The third instalment in Alison Weir's excellent Tudor Queens series. Weir is excellent at conjuring the world of the Tudors at making us feel at home, getting right inside the minds of the characters.

As we can expect of Ms. Weir, the novel has been extensively researched. We can rely on the fact that this fictionalised account is set around real events and which affords the novel some gravitas.

I very much admired Jane's commitment to Katherine and how she maintained her view of Katherine as Queen, even when Henry had set her aside and married Anne Boleyn. However, and this is not a criticism of the book, I found it hard to believe that Jane remained as trusting of Henry when she had not merely observed, but lived in the royal court and seen the way in which he had treated his previous two wives.

However, the author did a great job of portraying Jane's quiet determination to appeal to Henry's better nature about the execution of Anne Boleyn and his treatment of his daughters, Mary and Elizabeth. What was equally well portrayed through both Jane and Anne, was the way in which women were used as pawns for the advancement of men in their families.

Excellently written in an accessible style, Ms. Weir has brought another of Henry VIII's Queens expertly to life. I will definitely be reading the next in the series, Anna of Kleve: The Princess in the Portrait very soon.

I absolutely adore this series. You can really tell that they are written by a historian, the attention to detail is second to none. It was a fascinating look at a queen we rarely hear about! Although you know how the book will end, it is no less devastating..

In this enthralling third volume, Weir takes us back to 1518 to start the humble tale of Jane Seymour: Henry VIII’s third, quiet and often overlooked wife. Who, as the eldest daughter of Sir John Seymour, a country knight, and his wife Margery Wentworth, grew up in a large, happy family on their estate of Wulfhall in Wiltshire. From a young age, the devout Jane wished to become a nun, however, in 1527, after an unhappy trial at an abbey and a shocking affair rips their family apart, Jane’s father finds her a place at Henry VIII’s court, as a lady-in-waiting to his then wife, Queen Katherine.

I found myself feeling for Jane because she really is a fish out of water, or a lamb among wolves, at the Tudor royal court. A place of pomp and ceremony, decadence, love affairs, intrigue and backstabbing. Believing herself to be simple and plain, Jane keeps her head down and diligently serves both Katherine of Aragon and then Anne Boleyn. This is where we find a lot of overlap in this book from the previous two, but I did enjoy seeing the same stories told from the kind-hearted Jane’s point-of-view.

She is appalled when King Henry shunts Katherine, a fellow Catholic whom she has come to love and admire, aside in his lustful pursuit of Anne Boleyn. Then mourns more deeply when she is forced from the side of her good mistress, by her ambitious brothers, to go serve upon the usurper, Anne. Only for the king’s roving eye to fall upon her next! While Jane does grow to have some affection for Henry, she is compelled more by her duty to her family, the true faith and Katherine’s former supporters to except Henry’s advances.

So rises Jane Seymour, country knight’s daughter, to the dazzling heights of Queen of England, but Jane is left haunted by Henry having Anne brutally killed in his rush to wed her. And ultimately her reign is tragically short, as she makes the ultimate sacrifice in giving the king what he always wanted: a son. Again Weir had me on the verge of tears at the end! As in the previous books, Weir has kept closely to historical records, but taken some dramatic licence to flesh out characters and fill in any gaps: blending seamlessly her research and imagination to create a moving and believable tale.

For me, each successive book in this series has got better and this is no exception. Telling the story of Jane Seymour, we get glimpses into her life before she meets Henry and then during their marriage.

The Positives: I really appreciated seeing into Jane's family life before she joins the royal court as it gave me some insight into where she came from. I also thought that the pacing of the narrative in this instalment was the best of the three books so far. Weir has struck a good balance between detail and plot here, which was enjoyable.

The Negatives: I do find the dialogue consistently wooden in these books and the action does jump around a lot, particularly in the latter part of the book. Be warned that the ending is pretty abrupt too.

Overall, this is definitely my favourite of the series so far and am now intrigued to find out more about Anne of Cleves.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

An interesting take on perhaps Henry's dullest wife. This may sound harsh but I have long felt that Jane Seymour was the lest interesting of Henry VIII's wives. Her story holds much of a parallel with Anne Boleyn's in that she was used as a pawn by her family and Cromwell to put her on a throne beside the king. Unlike Anne, she had little ambition and mostly did as she was told.

Given that this has been my long-held opinion I really enjoyed this book. Weir managed to bring the character of Jane Seymour to life and make her seem much more rounded than any previous stories she featured. Alison Weir quite clearly knows her stuff as the research shines through without overpowering the narrative (I'm looking at you, Phillipa Gregory...). The overshadowing previous wife is a prominent feature, hence 'The Haunted Queen', and added an additional element to this well-told story.

I enjoyed this. Alison Weir is a very good writer, the history is interesting, and she is very effective at bringing the period to life. However, it was really too long for the subject matter. This meant that there was a lot of Jane going back and fore in her thoughts (he loves me, he doesn't love me, yes he does love me; Anne is guilty, she has been framed, no she is guilty, no she was framed... etc) and it does get a bit repetitive. I shall be very interested to see Weir's treatment of Anne of Cleves, given the short time she was actually queen. Overall, and enjoyable series and it is giving me a greater insight into the history of the time.
Thank you to the publishers for providing me with a copy via NetGalley, in return for an honest review.

Another fabulously well researched book into the wives of Henry VII - I'm looking forward to the next in the series.

Weirs third Six Tudor Queens novel tells the story of Jane Seymour who, funnily enough, was third in Henry VIII's litany of wives. It's a tough sell as frankly, she's the one often considered to be a bit boring which is a bit unfair as its probably more that she was the least notorious. Let's face it there must have been something interesting about her otherwise why would a king wanted to marry her, and possibly arrange wholesale murder under the guise of treason charges to marry her? So I'll give her the benefit of doubt and say she must have been very interesting indeed. But without straying too far from fact Weir only has what we know to work from. And it isn't much. But as with the previous novels, the author has breathed life into a woman whose motives we can only guess at and make them both sympathetic and believable. Across the three books so far we've seen the same scenes played out but from the perspective of each queen and each time, its come across very differently.

This is a pretty big project that Alison Weir has taken on and this must have been the hardest. Considering that this is a very impressive work of fiction. I'm very much looking forward to Anna of Kleve: Queen of Secrets.

This is an engaging and thorough fictionalized biography of the least known of Henry's wives. As a result it is based on conjecture, but one that the author founds on thorough historical research. It is well written and entertains, thus keeping the subject matter and the reader's interest alive. This is my first encounter with Alison Weir, but certainly will not be the last, and I cannot wait to see how she handles Anne Boleyn, given the necessarily negative depiction of her here. A must read for all who enjoyed Wolf Hall.

I really enjoyed the first two books in this series and the blend of fiction and non-fiction into one smart book. I enjoyed how Weir told the story and it was interesting to hear her real story. I loved how it explored every area of her life and it told the story of her clearly and effiecently.

Devout Jane wants to become a nun and so visits a local abbey to experience the life. Finding inequalities and no peace she decides not to commit and comes home to her family in Wiltshire. Scandal rocks the family when it is discovered that Jane's father has been conducing an affair with his daughter-in-law and whilst kind-hearted Jane tries to intercede it is to no avail. Jane then leaves the family to join the court as maid to Katherine the Queen. Whilst at court she witnesses King Henry divorce his devoted wife and marry The Lady, Anne Boleyn, but as that marriage fails and Jane catches the eye of the King she realises that fate may yet have a higher destiny for her.

As ever with Weir's novelisations of fact the research is impeccable. Little is known of Jane directly but by dying after giving Henry his longed for son she is cemented as the love of his life and a tragic heroine. In fact much is made of Jane's role in the downfall of Anne Boleyn and just how innocent she was, was she a pawn in the hands of factions as portrayed here? I trust Weir's take on the story, an eminently readable story with a strong grounding in the history of the period.

