Henry Tudor Must Die
Lina (Catalina of Aragon) fakes her death in 1536 and joins the Hellebore Sisterhood, whose mission is to protect women suspected of witchcraft, those condemned as healers, wise women, and visionaries. First, though, she has to smuggle Anne Boleyn’s bloodletting knife and spell book to her so she can escape execution. Sisterhood founder Marguerite d’Angoulême doubles as Laine’s narrator, with pertinent interjections on wider events and what she hopes to accomplish with the two queens’ help. They are sent to study at Santa Cruz de Madrid, then charged with the Sisterhood’s business of locating and protecting witches. Their investment in their royal daughters doesn’t hurt, despite Anne and Lina’s embittered history, because they both want Henry dead!
Anne’s magick comes with consequences painful and draining, both physically and mentally. Lina worries when the young queen is rash and impulsive and surrenders too much to her tasks. She urges caution and patience as Anne’s strength drains. The relationship’s ups and downs are an appealing aspect because it’s relayed so credibly, despite its historical unlikelihood. Rumours of Henry’s newly bestowed affection for Katherine Howard, Anne’s vulnerable young cousin, reach the queens. Horrified and fearful for Katherine’s life, Anne and Lina rush to avert disaster.
In this feminist-leaning narrative, four of Henry’s six queens are given a self-determination they never had in life, feminism being an underlying theme which never overrides the plot. Magick, murder, love and sex weave through an atmospheric 16th-century world, while historical fact solidly supports the story backbone, making the blend of fact and fiction rather impressive. The plot is pacy and doesn’t lack action. The lesser-known Anna von Kleve joins the formidable team, showing inventive traits and a thoughtful persona. Some scenes are too good to miss: Anne’s execution, and the revenge-driven Anne disquieting a confused Cromwell with a glimpse of what’s to come.
