Dangerous Lady (The Marwood Family Tudor Saga)
Historian Amy Licence begins her first in the Marwood Family Tudor Saga in 1527, with the Marwoods travelling to court from their Suffolk country home to attend their eldest daughter Cecilia’s marriage to a member of King Henry’s household. The story unfolds through the second daughter, Thomasin, as she accompanies her family to her uncle’s London house. Once introduced at court, she catches the eye of Rafe Danvers, a ward in the household of Viscount Boleyn, head of the up-and-coming family whose daughter is about to upend Henry’s current queen and the world at large! Enthralled by the vivacious youthfulness of Anne Boleyn’s circle, Thomasin must learn to play both sides, but her head is turned by the handsome Rafe as he tries to gain advantage over her young innocence. When Cecilia admits she is in love with someone other than her chosen bridegroom, and subsequently disappears, the glittering world of the court takes on a deadlier feel, as Thomasin learns where duty and loyalty lie and how close she has come to allowing a dalliance to dictate her future.
Although a little slow to get started, this novel quickly grew on me as it went from what seemed a simple Tudor romance into something much more intriguing. Thomasin’s character arcs believably from rosy-eyed naivete to the strength and determination to make her own way in the new world of reform. Court intrigue and daily balancing acts are well delineated in the characters of Thomasin’s parents, her father looking to the Boleyn future, her mother rooted firmly in Queen Catherine’s past. I look forward to seeing how the Marwoods fare in Troubled Queen, and hope the series will follow not only the two older sisters but their younger siblings as well.
