Blog Tour, Review & Giveaway: The Boleyn Bride by Brandy Purdy (CLOSED)

Title: The Boleyn Bride   

Author: Brandy Purdy     

Published: February 2014; Kensington Publishing 

Format: ARC Paperback; 272 pages   

Source: Publisher via Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours

   

From carefree young
woman to disillusioned bride, the dazzling lady who would become mother
and grandmother to two of history’s most infamous queens, has a
fascinating story all her own. . .

At sixteen, Elizabeth
Howard envisions a glorious life for herself as lady-in-waiting to the
future queen, Catherine of Aragon. But when she is forced to marry
Thomas Boleyn, a wealthy commoner, Elizabeth is left to stagnate in the
countryside while her detested husband pursues his ambitions. There, she
raises golden girl Mary, moody George, and ugly duckling Anne—while
staving off boredom with a string of admirers. Until Henry VIII takes
the throne. . .

When Thomas finally brings his highborn wife to
London, Elizabeth indulges in lavish diversions and dalliances—and
catches the lusty king’s eye. But those who enjoy Henry’s fickle favor
must also guard against his wrath. For while her husband’s machinations
bring Elizabeth and her children to the pinnacle of power, the distance
to the scaffold is but a short one—and the Boleyn family’s fortune may
be turning. . .

My thoughts: I really enjoy reading about the Tudor England period and find that each book I read brings to light new information. What Brandy Purdy did here was essentially give us a memoir of sorts by Elizabeth Boleyn – Anne Boleyn’s mother. Now I’ve read many books about Ann Boleyn and never really remember much being mentioned about her mother, so I was quite drawn to this book.

To say that Elizabeth Boleyn is an interesting person is, in my opinion, an understatement. She certainly would never win mother of the year, that’s for sure! There’s one section just a little bit more than halfway through the book that aptly sums this up:

The truth was, by the time my children grew up and became interesting to me, it was too late for me to play any real role in their lives; my attempts at mothering or befriending them were often awkward at best and disappointing, for all of us, at worst. They had grown accustomed to me not being there for them; they had learned not to need or depend on me, and to live without me, and were not inclined to fling the door wide in welcome now when I had been the one who had kept it closed all during their childhoods.

Elizabeth Boleyn believed she was destined for greatness herself and when she didn’t get that, she basically looked for ways to spite her husband whenever she could. She basically abandoned her children. Later on in life, I believe she does regret her decisions, but, it was too late for her to apologize to Anne and George and she wasn’t able to summon the courage to approach Mary. The only person who really knew the true Elizabeth Boleyn was her long-time lover Remi Jouet, a doll-maker she met as a young girl. 

Again, I have found that with all the books written about Tudor England, each author brings to light new information, bringing to the forefront lesser known characters that had an eagle’s eye view of what was going on at the courts during this time. Elizabeth Boleyn, as mother to Queen Anne Boleyn and as mistress to the king himself as one point, certainly saw all!

The Boleyn Bride by Brandy Purdy is on tour with Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours. Be sure to check out the other tour stops
to read more reviews, guest posts and some giveaway opportunities. Be
sure to follow all the twitter activity, too at #BoleynBrideTour.

GIVEAWAY DETAILS – CLOSED (US only) 

Thanks to Amy at Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours, I have two copies of The Boleyn Bride to offer to my readers.

 

To enter… 

• Leave a comment below & be sure to include your email address.
• Tweet, share on Facebook, or blog for 2 extra entries.
• You MUST include email address or entry will be invalid.
• I will contact winner at the conclusion of the giveaway & they will have 2 days to respond or I will pick a new winner.

This giveaway is open to US residents only and ends February 27th. 

Good luck!