Sapere Books
Format:ebook, 464 pages
Synopsis
What secrets were covered up at the court of Henry VIII …?
Whitehall Palace, England, 1539.
When Catherine Howard arrives at the court of King Henry VIII to be a maid of honour in the household of the new queen, Anne of Cleves, she has no idea of the fate that awaits her.
Catching the king’s fancy, she finds herself caught up in her uncle’s ambition to get a Howard heir to the throne.
Terrified by the ageing king after the fate that befell her cousin, Anne Boleyn, Catherine begins to fear for her life…
Pembrokeshire, Wales, 2018.
Dr Perdita Rivers receives news of the death of her estranged grandmother, renowned Tudor historian Mary Fitzroy.
Mary inexplicably cut all contact with Perdita and her twin sister, Piper, but she has left them Marquess House, her vast estate in Pembrokeshire.
Perdita sets out to unravel their grandmother’s motives for abandoning them, and is drawn into the mystery of an ancient document in the archives of Marquess House, a collection of letters and diaries claiming the records of Catherine Howard’s execution were falsified…
What truths are hiding in Marquess House? What really happened to Catherine Howard?
And how was Perdita’s grandmother connected to it all?
The Catherine Howard Conspiracy is the first book in the Marquess House trilogy, a dual timeline conspiracy thriller with a twist on a well-known period of Tudor history.
My Thoughts
Alexandra Walsh’s debut novel is a great combination of Tudor history and present day mystery, deftly told spanning two time frames. Walsh creates a very plausible scenario for the alternate fate of Catherine Howard and the possible ramifications of it through history.
While the violence Catherine suffered at the hands of Henry VIII was disturbing and not pleasant reading, it added credibility to the need to save her from further attacks of violence and possible death. My only reservation was the Duke of Norfolk’s part in the plan. His ruthlessness had already seen a number of Howard relatives sacrificed to his cause, so it was difficult to believe that this man would set aside his ambitions and risk all by what he did.
Although the historical chapters of this novel were my favourite parts, the mystery surrounding Perdita and Piper's estrangement from their grandmother was intriguing, especially when certain facts are revealed and that Perdita and Piper could be in danger from a sinister group known as 'The Watchers'. Just as Catherine was surrounded by a core band of people intent on keeping her safe, so are Perdita and Piper. This leads to a very exciting conclusion.
I thoroughly enjoyed The Catherine Howard Conspiracy and I'm looking forward to the next installment.
Thank you to Sapere Books for the invitation to participate in this blog tour and for a free copy of the book to read and review.
About the Author
Books dominate Alexandra’s life. She reads endlessly and tends to become a bit panicky if her next three books are not lined up and waiting. Characters, places, imagery all stay with her and even now she finds it difficult to pass an old wardrobe without checking it for a door to Narnia. As for her magical letter when she was 11, she can only assume her cat caught the owl!
Alexandra’s other passion is history, particularly the untold tales of women. Whether they were queens or paupers, their voices resonate with their stories, not only about their own lives but about ours, too. The women of the Tudor court have inspired her novels. Researching and writing The Marquess House Trilogy (Book One: The Catherine Howard Conspiracy) has brought together her love of history, mysteries and story telling.
Website: http://www.alexandrawalsh.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/purplemermaid25?lang=en
Blog Tour Schedule
Hm... sounds pretty good, but I'm not sure. I'll look for more reviews. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Davida.
DeleteThank you for writing tthis
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