In the wake of King Henry VIII's death, England's throne is left in a precarious state as is the peculiar relationship between his two daughters.
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.
The Tudor Throne by Brandy Purdy is another take on the history of England after the death of Henry VIII and his son Edward VI. The story is basically about Queen Mary and Princess Elizabeth, told in alternating chapters. Queen Mary is the daughter of King Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon, while Princess Elizabeth is the daughter of Henry VIII and Queen Anne Boleyn.
There always was animosity between the two sisters. Mary's reign was successful at first as she pardoned those who were loyal to her and the Catholic religion.
She always managed to find a way to keep Elizabeth out of the limelight as Mary knew that the people of England did favor Elizabeth. Mary decides that she needs to marry and she sets her sights on Phillip, Prince of Spain especially after she sees a full portrait of him.
She finds herself in love but the English population were not happy with the thought of Spain being in a position of power in the Tudor court.
But Phillip does agree to marry Mary and after the marriage, Mary becomes so obsessed with having a baby that there comes a time that she really believes that she is pregnant, but as months go by and she goes way past the due date, it becomes apparent to those around her that this was not so. Mary became bitter after many failed pregnancies.
She was determined to restore England to the Catholic faith and to secure her throne from Protestant threats, and as a result she had many Protestants burnt at the stake thus earning her the name Bloody Mary.
There were many plots to have Mary removed from the throne and to make Elizabeth queen. Elizabeth had spent time in various prisons including the Tower of London because Mary was afraid to have her at court, out of sight out of mind so to speak.
Elizabeth's ascension to the throne was not an easy one, when young she was involved in a scandal with Thomas Seymour, the husband of her father's last wife Catherine Parr. There was a trial, but nothing was proven but she was sent away by Catherine, more than likely to protect her from her husband.
Then there was the plot of Thomas Wyatt to overthrow Mary and put Elizabeth on the throne. She was then imprisoned in the Tower of London but was released due to lack of proof and was sent to the country where she stayed until Mary's death.
At the age of 25 Elizabeth became queen. This book was one I hated to put down and I did enjoy it. Just a bit different than other fictional accounts of these two great women of English history. If you are a Tudor fan, you may just want to add this book to your bookshelf...
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