The House of Boleyn
Oceans of ink have been spilt about Anne Boleyn. She has even recently appeared in a hit Broadway musical. It hardly seems possible that anything new could be said. But Tracy Borman manages to provide readers with a new lens on the famously beheaded queen.
The first half of this novel feels a little scattered. Borman follows several characters: Anne, her parents, her grandmother Margaret, her uncle the Duke of Norfolk, a sly family retainer, older sister Mary, and loyal servants Aphra, Esther, and Millicent.
But be patient and read carefully; Borman is a master weaver, and she brings all of these threads together in a tight, intricate plot bursting with intrigue, betrayal, and a few surprises. The story is not just about Anne, although the queen comes across in vivid strokes. Her passion is not for Henry, but she is dazzled by his attention and loyal to her family. She has extraordinary self-control to fend off the king’s sexual advances until they are betrothed. She is offended by the public’s loyalty to the discarded Catherine and becomes increasingly unhinged as she fails to produce the much-desired male heir.
But Anne is not the mistress of her own destiny. True to its title, the book’s real protagonist is the entire Boleyn family and their servants. These secondary characters are also well-developed. They have their own intrigues and problems, but they all contribute to, glory in, or seek to subvert Anne’s rise. And they all suffer as she falls.
The author is an eminent British historian, so it is no surprise that she also nails the historical detail in this novel, bringing 16th-century England to brilliant life. Highly recommended.
