The Catherine Howard Conspiracy by Alexandra Walsh – Blog Tour Review.

About The Book

What secrets were covered up at the court of Henry VIII …?

Whitehall Palace, England, 1539

When Catherine Howard arrives at the court of King Henry VIII to be a maid of honour in the household of the new queen, Anne of Cleves, she has no idea of the fate that awaits her. 

Catching the king’s fancy, she finds herself caught up in her uncle’s ambition to get a Howard heir to the throne. 

Terrified by the ageing king after the fate that befell her cousin, Anne Boleyn, Catherine begins to fear for her life… 

Pembrokeshire, Wales, 2018

Dr Perdita Rivers receives news of the death of her estranged grandmother, renowned Tudor historian Mary Fitzroy. Mary inexplicably cut all contact with Perdita and her twin sister, Piper, but she has left them Marquess House, her vast estate in Pembrokeshire.

Perdita sets out to unravel their grandmother’s motives for abandoning them, and is drawn into the mystery of an ancient document in the archives of Marquess House, a collection of letters and diaries claiming the records of Catherine Howard’s execution were falsified…

What truths are hiding in Marquess House? What really happened to Catherine Howard?

And how was Perdita’s grandmother connected to it all?

My Review

With thanks to the publisher for the copy received. I enjoy reading historical fiction and the Tudor period, especially when it concerns Henry VIII, is a favourite. Because I have read so much of it I am familiar with some of the characters. However, I was on the internet quite a lot whilst reading this book because many are portrayed differently and there were a few who I had never heard of before. These were mainly the family of Catherine Howard. 

It is an alternative look at the events surrounding two of Henry’s wives. I have read before, how he would set his eyes on a future wife and even though this novel is approached differently I could imagine some of it happening. His moods, control and violence combined with what he perceived as romance and loving behaviour. I could see, clearly, how much of a maniac he was. 

In modern day, Perdita is sifting through her grandmother’s works trying to find out more about her past. She isn’t safe, according to some, the answers she does find should stay hidden. It is here where more of the alternative Tudor court is revealed. 

I did have an inkling very early about how Perdita and Kit were connected to the past but it’s not revealed in this book. It wasn’t by what I read, more by my knowledge of the surnames of both. I will have to wait to see if I’m proved right. 

Like many dual frame time novels I read I had a favourite, in this book it was Catherine’s story that  I found more fascinating. I enjoyed getting to know more about Catherine, her sisters , her court and her terrifying relationship with the King. I had to remember that this was an alternative historical account.