Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #390 in Books
• Published on: 2002-10-07
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 544 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
Everyone knows the fate of Anne Boleyn, but not many know the story of her rise to majesty and the part played by her rival and sister, Mary, who was Henry's mistress and mother to two of his bastard children before the dazzling older Boleyn girl even caught his eye. Philippa Gregory, whose own role as the Queen of historical romance grows more secure with each new novel, has surpassed her self with this epic tale of lust, jealousy and betrayal. The Other Boleyn Girl charts the lives of both Boleyns--each in their turn "the other Boleyn Girl"--and their fiercely ambitious, conniving family who used the girls as pawns to advance their own positions at the court of Henry VIII. At 13, Mary is little more than a child when she is presented to Henry, ordered by her scheming family to serve her King and country by opening her legs whenever commanded, or doing anything else the great monarch desires. And while his loins are satisfied, life at court is sweet for the unofficial Queen and her pushy coterie. Inevitably though, the King's eyes soon begin to wander and Mary is overlooked, helpless to do anything but aid her family's plot to advance their fortunes, replace her with Anne and give Henry the greatest gift of all: a son and heir.

So good a job has Ms Gregory done at portraying the Boleyns and Howards as selfish, scheming, treacherous manipulators however, that it becomes increasingly hard to feel empathy for any of them. While Mary is merely hapless, Anne is the most ruthless of them all, so that instead of feeling cheated by knowing the outcome of her story, it only serves to help digest her unpalatable rise. Such a gruesome destiny was never more deserved. Ms Gregory has worked hard at researching her historical references. Daily life at court is described in fascinating detail--from the relentless leisure pursuits, masques and banquets laid on for the easily bored King to the complex hierarchies and machinations of the courtiers. However, the fall of Queen Katherine of Aragon and her only child, the Princess Mary, and the politics of the competing European courts and the break with Rome are seen only as a backdrop to the bawdy goings-on of the Boleyns and their fateful race for the crown. --Carey Green

You Magazine
The very believable dialogue and detail take you all the way into the claustrophobic privy chambers of the royal palaces.

Synopsis
Fabulous historical novel set in the court of King Henry VIII. Mary Boleyn attracts the attention of the young king and becomes his mistress; when he tires of her, she sets out to school her sister, Anne, as a replacement. Politics and passion are inextricably bound together in this compelling drama. The Boleyn family is keen to rise through the ranks of society, and what better way to attract the attention of the most powerful in the land than to place their most beautiful young woman at court? But Mary becomes the king's mistress at a time of change. He needs his personal pleasures, but he also needs an heir. The unthinkable happens and the course of English history is irrevocably changed. For the women at the heart of the storm, they have only one weapon; and when it's no longer enough to be the mistress, Mary must groom her younger sister in the ways of the king. What happens next is common knowledge -- but here it is told in a way we've never heard it before, with all of Philippa Gregory's characteristic perceptiveness, backed by meticulous research and superb storytelling skills.

Customer Reviews

Excellent
A brilliant book that is almost impossible to put down. Haven't read anything as good as this in ages and haven't stopped raving about it yet! Definitely worth reading.

A real page turner
I was given this book several years ago and it lay unopened for a months as I didn't think it was "my thing". When I found myself with nothing to read I eventually picked it up and found that I truly couldn't put it down. The writing is fantastic - she has captured the feel of the period very well and the book holds you there with it. I found myself agog with amazement that families would sacrifice their own just to move up in the social and royal circles and read well into the wee small hours to see what happened next.

I eagerly awaited the film but was disappointed so if you weren't convinced by the film but haven't read the book, I urge you to try it. It certainly surprised me.

It's Not Always Good to be the Queen
This book takes a few pages to find its momentum, which is the ONLY reason I'm giving it four stars instead of five. The political machinations of the upwardly mobile Boleyn family in their quest to have land, power and titles for their men, while putting their women out as brood mares, is a concept that was ripe for Philippa Gregory's golden touch.

This story is told from the point of view of Mary, Anne Boleyn's sister; the first of the two to be sent to Henry VIII's bed (in the novel, she is younger than Anne, but in real life, she was the older of the two). Anne's cap was set for Henry while Mary was giving birth to his son, and her family's ambition soon gave way to that of her own. Anne Boleyn does NOT come off well here - she is a vain, selfish woman with no concept of the precedent she set by getting Henry VIII to set aside his first wife for her. If it could be done FOR her, it could be done TO her.

All the innuendo that was present during Anne's time is here: the hint that one of Anne's miscarried children was conceived in a shocking way, George Boleyn's indiscretions, witchcraft, and the rest made for pages turning late into the night. Mary's personal story of being married to a man she didn't know, then being bedded by the King, and her fight to keep her children by that King, makes me want to know more about her. Too sad that she wasn't important enough at the time for anyone to take too much note of her - she was only the Other Boleyn Girl.