Dr. Timothy Venning's Royal Mysteries of the Tudor Period is a fascinating book! I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary copy of this well written, well researched, informative book about royal mysteries during the Tudor Period. If you love history, this book is for you!

This was interesting and factual. I'm curious to know what percentage of this was opinionated though

I really enjoy the story of the Tudors, but admit most books and movies have been fiction that I’ve read/watched. This book covers some of the mysteries from the Tudor period. If you are well versed in the history of the Tudors, this might not be the book for you since you probably know most of this, and if you don’t like non-fiction you will probably find this a bit dry. I’m somewhere in the middle, so learning things I didn’t know, or wasn’t fully sure of, like was Mary, Queen of Scots, a willful participant in her husband’s murder or to overthrow Elizabeth I? It wasn’t as easy for me to get through as I thought it would, but it was one of the best non-fiction and history books I’ve read in a long time.

I want to thank NetGalley and Pen & Sword History publishers for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I am very interested in anything about the Tudor era. It was a time filled with scandal, intrigue, and drama. This book focuses on a few different familiar events from the time period and does an excellent job giving an insightful summary of each. Everything is clearly well researched.

There were some parts that felt a little repetitive and dry, but overall, this was an enjoyable account of these royal mysteries. In particular, I liked the parts pertaining to Elizabethan England, and the pictures at the end were a fantastic addition.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are my own.

A fantastic book ram packed with age old mysteries from many different eras.

Many well known historic characters feature and some not well known at all!

An interesting and intriguing read.

Well written and easy to follow.

Highly recommend.

Every time I picked up "Royal Mysteries of the Tudor Period", I was whisked back in time, and learned something new about the Tudor Era.

The Tudor Era is one of my favorite time period to read and learn about, and as soon as I saw this book, I knew I needed to read it!

I can only imagine the amount of research Dr. Timothy Venning must have done for this non-fiction read. The book is detailed and descriptive, and he delves into his subject matter in an extremely thorough way.

Many mysteries are present throughout this non-fiction read, mostly connected with events surrounding: Henry VII, Lambert Simnel, Perkin Warbeck, Anne Boleyn, Elizabeth I, Robert Dudley, Amy Robsart, Mary, Queen of Scots, and Henry Stuart.

I found so much of the information in this book absolutely gripping, and I look forward to doing more research on my own time as well.

If you enjoy anything relating to The Tudors, I highly recommend this book!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Pen & Sword History for the ARC of this non-fiction read! All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Royal Mysteries of the Tudor Period was a fascinating look at some of histories greatest mysteries, My favorite being the possible murder of Amy Robsart, Tudor history has always been a fascination for me. So i was pleased to read this book in tghe genre. Highly recommend for amateur detectives and Tudor history buffs.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher Pen & Sword and the author for the chance to read and review thsi book.

The book describes five mysteries of the Tudor times. One of them is a murder of Queen of Scot's husband. The author mentions also Anne Boleyn, Amy Robsart and Elizabeth I. The book is well-researched but chapters are difficult to read. Overall it was enjoyable read.

I think this would be a great read for someone who knows more about the Tudors than I do. I do find them fascinating, and there are some good chapters in this one, but it was a little dry. It has made me want to read more about them, but perhaps some popular rather than more academic history books. I will hold into this in the hope of returning to it when I have a better understanding of the subject.

*Many thanks to Netgalley and Pen and Sword for a review copy in exchange for an honest opinion.*

I was so surprised this book wasn’t longer than it was the head so many interesting chapters but I thought they could’ve had more but maybe I am thinking outside of the tutor. They had the murder scandal that queen Mary was involved then they talked about the marriage between queen Elizabeth and so deadly all the treason king Henry claimed it so much more this is really a True Crime book for the most part and so True Crime fans should definitely read this book it seems every book I get from pin and sword press is the winner and OMG this one definitely was I want to thank pendant sword in NetGalley for my free arc copy I am blind so please forgive any mistakes.

Royal Mysteries of the Tudor Period consists of five fairly lengthy chapters. Fans of the Tudor period will be interested in the rich histories discussed here. I felt that the chapters could have been further broken down into smaller segments. So for that point I have deducted one star off my rating. We look at who were the other claimants/ pretenders for the throne claimed by Henry VII. was Anne Boleyn a villain or a victim? Whether the unfortunate death of Robert Dudley’s wife scuppered plans for a marriage with Elizabeth 1. We continue with the murder of Lord Darnley and the downfall of Mary Queen of Scots and conclude with whether or not she was intent on murdering Elizabeth. There is enough material here to keep Tudor fans enthralled and entertained. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC.

A look at four main mysteries from the Tudor period of English history (I say four main as there are offshoots from these which are also examined) including: who were the two pretenders to the throne in the time of Henry VII, was Anne Boleyn actually guilty as charged, who killed Amy Robsart (Leicester's first wife) or was it an accident, & was Mary, Queen of Scots complicit in the murder of her husband, Henry Darnley, & was she involved in a plot to overthrow Elizabeth I?

