My Thoughts

I am a fan of Tudor history and was looking forward to reading how Alison Weir would present her version of this well known period from history, having not read anything of hers before. I have not read the other two books, but each can be read as a standalone. At almost 600 pages, it is a definite commitment to undertake these epic reads but I believe one well worth the journey. The amount of detail that is provided will seamlessly transport you back to Tudor England and on this occasion, into the life of probably the least known of Henry’s wives.

Credit must be given to Weir and the amount of research - both old and new that I will elaborate on later - she delves into. It is an absolute credit to her that she produces such an easy to follow reenactment with the amount of cross checking of historical detail that she must have gone to. For you see, with so little information left behind on Jane Seymour, Weir makes the most of the bare facts that remain and fills the remainder in with rich imagery. In the perfect blend of historical fact and fictional story, a fascinating portrayal is presented of what might have occured during these tumultuous times.

I learnt much about Jane Seymour from the age of ten at her family home of Wulff Hall until her death after the birth of the long awaited Tudor prince. Always portrayed as modest and quiet, she was still well acquainted with court life having served both Katherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn. Having witnessed the downfall of not one but two queens would have been intimidating for any person and following the exuberant Anne, Jane would always be viewed in stark contrast. However, Weir goes to great lengths to try and present a much more interesting version.

In the ‘Author’s Note’ at the conclusion, Weir explains how she came by her interpretation of events, and this I very much enjoyed. With so little to go on i.e. there were no significant writings or letters left behind from this Queen, it was up to Weir to source information from alternate testimonies. This she does well and presents clear justifications on the conclusions she reached. The most notable here, is of course, the death of Jane which most would say was due to complications associated with childbirth. However, Weir collaborated with nurses and other medical specialists to come to her own conclusion (I won’t spoil it for you). I found her theories fascinating and had not heard of them before, but given the amount of thought and research she went to, one cannot help but be converted to her proposal.

Therefore, if you’re a Tudor fan, I can say without any shadow of a doubt you will love this introduction and interpretation into the life of this lesser known queen. However, I also feel there is plenty here to entice any lover of historical fiction.

‘It was a terrifying world she inhabited, and suddenly she wanted with all her heart to go home, to a place that was safe and normal, where the old ways mattered and good people did not suffer for following their consciences, and where you could observe your faith in the time-hallowed ways.’



This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher and provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The quoted material may have changed in the final release

I've said it once and I will say it again and again: hindsight is a wonderful thing and a powerful tool to have and to hold.

When you know what happens next you are reading the story with a certain detachment, wisdom and aloofness. You know who wins and who loses. You know who dies, when and why. You know who makes mistakes...

Jane Seymour was my very first novel by Alison Weir whom I know as a wonderful and entertaining historian. What can I say? I was proud to get invited to write this review. I was very excited. Plus, the story of 3rd Henry VIII wife was unknown to me. I knew Katherine of Aragon, had mixed feelings for Anne Boleyn... but Jane Seymour.

I can safely say that I am still confused as to what I think of Jane after reading this novel. The novel is wonderful, deep, colourful and detailed. Sometimes I even felt like, 'well, I know what happens next. Just hurry up and make it happen'. But overall, the novel reads well.

The characters are numerous and are richly dressed. And all of them have voices and enough lines in the text to make themselves count. Jane herself felt a bit 'too modern'. Was she an Angel? Was she a mere woman? I am still undecided. But haunted she was and mostly by her own imaginings.

The third novel in the Tudor Queen series is a very atmospheric read. Would I read others? I do not think so. Would I read Weir as historian. Definitely. To tell you the truth, I enjoyed 'Author's afterword' more than the whole novel.

I absolutely disappeared into this book - May is a great time for historical fiction to come out for those of us in Australia!

I was just flipping back through this book to think over my review, and my immediate thought was that my experience of reading this book was so wonderful. A lot of people say that they love reading historical fiction during the colder months, because you can really disappear into it a little more (plus historical fiction books tend to be quit chunky, and you have more time to pour into them). I absolutely agree with this - as the weather has been getting colder and rainier her in Perth, I have been craving bigger stories, and bigger books to sink my teeth into.

Jane Seymour delivers on this quite well. I was surprised at how much of her story Weir wanted to tell - the book basically spans the entirety of Jane's life, but with little attention paid to her childhood (as Weir says in her Author's Note, there isn't a lot of information on the earlier years of Jane's life). Jane's romance with the King doesn't really even appear until about halfway through the book. Part of me wanted to be disappointed and frustrated at that, but the majority of me was just fascinated at Jane's story, and how quickly she becomes embroiled in court life, and all the machinations and schemes that are in play.

I think one of the most beneficial things that a historical fiction tome can do is get someone interested in the time period that it is written about, and Weir managed that with me quite readily. Despite my parents being English, I have not often shown much interest in British history or their royals. But Jane Seymour:The Haunted Queen has piqued my interest. (I think my parents are quietly thrilled with this - they have other books that they would love to push into my hands now!)

While I did really enjoy my experience of reading this, I did find some parts a little bit dull, hence the slightly lower score, but I think Alison Weir writes wonderfully and manages to evoke the place and time of the book so well. I will definitely be going back to read the earlier books in this series, and I eagerly await the next one, too.

‘It’s not about what you want.’ ‘It’s about what is best for you, for your family and friends, and for England at large.’

Who was Jane Seymour? Jane Seymour (c. 1508 – 24 October 1537) was the third wife of Henry VIII of England. Henry married her after Anne Boleyn was executed in May 1536. Jane died less than two weeks after the birth of her only child, the son who would become Edward VI. Beyond these bare biographic details, very little is known about her. This has enabled Alison Weir to imagine details of her life, to draw various conclusions based on possible interpretations of events. In Ms Weir’s novel, Jane was initially drawn to a religious life (which neatly explains why she was still unmarried in her twenties). As an adult she becomes a maid-of-honour to Queen Katherine, and then serves Queen Anne. And then, she captures the King’s attention.

I found this novel interesting. While I’ve read a lot about the Tudors, I’ve not spent much time thinking about Jane Seymour. Her period as queen was so brief (less than 18 months), dominated by the fact that she died shortly after providing Henry VIII with a male heir, that the woman herself is obscured by these details. As I read the novel (and especially Ms Weir’s ‘Author’s Note’ at the end) I wondered just how ambitious Jane Seymour was.

‘They were asking her to actively plot against Anne. She did not hesitate. A crown, a kingdom and the true religion were at stake.’

Was she simply the instrument of an ambitious family seeking increased influence and power, or was she actively involved in bringing down Queen Anne? In this novel, Jane is torn between her conscience and her desires. She is haunted.

I don’t like Jane Seymour as she is depicted in this novel. I’m more comfortable with the more passive version of Jane Seymour that I’ve accepted as accurate over the past half century. And yet, I enjoyed the novel because Ms Weir’s Jane Seymour fits plausibly (more or less) into the history. The novel questions assumptions I had made and what I thought I knew, and that can’t be a bad thing.

I’ve not yet read the earlier two books in this series: I’ve added them to my reading list.

Note: My thanks to NetGalley and Hachette Australia for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith