Plain, dutiful and a passionate Catholic, Mary Tudor was overwhelmed by joy when she became England's first ruling queen. After the misery of her childhood, when her father had rejected her mother, Catherine of Aragon, and effectively disowned his daughter, Mary felt at last that she was achieving her destiny. And when she married Philip of Spain, her happiness was complete. But Mary's delight quickly soured as she realised that her husband did not love her and in fact found her devotion to him irritating. Desperate for a baby, she became caught up by the belief that she must appease her God by bringing England back to her faith. Her people were horrified at the severity of the measures she took and began to turn against their queen who was lonely, frightened -- and desperate for love. Rafael, a member of Philip of Spain's entourage, was a reluctant witness to the unfolding tragedy and as the once-feted queen tightened her cruel hold on the nation, Rafael became closer to Mary and his life -- and new-found love -- became caught up in the terrible chaos that followed.
Praise for 'The Sixth Wife': 'My, what a story!delightfully vulgar and utterly compelling. The Times
'Mesmerising and beautifully written.' Scotsman
'Suzannah Dunn!weaves a kind of love story that is both moving and believable. This is the Tudor world as seldom seen!The result is historical chick lit at its most charming.' Daily Telegraph
'Dunn [sheds] possible new light on Katharine's marriage to Thomas Seymour and her final days are treated with sympathy and skill.' Tablet Praise for
'The Queen of Subtleties': 'A stunningly refreshing way of retelling an old story!I really could not put this one down. It brings Anne Boleyn to life as never before, and, probably for the first time ever in fiction, Henry VIII emerges as a truly credible character in an authentic setting.' Alison Weir, author of
'The Six Wives of Henry VIII' Praise for
'The Queen of Subtleties': 'A remarkable writer, a lyricist of ordinary life and ordinary people transfigured by extreme emotions.' Daily Telegraph
'Her ear for the rhythms of speech is unerring, her feeling for the minutiae of experience acute. It takes a good deal of artistry to create the illusion of real life, and she has managed something more difficult still, which is to show us how strange real life can be.' The Times
'Suzannah Dunn is, as ever, a mistress at describing the material world through which her characters move.' Guardian
'A boisterous historical recreation.' Independent
Author
About Suzannah Dunn
Suzannah Dunn was our Guest Editor in June 2011 - click here - to see the books that inspired her writing.
Suzannah Dunn is the author of nine previous novels, Darker Days Than Usual, Blood Sugar, Past Caring, Quite Contrary, Venus Flaring, Tenterhooks, Commencing our Descent. The Queen of Subtleties (her first novel) tells the story of Anne Boleyn's downfall and was followed by the bestselling The Sixth Wife, the heartrending downfall of Katherine Parr in 2007. Her most recent novel The Queen's Sorrow, about the tragedy of Mary Tudor, was published in 2008. She lives in Shropshire.
