The Last Wife of Henry VIII: A Novel

Author of The Hidden Diary of Marie Antoinette Courageous, attractive, romantic, intelligent, Catherine Parr became the sixth wife of Henry VIII. Her story, as Carolly Erickson re-creates it, is page-turning drama: from the splendors of the Field of the Cloth of Gold to the gory last years of the outsize King Henry, when heads rolled and England trembled, Catherine bestrode her destiny and survived to marry her true love.Catherine Parr attracted the king’s lust and, though much in love with the handsome Thomas Seymour, was thrown into the intrigue-filled snake pit of the royal court. While victims of the king’s wrath suffered torture and execution, Catherine persevered—until, at last, she came within the orbit of the royal fury. King Henry toyed with her, first ordering her arrested, then granting her clemency. She managed to evade execution, but she knew that the king had his wandering eye fixed on wife number seven. She was spared by his death and married the attractive but dangerously unbalanced Seymour. Her triumph was shadowed by rivalry with the young Princess Elizabeth, whose lands and influence the lecherous Seymour coveted. Catherine won the contest, but at great cost.In The Last Wife of Henry VIII, critically acclaimed author Carolly Erickson brings this dramatic story of survival and redemption to life. Courageous, attractive, romantic, intelligent, Catherine Parr became the sixth wife of Henry VIII. Her story, as Carolly Erickson re-creates it, is page-turning drama: from the splendors of the Field of the Cloth of Gold to the gory last years of the outsize King Henry, when heads rolled and England trembled, Catherine bestrode her destiny and survived to marry her true love. Catherine Parr attracted the kings lust and, though much in love with the handsome Thomas Seymour, was thrown into the intrigue-filled snake pit of the royal court.While victims of the kings wrathsuffered torture and execution, Catherine persevereduntil, at last, she came within the orbit of the royal fury. King Henry toyed with her, first ordering her arrested, then granting her clemency. She managed to evade execution, but she knew that the king had his wandering eye fixed on wife number seven. She was spared by his death and married the attractive but dangerously unbalanced Seymour. Her triumph wasshadowed by rivalry with the young Princess Elizabeth, whose lands and influence the lecherous Seymour coveted. Catherine won the contest, but at great cost. In The Last Wife of Henry VIII, critically acclaimed author Carolly Erickson brings this dramatic story of survival and redemption to life. From the bestselling and critically acclaimed author of The Hidden Diary of Marie Antoinette comes a powerful new novel about Catherine Parr, The Last Wife of Henry VIII . The least known of Henry VIIIs six wives was the cleverest of them all. Alluring, witty, and resourceful, she attracted the kings lust and, though much in love with the handsome Thomas Seymour, was thrown into the intrigue-filled snakepit of the royal court.While victims of the kings wrathsuffered torture and execution, Catherine withstood the onslaught, even when Henry sought to replace her with wife number seven. She survived her royal husband, and found happiness with Seymour---butit wasshadowed by rivalry with the young Princess Elizabeth, whose affection Seymour coveted. Catherine won the contest, but at great cost. ** The least known of Henry VIII's six wives was the most clever of them all. From the splendours of the Field of the Cloth of Gold to the last years of the outsized King Henry, Catherine Parr withstood the onslaught. She eventually found happiness with Seymour, but it was shadowed by rivalry with Princess Elizabeth, whose affection Seymour coveted. Presents a fictional portrait of the sixth wife of Henry VIII, Catherine Parr, following this alluring and resourceful woman from the intrigues and perils of Henry's court to her rivalry with Princess Elizabeth for the affections of Thomas Seymour