Absolutely stunning! I knew a little about Katheryn Howard from documentaries I have watched, but after reading this book, I had no idea everything she went through. It was all about manipulation and she was just a pawn in the game to gain the King's favor. I felt so sorry for her when she was a child and how she was constantly being pushed off on relatives. Excellent book.

I’ve read very little on Henry’s third, fourth, fifth and sixth wives. It was a perfect opportunity to expand my knowledge on these ladies, reading Weir’s latest book, Katheryn Howard, The Scandalous Queen.
Scandalous, she was. Katheryn, relative of the Duke of Norfolk, was the pawn of her wealthy family. Hoping to give their family more power in court (in a nutshell), they put Katheryn, a pretty young woman, conveniently under the king’s nose. He is quickly smitten and marries her soon after divorcing his fourth wife. (No spoilers here, this happened 500 years ago.) The bloom of a new marriage fades, and somehow, Katheryn is caught – she may have been her family’s pawn, but she was no angel.
Katheryn was carrying on with an affair, and had two previous romantic relationships, much to the king’s fury. It’s a fascinating lens, seeing this drama of the 1500s unfold in the 21st century. Affairs are frowned upon, but to be punished for having previous relationships? Nonsense. Katheryn was also formed from a line in a history book into a well-rounded character, with depth of emotion and naiveté. She isn’t simply a pretty face who likes fancy dresses and jewels, but a woman with feelings that ranged from desire, to worry, to guilt, to fear. She seemed to try to do the “right” things, but was caught up in the tide of intrigue and fun that others around her engaged in. It also didn’t help that there were handsome faces about.
The consequences of her actions come quickly and with ferocity, and I couldn’t help thinking of her last interaction with the queen. It was so loving and completely ignorant of the inquiries and imprisonments that would soon follow. One day, the king loves you, the next, they’re sending you to the Tower. Crazy. And how horrifying – to be punished for things you did when you were young and thought you were in love. She didn’t know she was going to be the queen!
The book is heavy with romance and romantic moments, and although there are some racy moments, Weir writes it with a classy hand, and avoids being too graphic. I appreciated how she was able to write about a story so filled with sex without making it too “in your face.” Weir also writes with a great style, but I sometimes wondered if the dialogue and word choices were of the time period. For example, is “tricked out” something they said in the 1540s? Apparently, yes, it is. The phrase was developed in the 1500s. So, kudos, Alison Weir, you genius! I will have to go back to read her books about the previous wives.

This is the fifth book of Allison Weir's "Six Tudor Queens" series. I have not read the previous four but after finishing "Katheryn Howard: The Scandalous Queen," I'm going to.

I love stories of Tudor England and although we're all aware of how Katheryn's story ends, how she got there is less well-known. Weir's thorough research fills in the blanks, starting with her lonely childhood. Told from Katheryn's point of view, the story shows how the beautiful, naive and not particularly bright girl was used by those she trusted to help them advance their positions in the world while she desperately sought the love and security she never received from her family. But her fate isn't all the fault of others - Katheryn makes some terrible choices along the way (I found myself wanting to shake her often!) but you can't help but wonder if her upbringing had been different how her life might have been as well.

Thanks to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group and Ballantine Books for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I'm a huge fan of Alison Weir and I was thrilled to read a book on Katheryn Howard, King Henry VIII's fifth queen. She was barely out of childhood when married to King Henry. She was one of the lesser written about queens, possibly due to the length of her reign Told from Katheryn’s point of view, the story picks up in 1528 shortly before her mother’s death when she was 7 years old. It recounts her various romances through young adulthood and her ultimate ascension to her short-held role as Queen.
The book is wonderfully written other than parts that read like poorly written soft porn, tis the reason I gave it 4* instead of 5*

I have been reading about the Tudor women since my teenage years. You think I would be sick of them. But no! I devour the books written about them and this one was no exception. Somehow in all my years of reading I knew almost nothing about Henry’s fifth wife. This book absolutely solved this for me. I learned about Katheryn and truly loved the book. Just the right thing to keep these long days from being boring. I was given the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers.

