of the Roses ended a decade ago with the fall of the House of Lancaster and the victory of King Edward of York. But peace sleeps uneasy in this divided realm and when the king dies unexpectedly it isn't long before old blood feuds and ambitions are awoken.In the sun-baked city of Seville, unaware of the clouds of war rising over England, Jack Wynter is cursing his fortune. Sent here by his secretive father, king's man, Sir Thomas Vaughan - with a locked chest he has been ordered to guard with his life - Jack wonders if this mission was simply a ruse to get an illegitimate, inconvenient son out of the country. But when a stranger arrives with news that his father has been arrested for treason, Jack finds himself thrust into the heart of a deadly conspiracy.What is the secret Jack has been guarding? Is it the reason for his father's fall? The only place he is going to find answers is back in England, where young Prince Edward is due to become king . . . unless his uncle Richard, Duke of Gloucester, decides to make a move for the throne. It is also where Jack's half-brother, Harry, broods bitterly over their father's apparent preference for a bastard son.Jack Wynter is coming home, to a realm of intrigue and corruption, mystery and war. Somehow, he is connected to a secret that can kill him - or make him. Its influence spans Europe and will draw him towards the very edge of the known world, and beyond, in Robyn Young's dazzling new epic.The old world is turning.A new world is rising.

No Will But His: A Novel of Kathryn Howard


Sarah A. Hoyt - 2010
     As the bereft, orphaned cousin to the ill-fated Anne Boleyn, Katherine Howard knows better than many the danger of being favored by the King. But she is a Howard, and therefore ambitious, so she assumes the role Henry VIII has assigned her-his untouched child bride, his adored fifth wife. But her innocence is imagined, the first of many lies she will have to tell to gain the throne. And the path that she will tread to do so is one fraught with the same dangers that cost Queen Anne her head.

The Tudor Throne


Brandy Purdy - 2011
    Mary, the elder, once treasured, had been declared a bastard in favor of her flame-haired half-sister, Elizabeth, born of the doomed Anne Boleyn. Yet the bond between the sisters was palpable from the start. Now reinstated, Mary eventually assumes her place as queen. But as Mary's religious zeal evolves into a reign of terror, young Elizabeth gains the people's favor. Gripped by a tormenting paranoia, Mary is soon convinced that her beloved Elizabeth is in fact her worst enemy. And the virginal Elizabeth, whose true love is her country, must defy her tyrannical sister to make way for a new era. . .A brilliant portrait of the rule of "Bloody Mary" and her intricate relationship with Elizabeth I, the adored "Virgin Queen," here is a riveting tale of one family's sordid and extraordinary chapter in the pages of history.

All the Queen's Players


Jane Feather - 2010
    And when a naive girl with a gift for keen observation enters the court, she can hardly imagine the role she will play in bringing England—indeed, the whole of Europe—to the brink of war. Nor can she foresee her own journey to the brink of ecstasy and beyond. . . .When she becomes a junior lady of Queen Elizabeth’s bedchamber, Rosamund is instructed by her cousin, the brilliant and devious secretary of state Sir Francis Walsingham, to record everything she observes. Her promised reward: a chance at a good marriage. But through her brother Thomas, Rosamund finds herself drawn to the forbidden, rough-and-tumble world of theatre, and to Thomas’s friend, the dramatic, impetuous playwright Christopher Marlowe. And then Rosamund meets Will Creighton—a persuasive courtier, poet, and would-be playwright who is the embodiment of an unsuitable match. The unsanctioned relationship between Rosamund and Will draws the wrath of Elizabeth, who prides herself on being the Virgin Queen. Rosamund is sent in disgrace to a remote castle that holds Elizabeth’s cousin Mary Stuart, the imprisoned Queen of Scots. Here, Walsingham expects Rosamund to uncover proof of a plot against Elizabeth. But surely, nothing good can come of putting an artless girl in such close proximity to so many seductive players and deceptive games. Unless, of course, Rosamund can discover an affinity for passion and intrigue herself. . . .

