
Member Reviews

Thank you NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for sending me a copy of Terry Deary’s latest collection of Terrible True Tales about everyone’s favourite monarchs - the treacherous, terrifying and triumphant Tudors.
In his latest book, Horrible Histories author Terry Deary takes us on a journey throughout the Tudor court, where we come face-to-face with grand, imposing monarchs and familiar faces. We meet Anne Boleyn, William Shakespeare, Perkin Warbeck, and Will Somers, who play a part in the stories of our four young protagonists. They’re expertly brought to life by talented illustrator Helen Flook.
Terrible tales unfold - from witchcraft to treason, we journey through torturous prison cells and smelly taverns, windy moorlands and impressive throne rooms. Each tale is its own stand-alone story, awash with the humour and irreverence that we’ve come to love from Deary’s writing.
Each story comes with its own activity. Your little historian can turn their hand to baking Tudor treats, testing out authentic sixteenth-century games, and writing their own stories about how they’d imagine the grisly and glamorous Tudor court.
The book is perfect for ages 6-11, and a great way to introduce children to the wider world of Tudor England. Be sure to check out the other books in the series, which includes more bumper terrible tales about the Romans, the Egyptians, the Greeks and the Stone Age.
Terry Deary has contributed hugely to the renewed interest in history amongst children in recent years. Deary's works have been undeniably significant in encouraging children and young people to explore history and view it in a refreshing, fun way. Gone are stuffy history lessons about boring events and figures - Deary brings the past to life with vibrancy, humour and the odd yucky tale (which, as any parent, teacher or former child will know, is the most appealing part for kids!). Terrible True Tales: Tudors succeeds in following in the footsteps of Horrible Histories, and is a fantastic addition to any fledgling historian's shelf.
As a children's historian and academic, I recommend this book wholeheartedly. Deary's works personally inspired me to pursue my own career into history when I myself was a child - this series will surely do the same in encouraging the next wave of historians.

Continuing with this wonderful historical fiction series for children is this one about the Tudors. It contains four stories that show what life was like for children in Tudor times in England.
The stories are engaging and exciting, and, typically, are full of historical detail and characters. My favourite one is the first story that illustrates life in a Tudor kitchen - but all is not as it seems. In keeping with the espionage and dodgy dealings of the times, Deary captures this well. It covers the new King Henry VII, the princes in the tower and the rumours of secret royals. How the children are treated is more than hinted at!
Other Tudor royal households stories include Henry VIII, Mary Tudor and Elizabeth I. Illustrated throughout with witty line drawings that are in keeping with the lively tales. At the end of each chapter there is an historical overview and a fun feature, such as a game, recipe or other activity.
Written from the point of view of a child, this book mixes humour with facts and allows young people to truly connect with history. Hopefully it's the start of something that lasts a lifetime. Suitable for children over 7.

My 9 year old really enjoyed this book -"four amazing stories in one, showing the nastiness of the tremendous Tudors."

Terry Deary and the Horrible Histories always have a way to captivate children and explore history through amusing tales and gruesome facts. The Tudor True Tales does not disappoint! Its super book for accompanying Tudor Horrible Histories and factual books about the time, and suitable for reading at home or in school as part of a Tudor project. The book contains 4 short stories inspired by real life events during the Tudor period and each is accompanied by captivating illustrations, a range of activities and historical information behind the True Tale. A must-have for history lovers.
Thank you Terry Deary and NetGalley for the chance to review.

This is a delightful series, historically based fictional tales, aimed at middle grade.
If your kids, or you, are fans of the regular HH books, this series will be a firm favourite
I received an advance copy for free from NetGalley, on the expectation that I would provide an honest review.

I’ve always enjoyed the Horrible Histories books, shows and theatre productions and this book was another winner. That love has been passed down to my children who particularly enjoy the icky parts!
This book has four stories told about true events in Tudor history from the viewpoint of fictional children involved. This perspective helps young children to relate to the tales. With activities that complement the stories and great illustrations this book and any from the range make a great gift for children (and their history loving parents will enjoy them too).