I will confess that I actually downloaded this for my mum to read as historical fiction is her thing, and I use her recommendations as a bookseller! She said that this was her favourite of the series to date, as Katherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn get more fictional renditions than the other wives put together! Beautifully descriptive
and a perfect evocation of time, place and historical detail. She loved it ☺

Weir is a favourite writer of mine. She has that rare ability to create both fantastic fiction and nonfiction. Jane Seymour has always been a fascinating figure to read about thanks to giving Henry his most craved heir. Fabulous read

Jane Seymour: The Haunted Queen is the third book in Alison Weir’s Six Tudor Queens series which aims to retell, in fictional form, the stories of all six of Henry’s wives. Having read the first two novels on Katherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn, I have been looking forward to this new one; I’ve read about Jane less often than Katherine and Anne so I was interested in learning more about her and curious to see how she would be portrayed.

The novel begins by introducing us to Jane as a young girl, living with her parents and brothers and sisters at Wulfhall, the Seymours’ manor house in Wiltshire. For several years, Jane is convinced that she would like to become a nun but eventually she discovers that she has no true vocation for a religious life and she decides that her future lies at court instead. With the help of Sir Francis Bryan, a courtier and family friend, she obtains a place in the household of Katherine of Aragon as one of the queen’s maids-of-honour. Jane is devoted to the queen, but when Henry puts Katherine aside so that he can marry Anne Boleyn, she finds herself in the unwelcome position of having to serve Anne instead of Katherine.

When Jane catches the king’s eye, her ambitious brothers see this as an opportunity to make the Seymours the power behind the throne, while Jane herself is keen to use her new influence with Henry to help reinstate Katherine and her daughter, the Lady Mary. But then comes Anne Boleyn’s downfall and suddenly Jane, who has watched her younger sisters marrying before her and has almost given up hope of ever finding a husband herself, is elevated to the highest position of all: Queen of England, as Henry’s third wife. With only two daughters from his first two marriages, Henry is desperate for a son, but can Jane succeed where her two predecessors failed?

I have given a basic outline of the plot of The Haunted Queen in the two paragraphs above, but I’m sure none of it will be very surprising to anyone who already knows their Tudor history. Weir sticks closely to historical fact as far as possible although, as she explains in her author’s note, the information we have on Jane is limited and there are areas where she has to use her imagination and historical knowledge to fill in the gaps – for example, the possibility of Jane contemplating taking religious vows, the question of whether she could already have been pregnant at the time of her marriage to Henry, and the probable cause of her death shortly after giving birth in October 1537. There were enough new ideas and interpretations here to make this, for me, a worthwhile and compelling read.

Jane Seymour often comes across as one of the less interesting wives, particularly following Anne Boleyn, but I liked the way she was portrayed in this novel. Was Jane used as a pawn by Thomas Cromwell and her ambitious family, or was she as manipulative as they were in bringing down Anne Boleyn and taking her place as queen? Different authors and historians have different views on this, but Alison Weir’s version of Jane is somewhere between the two and I found it a realistic, convincing portrait of a quiet, compassionate young woman who did not set out to become queen but who seized the opportunity when it arose in the hope of using the power it would give her to help those she loved and to restore the ‘true religion’. Henry is depicted in quite a balanced and nuanced way too; we see a more loving side of him in his relationship with Jane, as well as his cruelty towards his previous two wives and his daughter, Mary. We also get to know some of the other characters who play a part in Jane’s story, including her brothers Edward and Thomas; I particularly liked the portrayal of Sir Francis Bryan, who is a good friend of the Seymour family, despite his reputation as ‘the vicar of Hell’.

I enjoyed reading about Jane’s early life at Wulfhall (marked by the scandal caused by her father’s affair with his daughter-in-law Catherine Fillol – something I have previously read about in Suzannah Dunn’s The May Bride) and, later in the book, her brief reign as queen, but the section in the middle which covers Henry’s attempts to divorce Katherine of Aragon and then his marriage to Anne Boleyn, was less interesting to me. This is because it’s the third time in this series that I’ve read about those same events. Obviously, the three women involved – Katherine, Anne and Jane – have very different views on the matter, but I still found it just a little bit tedious to read it all again. I was also not a fan of the supernatural elements which are suggested by the title, The Haunted Queen, but I’m sure other readers will disagree.

I am now looking forward to the fourth book in the series which will tell the story of Anne of Cleves, definitely the wife I know the least about!