DNF despite getting an ARC from publisher.

All I can do is echo the sentiments of others that this is poorly-written, historically inaccurate, soft-core porn.

Alison Weir has once again woven a compelling tale combining historical facts and fiction.

The magical storytelling takes us from Katheryn Howard’s unsettled and rather sad childhood through her marriage to King Henry the VIII. It paints a picture of a kind hearted but opportunistic girl who was a mere pawn in her family’s social climbing.

I felt too much time was spent on her ”dalliances” with her tutor and Dereham, both of them being much older and in positions of responsibility in the household. The thought of a pre teen/very young teen being taken advantage of by men of certain power is unsettling.

Keeping in mind this is a work of historical fiction, Ms. Weir stays close to the facts as they are recorded. And fleshes out gaps with probable scenarios and dialogue. I especially enjoy the afterword in her books. The historical notations provide information helpful to further research the subjects.

Katheryn Howard, The Scandalous Queen is a well researched and welcome addition to the Six Tudor Queens series. I am eagerly awaiting the sixth and final book.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

My Two Cents: Historical fiction is a favorite genre, but I have always had a special interest in Henry VIII and his many wives. That time in British Courts seems so fraught with mystery and espionage, it’s hard not to get wrapped up in it! For the most part, I have mostly read about his first wife Katherine and the ever-popular Boleyn sisters and of course Jane Seymour by extension so I was intrigued to find out more about Katheryn Howard and how she came to be Henry VIII’s fifth wife.

Right off the bat, Katheryn was a fairly normal girl with a high-powered family name. I think in many ways she was “lucky” and happened to have the right blend of being age-appropriate (as was considered at that time) and being somewhat lost in the world (having no dowry or even parents, it was easy for her uncle and grandmother to decide her future). Being beautiful and charming was just the added bonus the family needed to capture the king’s attention. Her lack of virtue throughout her early teen years showed how lost she must have felt at not having any solid prospects or a plan for the future.

I appreciated Katheryn’s voice throughout the book – how quickly she went from depressed and heartbroken to excited and ambitious was so realistic for such a young woman still figuring out who she was. It was also engaging how Katheryn went from being disgusted at the prospect of bedding an aging, diseased and malodorous king to loving him in so many ways. Alison Weird did a wonderful job of capturing the range of emotions that Katheryn must have gone through as she courted and wed King Henry VIII.

I was extremely surprised that considering Katheryn’s very open indiscretions when she was younger, she was able to make it as far as charming the king in the first place. So many people knew about her early relationships with Harry and Francis that it seems highly unlikely that no one would utter a word to King Henry in the entire time they courted and early years of their marriage – especially when there are always other families vying to undermine others.

Overall, I enjoyed Katheryn Howard, The Scandalous Queen, and had fun going back in time with Alison Weir to Henry VIII’s court.

An easy to read fictional account of Henry VIII's fifth wife Katheryn Howard written by an author who has written TONS of nonfiction about the Tudors. (I have read Alison Weir's nonfiction off and on for at least 20 years.)

It is sad to know that it is mostly due to the fact that she was naive in her youth, manipulated and sexually exploited by men of power over her that Katheryn Howard was condemned to death. Sure she made some disastrous choices after she was married, but considering she was only between the ages of 17 and 21 when she died (thus 15-19 when she married the 50 year old king) it is sad to what it came to. Imagine if we could all be tried for things we did between the ages of 11 to 14.

I appreciate that in the author's note Alison Weir details which parts of the story are fabrication, which parts are built from testimonies given at the time, and which parts are taken from primary resourses and thus factual.