I really enjoyed this book. It is full of all the weird, nasty, and crazy stuff from Tudor times - all the stuff you don’t usually hear in history classes. The writing is fun and easy to read, almost like someone telling you stories. It is definitely aimed at kids but I found it really interesting too.
If you like history but don’t want dry facts, this is a great choice. It reminded me a lot of the Horrible Histories series with lots of funny bits and weird details. I would recommend it for anyone who wants to learn about the Tudors in a way that’s actually entertaining.

Really fun book. My little girl loved it. Several Tudor tales which were both educational and a little gruesome. Enjoyed it. Will be reading more in this series.

Four books in one is a huge stretch! There are four stories and I think there was room for another couple. That said, the four stories were really good and bring history to life. I like the talking points at the end of each story, they'd be great for a classroom activity or a family discussion.
Each story is based on an historical real-life event. After each story, the facts as we know them are presented so you can see the "padding".

I really enjoyed this. I loved the selection of stories told through the Tudor reign, I thought it was quite broad for such a small collection.
As with the other books in the Terrible True Tales series, I love how Deary makes these books engaging by adding tasks/activities that relate to each story. This helps in bringing history to life, helping kids to put themselves in the shoes of someone who lived hundreds of years before them.
I like how each story is fiction mixed with non-fiction, and at the end of each one Deary dives deeper into the facts that each story has told (or not told). I love how he plays around with history — bringing to children how history can be biased, or how there are many stories that we will never know if they are real or not. It’s fascinating!

Terry Deary is an author loved by many kids, and most children are fully aware of the Horrible Histories series, and will tell you all about them, given half the chance. As a teacher, it was a constant uphill battle to make history more interesting than Horrible Histories, and in the end you just lean into it.
This book is four stories in one, with some added information at the end of each story, and I really like the format. The stories are told from the perspective of children or young people, but they include real historical characters. It was gloriously dark in places, and didn’t shy away from difficult topics of class, power and persecution. There are historical facts woven into the narrative, and this is done very subtly, not taking us from the story at all.
The only downside for me was very much an adult issue. I had heard of some of the characters as real people, and had to take the stories at face value rather than allowing myself to stop and get sidetracked with side quest searching. I’m glad I resisted though, because the historical information at the end of each tale did the job beautifully.
A huge win in terms of illustrations also - Helen Flook definitely understood the assignment.
Overall, a funny, interesting and engaging book that many, many children will love.

This book wasn’t as “terrible” as the other horrible history book I’ve read. While it covered very limited stories rather than a broad spectrum of information, it was still a very fun book. I particularly liked that at the end of each story, it ran through the factual history of the event.
3.75 🌟

Horrible History Books
📚 a fantastic chapter book for a great range of readers
🌟beautiful illustrations that pair with the information on the page
❤️ four stories small chapter books within the single book
📕 the details inside the book such as the non-fiction afterwards and the reflection activities is a great addition
🤩The chapters are of a good length that challenge the reader but do not over stretch them.
This book would be really beneficial to support the learning within history and could be used to show secondary sources, bias and exaggerated truth mixed with facts. The fictional and nonfiction al mix is great and really supports the reader in their progress through the book. A staple for every class library!!

The Tudor Era is a fascinating era of history. We have deceptions, fools, kings, queens and royalty and dastardly plots (and the odd beheading) to fire up any young readers imagination. It’s the perfect foot in the door to learn about history and ignite a passion in children which is why I think these books are so brilliant!
They bring a little bit of history to life and in a way that’s fun and engaging. There’s four story’s included, each with a different theme, king, queen or event in history.
Each chapter is followed by a little nonfiction fact file to the story and a fab little interactive addition such as a recipe you can make, a game to play or story ideas to write.
And I can’t forget to mention the wonderful illustrations too on every page. It’s well worth a read (to yourself or any little ones you may have!).