Fantastically well researched, much like all of Alison Weir's books, Jane Seymour is brought to life in this historical novel. I feel like reading Weir's books is always an education, despite my extensive knowledge of The Tudors. This was a wonderful book, if a little slow to draw me in at the beginning.

For someone who lived a relatively short life, this is quite a long book. The author takes us in detail through events of the three years that the author describes as ‘the most tumultuous…in England’s history’. Since the lives of Katherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn and Jane Seymour overlapped, readers of the previous two books in the series will find themselves reliving the events of the ‘King’s Great Matter’ over again, albeit from a different perspective.

I enjoyed the sections covering Jane’s childhood and the home life of the Seymour family at Wulfhall. It provides an interesting insight into the working of a Tudor household and here, as throughout the book, there is wonderful detail about clothing, food and the routines of daily life that provides a real sense of authenticity. ‘Mother had excelled herself: among the dishes there were baked meats, raised pies, savoury tarts, salmon in sauce, capons in wine, blancmanges and berries is season.’ Events also take place that arguably have a lasting impact on Jane’s view of marriage.

Jane’s appointment as maid-in-waiting to first Queen Katherine and then Anne Boleyn demonstrates how women of the nobility were frequently pawns in a power game for preferment and position, either through being placed in prestigious roles at Court or through making advantageous marriages. At times, this presents Jane with difficult moral choices: should she be true to her beliefs and risk her family’s advancement or obey her family’s wishes? As one of her fellow maids observes, “Oh, Jane – who are we to question? Our families make our moral choices for us.” The book provides a compelling picture of the Royal Court as a place of intrigue, conspiracy, secret allegiances, false flattery and dissembling with imprisonment, exile or worse the price for opposing the King’s will. Particularly, since the King’s will can change like the wind.

When Jane finally accepts Henry’s attentions, it is partly because she believes it may be God’s way of enabling her to end the attack on the Church initiated by the followers of Anne Boleyn and save the King from eternal damnation. However, she is merely a pawn once again and the nearer to the King, the more danger lurks behind every door. ‘It was a terrifying world she inhabited….Nowhere, least of all this glittering, teeming court seething with intrigue, was safe.’

The author paints a picture of Jane as devout, with a strong moral compass, intelligent, perceptive and, surprising even herself perhaps at times, willing to express her opinions boldly. Jane’s devotion to Henry is depicted as sincere and accompanied by a physical attraction. This is relevant to a development in the story which the author talks about the evidence for in her Author’s Note. Following Anne Boleyn’s fall from grace, putting aside her doubts and misgivings, Jane agrees to marry the King. However, as most of us know from school history lessons, happiness did not await. The King, however, did get that for which he had disposed of two wives.

In her fascinating Author’s Note at the end of the book, the author freely admits that documentary evidence about the life of Jane Seymour is scant – ‘She left barely a letter…Her recorded utterances are few.’ Alison Weir goes on to say, ‘Had she [Jane] left behind letters giving insights into her views on these events, we would know much more about the role she played in them – but she didn’t, and therefore she remains an enigma.’ However, the role of the author of historical fiction is to populate the gaps in the historical records using their imagination. This, the author does in a way this reader certainly found plausible, credible and, importantly, entertaining. I look forward to reading the next book in the series.

I received a review copy courtesy of publishers, Headline, and NetGalley in return for an honest and unbiased review.

Six Tudor Queens III: Jane Seymour – The Haunted Queen by Alison Weir

Alison Weir’s fictional retelling of the lives and fortunes of Henry VIII’s six wives is one of the most enjoyable historical series that I’ve read in quite a while. Just when you think that you’re completely Tudored out and that there’s nothing more of interest to be wrung from Henry’s notorious marriage record, it’s wonderful to be proved so wrong. The third novel in the series tells the tale of one of the most overshadowed of Henry’s Queens, Jane Seymour. We’ve had tantalising hints of Jane in Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall books (a series named after the Seymour home) and these have made me keener than ever to read a novel dedicated to Jane, particularly one written by as fine a historian as Alison Weir. Jane Seymour: The Haunted Queen is the book of the series that I have looked forward to the most and I wasn’t at all surprised to find it excellent.