In the Shadow of Lady Jane


Edward Charles - 2006
    While the family of Lord Henry Grey are visiting their Devon estate, the Grey sisters are saved from drowning by a local medical apprentice, Richard Stocker. Little does Richard know that this single act will plunge him into a tide of religious and social upheaval that will change not only his own life but the course of British history. In gratitude for saving his daughters, Lord Henry agrees to employ Richard in his household. Lady Katherine has already fallen for her father’s handsome new employee, while Richard is in thrall to the intellect of her troubled but brilliant sister, Lady Jane, with whom he forms a close friendship. Following King Edward’s death, the teenaged Lady Jane is proclaimed Queen. Soon, however, she is deposed and put to the axe. The woman Richard has grown to love as a friend, confidante, and adviser is dead. Bereft, he abandons the intrigues and deceptions of court life, resolving to resume his medical apprenticeship. In the Shadow of Lady Jane is at once a gripping political thriller and a compelling love story.

Anne Boleyn: 500 Years of Lies


Hayley Nolan - 2019
    Quite the tragic love story, right?Wrong.In this electrifying exposé, Hayley Nolan explores for the first time the full, uncensored evidence of Anne Boleyn’s life and relationship with Henry VIII, revealing the shocking suppression of a powerful woman.So leave all notions of outdated and romanticised folklore at the door and forget what you think you know about one of the Tudors’ most notorious queens. She may have been silenced for centuries, but this urgent book ensures Anne Boleyn’s voice is being heard now.#TheTruthWillOut

Phoenix Rising: A novel of Anne Boleyn


Hunter S. Jones - 2015
    Court intrigue, revenge and all the secrets of the last hour are revealed as one queen falls and another rises to take her place on destiny's stage. A young Anne Boleyn arrives at the court of King Henry VIII. She is to be presented at the Shrovetide pageant, le Château Vert. The young and ambitious Anne has no idea that a chance encounter before the pageant will lead to her capturing the heart of the king. What begins as a distraction becomes his obsession and leads to her destruction. Love, hate, loyalty and betrayal come together in a single dramatic moment... the execution of a queen. The history of England will be changed for ever.

Legacy


Susan Kay - 1983
    From the spectacular era that bears her name comes the mesmerizing story of Elizabeth I: her tragic childhood; her ruthless confrontations with Mary, Queen of Scots; and her brilliant reign as Europe's most celebrated queen. And into this beautiful tapestry Susan Kay weaves the vibrant and compelling image of Elizabeth the woman. Proud, passionate, captivating in her intensity, she inspired men to love her from the depths of their souls—and to curse the pain of that devotion. Teasing out an intriguing answer to the central mystery of the Virgin Queen—satisfying to readers new to Elizabeth's life as well as die-hard fans of the Tudors— here is a premier exploration of the woman who changed the course of history, and three men whose destinies belonged to her alone.

Gilt


Katherine Longshore - 2012
    No longer stuck in Cat's shadow, Kitty's now caught between two men--the object of her affection and the object of her desire. But court is also full of secrets, lies, and sordid affairs, and as Kitty witnesses Cat's meteoric rise and fall as queen, she must figure out how to keep being a good friend when the price of telling the truth could literally be her head.

The Raven's Widow: A Novel of Jane Boleyn


Adrienne Dillard - 2017
    Ordinarily, the tide would have been wild by this time of year, and woe unto any man unfortunate enough to fall into the fierce currents of the Thames. Tonight the tides were still, and the surface of the water appeared glassy. When I peered down into the dark depths, I saw my tired, drawn face wavering in the reflection. I quickly turned away as I fought back a wave of nausea, frightened by the anguish I saw etched there. “Only a few moments more my lady, the Tower is just ahead.” -------------- Jane Parker never dreamed that her marriage into the Boleyn family would raise her star to such dizzying heights. Before long, she finds herself as trusted servant and confidante to her sister-in-law, Anne Boleyn; King Henry VIII’s second queen. On a gorgeous spring day, that golden era is cut short by the swing of a sword. Jane is unmoored by the tragic death of her husband, George, and her loss sets her on a reckless path that leads to her own imprisonment in the Tower of London. Surrounded by the remnants of her former life, Jane must come to terms with her actions. In the Tower, she will face up to who she really is and how everything went so wrong. "Jane Boleyn is finally given the thoughtful and poignant story she has long been denied" - Olga Hughes, Nerdalicious.com.au "An absorbing story that draws you into a vividly created world" - Amy Licence, Best-Selling Author and Historian