This book was fascinating. Katheryn Howard's life from the time she was eight years old until her demise at twenty-one is truly a tragic story as she was let down and set up by so many of those relatives who should have carefully watched out for her. She was naive and impulsive and although aware of the consequences of many of her activities, she basically ignored them. I was unable to put this book down as I was eager to see what would happen next. I was particularly impressed with the author's notes about her research at the end of the story. I highly recommend Katheryn Howard, The Scandalous Queen!

Alison Weir really had her work cut out for herself in this addition to her series on Henry VIII's wives. This has to be the least interesting of the wives although Jane Seymour came in a close second. Still what can you do with a very randy girl who married at 19 and was beheaded at 21?

Other than being obsessed with sex and men Katheryn had very little to offer. She was very uneducated and understood very little of what was going on around her. It seemed like she had dyslexia but that was never discussed. It was pure torture for her when Henry gave her presents of books and anything with Latin on it.

What was interesting was Lady Rocheford's role in the Thomas Culpepper and Katheryn romance. What was in it for her? Over and over it was stated that the Lady kept pushing the parties together. She carried messages between Katheryn and Thomas and when there were none, she made them up. She arranged their meetings and kept her eyes out for people coming. I just don't get it. I would be interested in knowing about what motivated her.

Other than that, it is the story of a young girl who liked to flirt and have lovers. She made the mistake of marrying Henry III who despite his checked matrimonial past liked his women pure as the driven snow. He didn't make good choices to achieve that goal.

Thanks to Net Galley for a copy of this book in exchange for a fair review.

I have always been a big fan of Alison Weir and I have been enjoying this series about the six wives of Henry VIII. Katheryn Howard is probably the wife I knew the least about, perhaps not much was known about her. She seems young, immature and easily swayed by money, power, clothes and sex. it seems like she was very much a pawn of her family and she had little say in her life’s choices. I think the author used a voice that reflected Katheryn’s young and flighty personality.

I really thought this book had so much potential. Alison Weir just repeated the same story of Henry the VIII’s 5th wife Katheryn Howard. She also seemed to change her age so that Katheryn was able to consent to the men that surrounded her in youth. This book was shameful. I rarely ever feel this way.

My eldest daughter has a fascination with Tudor history and is a huge fan of author Alison Weir. After reading Katheryn Howard: The Scandalous Queen, I understand why!
The fifth in a series of books on the wives of King Henry VIII, this story holds true to what is known of the time period, reflecting Weir’s extensive research. As I became immersed in this book, I felt like I was stepping back in time into this intriguing historical era.
Weir paints Katheryn in a somewhat different light than many other authors. Katheryn was very young, but in this author’s viewpoint, she wasn’t just a flirtatious party girl seeking wealth and fame but seemingly came to her fate largely as a pawn of her family as they sought to advance their own ambitions. In many situations, she did not really have a choice, and some of her other poor decisions were made largely out of naivete.
Told through Katheryn’s perspective, this story picks up in 1528 shortly before her mother’s death when she was just 7 years old. It recounts her various romances through young adulthood and her ultimate ascension to her short-held role as Queen.
The daughter of Sir Edmund Howard and Joyce Culpepper and niece of the scheming Duke of Norfolk, Katheryn was a cousin of Anne Boleyn, the second wife of King Henry VIII, who tragically shared her same fate.
Many thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy. I was under no obligation to write a positive review; the views I have expressed are entirely my own.
If you enjoy reading historical fiction or have an interest in the royal family through the ages, I highly recommend this book. I am looking forward to reading more works by this talented author.

Alison Weir never disappoints. I always enjoy her novels and this is no exception. If you are a historical fiction fan, you have to read this book. If you are a Phillipa Gregory fan and have read Alison Weir, you are missing out! If you have a fascination with Henry VIII or the Tudor dynasty, you have to pick up this series. I've read every installment and each one I learn so much more and I love how authentic her writing is. I also respect that she elaborates on where she's taken liberty with the story and most of it is only dialogue. That's very commendable. The audiobooks of these series are phenomenal. So no matter what format you prefer, please, do yourself a favor, and pick up this series!

