Hello everyone, we’re midweek with a slow gentle ride down to what is being predicted to be a sunny weekend. It’s also the weekend of the Summer Solstice, the turning point of the year.
If you’re looking for something to read while you’re relaxing in the sunshine, I was recently asked to review Bess – Tudor Gentlewoman by Tudor expert, Tony Riches. Tony’s series of Tudor novels are all extraordinary and make you feel as though you’ve stepped back in time. Bess – Tudor Gentlewoman, following the life of Bess Throckmorton, the wife of Sir Walter Raleigh, is no exception.
Here’s my review of Tony’s book. It’s a high recommendation from me.
Take care and enjoy the sunshine,
Alex.
Tony Riches’s new Tudor novel, Bess: Tudor Gentlewoman follows the life and adventures of Bess Throckmorton, gentlewoman of Queen Elizabeth’s inner circle and wife of the swashbuckling adventurer, Sir Walter Raleigh. Bess’s story transports the reader to the heart of Tudor England with all its danger, glamour, intrigue and despair.
One of the best things about historical fiction, is being taken on a journey into someone else’s life courtesy of the painstaking research done by the author. With them as your guide, they lead you into the past where you are able to look through the eyes of a real person. The wonderful advantage of fiction is the author has the flexibility to fill in the gaps and make the past spring to life in every gritty, real and, often shocking, detail. This is something at which Tony Riches excels and the more I read about Bess, the more I was drawn into her world, feeling her concerns, her pain and her determination to survive.
Packed full of extraordinary detail, Bess: Tudor Gentlewoman gives a new perspective on Tudor women. She lived a full and, at times, dangerous life. She survived a stint as a prisoner in the Tower of London, she weathered the storms of her marriage to Sir Walter Raleigh and used her guile, skill and diplomatic skills to carve a path through the tragedies and misfortunes which made up her life.
As with all Tony’s books Bess: Tudor Gentlewoman transports you through time to experience the often harrowing day-to-day lives of these forgotten stories. I enjoyed every page and highly recommend it to history and non-history lovers alike. This is a story of survival, love and, above all, hope.