These are events which I have come across before whilst reading both fiction & nonfiction books about the Tudors, & it was interesting to see them all tackled together. The author has obviously completed a great deal of research as there were lots of additional & background snippets of information. It became a little dry to read at times, but I especially enjoyed the sections dealing with Elizabethan England. If you are well versed in Tudor history then these cases may not be a surprise, but overall I rather enjoyed it. 3.5 stars (rounded up)

My thanks to NetGalley & publishers, Pen & Sword History, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

3.5 rounded up.

Since I was most likely five or six years old, I have been fascinated by the Tudor family and the history surrounding them. My parents encouraged me to read and learn about history as much as I could, I could always be found in my bedroom watching Horrible Histories or binging all the latest Tudor books I had saved up my pocket money to buy.

What first attracted me to Royal Mysteries of the Tudor Period by Dr Timothy Venning was the idea that there is so much about the Tudor period that we do not know and hidden information just waiting to be discovered. The novel follows four mysteries including prominent historical figures such as Henry VII and Thomas Perkin, Anne Boleyn and Thomas Cromwell as well as Elizabeth I and Mary, Queen of Scots. Dr Timothy Venning is an accomplished historian who has published numerous works on different areas and subjects in history. From the very first page, it is clear how much time, effort and dedication has been put into researching these subjects and bringing them to life on the page.

Out of the four ‘mysteries’ explored within the book, I must say that the only one that really could be specified as a ‘mystery’ was the first one regarding Henry VII and the pretenders who came after his throne, Perkin Warbeck and Lambet Simnel. Despite being the founder of the Tudor dynasty, not a lot of information about Henry VII is as well known to history lovers as his son Henry VIII and his six daughters-in-law. The other three are, I would say, more well known and quite common knowledge to history lovers in comparison to the first but the novel still brought some new information to light about these historical figures.

Throughout this book, I did find that, quite often, the same information was being repeated more than it needed to be which did sometimes make it hard to read but the easy, fast-pace writing style (almost like a magazine or journal) made it an enjoyable read and I would definitely recommend this to anyone wanting to improve their knowledge of the Tudor period!

The Tudor era overflowed with intrigues, scandals, and murder that make it a riveting tapestry of historical drama. This book takes a new look at familiar events, challenging what historians really know. For instance:
- Who were Lambert Simnel and Perkin Warbeck, the pretenders to Henry VII's throne, and who supported them?
- After a meteoric rise, what lead to the downfall and death of Queen Anne Boleyn?
- Were Elizabeth and her suitor Robert Dudley involved in the death of his wife?
- Did Mary Queen of Scots support the plot to murder her husband, Lord Darnley?

This account seeks to break through the political spin to find the true story. There are no easy answers here, but the book does raise important questions.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

Very comprehensive and well researched but unfortunately rather dry which results in a book not easy to read. Maybe more of a reference book than a single read?
My thanks to NetGalley and Pen & Sword for this ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

I'm sure that this book is very well researched and factually correct, but I find the way that the author writes very difficult to follow. It didn't interest me enough to finish it.

I found it repetitive and confusing at times, but I also found it deeply engaging and addictive.
The selection of "mysteries" is great, with long, detailed chapters to each of 'em.

I'd recommend.

There is so much to consider in this detailed book of Tudor mysteries. It was a scary time of pretenders, creative legal processes, fabricated evidence,
and church influences. This book draws you in with trumped up charges and plots leaving even more room for speculation.
An engrossing read.

I was looking forward to reading this book but I think it is spoilt in a way by getting in all the most well-known stuff first. I'm a bit of a Tudor nut so I still read the 'mysteries' but to be honest, I knew about all of them. It is written is a fast paced, journalistic style which should make it popular with a lot of people; easy to read, not too heavy or off-putting. I'd certainly recommend it to anyone with a passing interest in the various periods it covers.Maybe I'm just too long in the tooth for this kind of thing now?

This is a very comprehensive, well researched book. The prose is not overly complex but with all of the resources backing up each story, paragraphs are quite lengthy. I particularly enjoyed the photos at the end too.

There are 4 mysteries covered in total, ranging from Henry VII to Elizabeth I. Of them, I would say Henry VII & the pretenders Simnel & Warbeck is the best. This is simply because this probably the least well known situation of them all.Anne Boleyn’s downfall, Elizabeth I’s marriage prevarications & her relationship with Mary Queen of Scots are all quite well known.

To sum up this book I would say this: if you are a relative newbie to Tudor fandom then this probably isn’t the book for you. Its literary tone & comprehensiveness may not be quite what you want. However if you love the Henrys, Bloody Mary & Good Queen Bess, give this a try because you’ll pick up something interesting.

Thank you to the author, publishers & NetGalley for access to this arc.