Give me hope…Mya

Page 29…oh dear!

 

HVII dies followed to the throne by a ” weak sort” Arthur and KoA . Arthur then dies and HVIII gets both crown and bride….

 

ETA but wait….HVIII  manipulates HVII and Isabella so KoA can be the BRITISH queen…..

 

ETA2….KoA is dark haired like Anne….I'm starting to lose my will to read further. Please let me know the facts get better….

I agree with Mya-Elise and Beth.  This is not a non-fiction book.  It is pure and simple fiction. I read it a while ago, and can't remember the errors in the history part.  I remember it as being a book about reincarnation and forgiveness.  I liked the thought that Anne and Henry kept meeting up in future lives trying to make amends with each other for past deeds. Don't look for historical fact, because you won't find it in this book.  The only accurate part is that Henry killed Anne.  Take it from there.

I loved the ending, the idea that this time could be the one where Henry and Anne get it right  

SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS

I came here to start a thread on Threads because I finished it yesterday and it's AMAZING! A whole new Anne than we're used to seeing.  Since it's told in first person, we the readers learn how everything she does results from deep insecurities, which of course makes her totally relatable.  I loved seeing who the other characters were in the other lives too-if you don't think you can picture Henry VIII as a transvestite prostitute, read this book and it will make perfect sense!  I thought her “favorite” life was utterly charming and made a lot of sense with the Katherine stuff.  The Chinese scene was heartbreaking.  One thing though, about the life in the 60s.  Maybe I'm missing something, but it says “1947-1970” though she's explicitly said to be 17.  I hope that doesn't mean the whole lifetime only lasted until she was 23.  

Historical inaccuracies in the Anne Boleyn life include: 6th finger (life in Egypt ensured she had that), the childhood rapes (which again, make sense in the context of the story, including, interestingly, why Henry couldn't get his annulment from the pope), the courtship with Henry Percy, and other minor things.  My Kindle version has a note from Nell Gavin which addresses all of this and she says it's fictionalization to fill out the story.

GREAT BOOK

I forgot another major historical inaccuracy-Henry has syphilis and gives it to Anne and Katherine of Aragon. The premise is that the fall Henry suffered in 1536 damaged his brain and gave the syphilitic part of his psyche free reign.

Mya,

 I believe it has been a disregarded theory by some historians. Robert Hutchinson argues against syphilis in his book The Last Days of Henry VIII (2005, pp. 127-9;292). His argument revolves around the lack of documentation that Henry was administered mercury, which was common treatment for the disease. Further, if Henry was suffering from syphilis, while being treated with mercury, he would have been absent from public life for a period of time. There is also no documentation this was true, either. Hutchinson argues Henry probably suffered from varicose ulcers (pp. 129). 

Not a problem, Mya. It seems to be one of the more persistent myths about Henry. Robert Hutchison was part of a tv production that looked into aspects of Henry's life. I posted the link below for the short section on Henry's sexual health, if it is of interest to anyone.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v…..99nwRs08bU