The Boleyn Inheritance by Phillippa Gregory - #1

Another wonderful book by one of my new favorite authors. This book is told by three very different women. The first is Anne of Cleaves, the fourth wife of King Henry the VIII. We learn that she can not wait to leave her homeland and go to England because her brother, the Duke of Cleaves, hates her. However, she has been told by her mother that she needs to be a proper young lady and appear to be a slut. When she arrives Henry hates her immediately and soon set her aside. Next is Jane Boleyn, the sister-in-law of Queen Anne Boleyn. She has returned to court to serve the new Queen Anne after her exile. She gave the testimony against Anne Boleyn and her husband, George, that sent them to the executioner's block. Now she is back to serve her uncle and help the family achieve greatness again. The final women is Katherine Howard. She is a young maid who is a Boleyn cousin. She comes to court at the age of 14 to serve the new queen and soon catches the eye of the King. Soon she finds herself the part of the Howard/Boleyn plot to regain the throne and is married to Henry, a man old enough to be her father. Soon she falls in love with one of his groomsmen and that is the beginning of the end for her.

I really enjoyed this book. I love how Gregory can make you feel connected to women who lived over 450 years ago. She was able to give these three different women their own distinct voice which I thought was amazing. Reading these books make me so thankful that women today have so many opportunities and freedom. We all really need to thank these women who paid the ultimate price for what we have. If you like historical fiction you will love this book.