Katharine Parr: The Sixth Wife
Alison Weir’s Katharine Parr: The Sixth Wife breathes new life to King Henry VIII’s final wife. With two husbands dead and a life marred by sadness, Katharine is in love for the first time in her life. But then the eye of an ageing and dangerous king falls upon her. She cannot refuse him. She must stifle her feelings and never betray that she wanted another, nor share her religious beliefs that could send her to the fire.
When I started Weir’s Six Tudor Queens series, I knew very little about all the wives except Anne Boleyn. All I knew about Katharine was her portrayal in the television series The Tudors. And while it did offer some insight into the last of King Henry’s wives, I knew there was more to her story than what was shown on the screen. As she had done with the other wives, Weir did a wonderful job shedding light onto Katharine’s life before, during, and after her marriage to Henry VIII. Besides Anna of Cleve, she was the only wife to survive such a dangerous king. That ability alone is commendable. Especially when one considers she was a Protestant during a time when those who shared her beliefs were being burned as heretics.
I liked how Weir portrayed Katharine’s second marriage to Lord Latimer. In The Tudors, the show made it seem like Katharine didn’t love her second husband and was merely his caretaker. Weir depicted the couple as happy, and although it’s hard to say whether that was true, I like to believe Katharine’s married life wasn’t horrendous until her fourth and final marriage to Thomas Seymour, especially since he wasn’t exactly the best husband to her.
The difficult part about reading historical fiction books is, although the author can take some licence with certain events, ultimately, they are depicting history and there’s only so much they can change. It would have been nice if Katharine survived the birth of her daughter and got the chance to repair her marriage with Thomas. But Weir had to write her untimely death as it was, despite the sadness it may give the reader. I certainly wished for a happier ending for Katharine.
Weir’s final Six Tudor Queens novel was a moving finale to such a wonderful series.
Katharine Parr: The Sixth Wife Rating: ★★★★
When I started Weir’s Six Tudor Queens series, I knew very little about all the wives except Anne Boleyn. All I knew about Katharine was her portrayal in the television series The Tudors. And while it did offer some insight into the last of King Henry’s wives, I knew there was more to her story than what was shown on the screen. As she had done with the other wives, Weir did a wonderful job shedding light onto Katharine’s life before, during, and after her marriage to Henry VIII. Besides Anna of Cleve, she was the only wife to survive such a dangerous king. That ability alone is commendable. Especially when one considers she was a Protestant during a time when those who shared her beliefs were being burned as heretics.
I liked how Weir portrayed Katharine’s second marriage to Lord Latimer. In The Tudors, the show made it seem like Katharine didn’t love her second husband and was merely his caretaker. Weir depicted the couple as happy, and although it’s hard to say whether that was true, I like to believe Katharine’s married life wasn’t horrendous until her fourth and final marriage to Thomas Seymour, especially since he wasn’t exactly the best husband to her.
The difficult part about reading historical fiction books is, although the author can take some licence with certain events, ultimately, they are depicting history and there’s only so much they can change. It would have been nice if Katharine survived the birth of her daughter and got the chance to repair her marriage with Thomas. But Weir had to write her untimely death as it was, despite the sadness it may give the reader. I certainly wished for a happier ending for Katharine.
Weir’s final Six Tudor Queens novel was a moving finale to such a wonderful series.
Katharine Parr: The Sixth Wife Rating: ★★★★