Katheryn Howard, The Scandalous Queen: Review by Samantha Yorke

From the publisher: Bestselling author and acclaimed historian Alison Weir tells the tragic story of Henry VIII’s fifth wife, a nineteen-year-old beauty with a hidden past, in this fifth novel in the sweeping Six Tudor Queens series.

In the spring of 1540, Henry VIII, desperate to be rid of his queen, Anna of Kleve, first sets eyes on the enchanting Katheryn Howard. Although the king is now an ailing forty-nine-year-old measuring fifty-four inches around his waist, his amorous gaze lights upon the pretty teenager. Seated near him intentionally by her ambitious Catholic family, Katheryn readily succumbs to the courtship.

Henry is besotted with his bride. He tells the world she is a rose without a thorn, and extols her beauty and her virtue. Katherine delights in the pleasures of being queen and the power she has to do good to others. She comes to love the ailing, obese king and tolerate his nightly attentions. If she can bear him a son, her triumph will be complete. But Katheryn has a past of which Henry knows nothing, and which comes back increasingly to haunt her–even as she courts danger yet again.

*****

There can be little doubt that Alison Weir has made an indelible mark on the public’s fascination with Tudor History. I was hesitant to take this ARC copy at first because I generally find the author’s fiction to be difficult to read. However, there are many good points to be taken from this fictional story of Katheryn Howard.

The book begins are the death of Katheryn Howard’s mother. From there we are taken on the journey of her short, tragic life. Ms. Weir shows us a young girl who is overlooked and passed first from relative to relative, then from man to man, all the while she merely yearns for a home and a place to be loved and belong.

She catches the eye of King Henry VIII. The reader will feel the anxiety that the young queen experiences, afraid that her past lovers will come to light. We share her joy as the King spoils her and she finally appears to delight in being cherished and adored.

Then, just as quickly as she ascended, Katheryn Howard is doomed by the shadows and whispers of her past. Weir vividly paints a sympathetic, doomed young girl trapped and caged in the trappings that she has grown to love as she finally felt secure in the world the King created for her.

Weaving a novel length story about a life that we know so little takes a great amount of skill and talent.

This book is not as long as most of Ms. Weir’s fiction, which will be a bonus for some readers who may find her rambling, extensive stories tedious. The book opens with brief family trees of the Tudors, Howards, Culpepers, and Derehams-which is impressive. Her devoted following will love this book, and I believe she will garner new appreciation for the sheer volume of research she did on the life and story of this poor pawn in the machinations of a tyrannical king. This is also an ideal book to get lost in for a few days. Due to these factors, I’m giving the book four stars.

*****

Special thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for an ARC of this book in exchange for a fair review. Release date is May 12, 2020.

You may purchase the book here.

Amazing. If you haven't read this series- and I hadn't- you're in for a treat, especially since you have now found a new set of novels to dive into. Katheryn Howard was just a teen when she married Henry VIII. She had a dreadful upbringing and, like a teen would be, is willing to bet on her ability to bear the King an heir. No matter how repulsive he might be, he's better than how she's been living and it's a chance. Keep in mind that this is written from her perspective so it might seem a tad simplistic in spots. It's not. This is meticulously researched but it is also compulsively readable. I learned a lot (and spent some time googling) while thoroughly enjoying the novel. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A great read for fans of historical fiction.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Each of the Six Wives has stereotypes about them, and over the course of the series, Weir seems to demonstrate, despite her reputation for accuracy, that she’s not immune to bias. So while this book was yet another chance for her to take shots at the Boleyns on passing, otherwise, Katheryn Howard: The Scandalous Queen is a compassionate portrayal of the wife often considered to be a dumb or oversexed, to put it mildly, showing she is at most naive and underprepared for the cutthroat political scheming going on around her.