The King’s Great Matter – Henry’s annulment of his long marriage to Katherine of Aragon in order to marry Anne Boleyn, with all that this entailed, such as the break from Rome – features heavily in all three of the books that comprise the first half of Alison Weir’s Six Tudor Queens series. And what makes this retelling so successful is that we are presented with it from the three very different perspectives of these three Queens. Jane was a maid of honour to both Katherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn and her sympathies most certainly lay with Katherine and the Old Religion. Jane’s perspective on Henry’s affair with Anne and his divorce from Katherine is that of an observer, as someone who is deeply disturbed by what she is seeing. She is only in a position to catch glimpses of what’s going on and the court is alive with whispers of gossip and worried secrets. Alison Weir brings this stricken court to life while also revelling in its luxurious splendour and ceremonies.

My favourite half of the novel, though, is the second in which Jane must deal with the repercussions of Anne Boleyn’s fall from grace and death as well as her own progress to become Henry’s wife and Queen in what was seen as indecent haste. Alison Weir’s focus is now almost solely on Jane and Henry as a couple and this is a very different Henry from the one that Katherine and then Anne knew. This means that Jane Seymour: The Haunted Queen has a different atmosphere and mood – here’s a Henry who’s now getting on in years, has sores on his legs and is after the quiet life while seeing conspiracies around every corner. There’s a danger that you might end up even liking this Henry, which is novel! The title also suggests how Jane is dealing with replacing another wife who has been executed by her husband.

Jane isn’t particularly easy to like and I think this is largely because, as a mere knight’s daughter, she didn’t know how to behave as Queen. She does come across as grasping, materialistic and proud. She’s also very traditional in her beliefs and faith. But she does display moments of strength and courage which are fascinating to read about. I also really enjoyed the sections on Jane and her family – the opening to the novel in the Seymour home is especially compelling and descriptive.

There’s much in Jane Seymour: The Haunted Queen that gave me food for thought – about Jane, Anne Boleyn and Henry. I enjoyed so much getting to know the Tudor Queen I perhaps know the least about. These middle years of the 1530s were extraordinary years in English history, with Cromwell’s power at its height, the Pilgrimage of Grace, bouts of plague and sweating sickness, and the Dissolution of the Monasteries, which must have affected almost everybody in the land. Jane is thrown into a position of influence almost out of the blue and has to deal with people looking to her to control the King’s capricious and paranoid nature. Perhaps most fascinating of all is that here we are shown a young bride who, in this interpretation at least, loved her husband. This mix of intimate affection and royal power is portrayed so well in this novel.

Henry’s wives are in safe hands with Alison Weir and Jane Seymour has at last been given a voice. I can’t wait for the three more novels to come, particularly the next. In that we will see the legacy of Jane Seymour on Henry VIII. Watching his character and nature alter and change through the years (and the wives) is one of the highlights of this series. It makes it unmissable.

Other reviews
Six Tudor Queens I: Katherine of Aragon, the True Queen
Six Tudor Queens II: Anne Boleyn – A King’s Obsession

Review: Alison Weir is brilliant at taking her extensive knowledge of Tudor times and putting it into a book that is accessible for all. 

I have read The Marriage Game by Alison Weir about Elizabeth I and also the two books that came before this about the first to Queens and loved them. This is by far my favourite time in history and love to read anything about this time period. 

In this story we are able to get a real good understanding of live for Jane Seymour and the Tudor times, I love feeling a part of it all and Alison captured it brilliantly. I love how you get the view points of previous Queens, giving you an even greater understanding of them.

A must read for Tudor fans.

I adore Tudor history, it's one of my favourite time periods in English history, so I thought I would read this book as I've only mainly seen fictional books about Anne Boleyn so the concept of reading about Jane Seymour's life intrigued me. The book didn't disappoint me at all. I felt like I was in Tudor times, and I really connected with Jane as a character.
I especially loved that you got a narrative from Alison Weir at the end of the book to explain her timeline and how she came up with her ideas - it was so interesting to see.
I'll definitely be reading the 2 other books by Alison Weir and I can't wait to see what she comes up with on the next of Henry VIII's wives.