I love how the falls of others, from her cousin Anne Boleyn to the Countess of Salisbury are portrayed through Kathryn’s eyes to foreshadow her own fate, and while, with hindsight, we can say that she might have saved herself if she’d told the truth earlier (and Weir does state this is the case), I can still understand why she didn’t, given her background and what she had been instructed to do by those she thought knew better.

I also enjoyed seeing her dynamic with King Henry, as while the romantic love is not returned on her side, it was yet another example of how changeable he could be when he felt betrayed by someone.

This is a truly epic book about the rise and fall of a largely misunderstood Tudor Queen. I recommend it to fans of historical fiction, especially if you love the Tudors.

I know Henry's fourth wife is not as well known as Anne Boleyn, but this book was just... lacking. The beginning of the book was good, you really got to know Katheryn. The middle of the book was never ending. It was one long list of castles and cities that all blended together. I wish there was more story and character building during the progress. Unlike the other books in this series, I really didn't care about Tom, Katheryn, Jane or Henry. The end was boring because we weren't shown what was going on with the trial. Even though the book was told from Katheryn's perspective and she was kept in the dark, I wish the reader could have been given hints about what was going on. To keep the reader in the dark just made it really boring - watching Katheryn have panic attacks and pace in the nunnery.

Katheryn drove me nuts. She made some terrible decisions in her youth and blamed it on not being supervised well enough. As a woman of noble birth in that time period she KNEW that her virtue was the only thing going for her without a dowry. The blame goes through the whole book. It's Tom's fault for wanting to see her, it's Henry's fault for not feeling well and giving her Tom as a companion, it's Jane's fault for carrying messages. I'm not a historian and I'm sure the book was well researched, but the fictional portion of the book just bugged me. Especially with what happened to her cousin Anne Boleyn, she knew she was committing treason with Tom. She played with fire her whole life and then was surprised when she was burned. It's not until the end that she FINALLY admits it was her own lust that was her undoing.

This is the fifth book in the author’s Six Tudor Queen’s series. I love Alison Weir, both her fiction and non-fiction. There aren’t many of her books that I haven’t read or don’t own, and I have been waiting for this book to come available on NetGalley. I was pretty disappointed in the last book in this series, so I was kind of skeptical going into this one. I’m glad I was surprised by how much I liked it. Yes, there were several times at the beginning that I rolled my eyes and thought “did she really just write that?” hence the 4 stars. But it is a very solid 4 stars leaning toward 5 without those few cringy moments during Part 1. This book brought back what most of her other novels have shown, that Weir is the leading historian of this time period. She gives enough real details regarding dress and food of the time period without bogging the book down. However, I think her trying to stay true to the time period did lead to the most cringeworthy part of the whole book.

This book shows Katheryn Howard in a different light than most historical fiction books about her do. You really get a sense of how her upbringing factored into her decisions throughout her short life. It shows she was more than just a silly, boy crazy teenager that managed to ensnare the king. Her time in the Dowager Duchess’s care is usually glossed over as a bunch of young girls left to run wild. Weir really brought this to life & showed it was more than just lax guardianship on the Duchess’s part. It also shows the Duke of Norfolk to be just as ruthless as he seemed regarding Anne Boleyn. It seems clear that Katheryn was more of a pawn than Anne. Her relationship with Thomas Culpeper was also real and not just a fling. History has not been kind to Katheryn Howard and this book uses the sources to show how it really might have been. Its easy to see that Katheryn probably did come to care for the king, just not in the way he cared for her and wasn’t just out for the riches and status being Queen brought her. Katheryn is shown to be more of a pawn to her family than the wanton history has made her out to be.

Weir has again written a work of fiction that stands up to her nonfiction. I’m glad this book went back to her roots. It showed that she is the go-to when it comes to historical fiction based on fact. Thank you to NetGalley, Random House/Ballantine Publishing and Alison Weir for the electronic ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.