Congratulations to my dear friend and fellow MadeGlobal Publishing author, Adrienne Dillard, on her forthcoming novel, The Raven’s Widow: A Novel of Jane Boleyn.
As someone who spends most days researching or writing about the Boleyns, I am keen to read this novel, particularly as I know how meticulously Adrienne has researched it. A fresh look at Jane’s story is just what is needed as she has become very stereotyped over the years.
Adrienne’s novel is available for pre-order on Kindle right now and will be released as a paperback and kindle on 13th February, the anniversary of Jane Boleyn’s execution.
Book blurb:
The river was as calm as I had ever seen it. Ordinarily, the tide would have been wild by this time of year, and woe unto any man unfortunate enough to fall into the fierce currents of the Thames. Tonight the tides were still, and the surface of the water appeared glassy. When I peered down into the dark depths, I saw my tired, drawn face wavering in the reflection. I quickly turned away as I fought back a wave of nausea, frightened by the anguish I saw etched there.
“Only a few moments more my lady, the Tower is just ahead.”
————–
Jane Parker never dreamed that her marriage into the Boleyn family would raise her star to such dizzying heights. Before long, she finds herself as trusted servant and confidante to her sister-in-law, Anne Boleyn; King Henry VIII’s second queen. On a gorgeous spring day, that golden era is cut short by the swing of a sword. Jane is unmoored by the tragic death of her husband, George, and her loss sets her on a reckless path that leads to her own imprisonment in the Tower of London. Surrounded by the remnants of her former life, Jane must come to terms with her actions. In the Tower, she will face up to who she really is and how everything went so wrong.
“Jane Boleyn is finally given the thoughtful and poignant story she has long been denied” – Olga Hughes, Nerdalicious.com.au
“An absorbing story that draws you into a vividly created world” – Amy Licence, Best-Selling Author and Historian
You can find out more on your country’s Amazon store by going to http://getbook.at/ravenswidow
Adrienne Dillard is also the author of the novel Cor Rotto: A Novel of Catherine Carey and the non-fiction book Catherine Carey in a Nutshell.
Congratulations, Adrienne. I’m sure this will be a brilliant antidote to recent fiction! Good luck with it. x
Thank you, Clare! I hope so! 😉
Clare, just out of curiosity, what recent fiction are you referring to? I’ve been ill/busy and have lost track of the newest books.
I partly meant Mantel, which I know isn’t that recent, but also Weir’s latest, Anne Boleyn, A King’s Obsession. George is the usual wife abusing rapist.
You’ve read it already? And here I am, languishing until May :). I can’t say I’m surprised, unfortunately; when I heard the book was coming out I was positive that something like that would happen (she made Guildford Dudley into a rapist as well, presumably because Jane Grey’s story just isn’t dramatic enough without it). I wish Weir would find a different default explanation for “Here’s why this woman didn’t like this man.”
Clare hasn’t read it but I’ve told her about it as I had an advance copy for the Tudor Society. I won’t give any spoilers but she refers readers to her non-fiction book “The Lady in the Tower” to back up her depiction of George and Jane and also for her theory regarding Anne and Norris. Henry VIII and Francis I don’t come out of it well either.
Thank you, Claire! I hope you enjoy it!
Sounds like a good one! Congrats!
Am I the only one, when musing on the fateful alliance of Jane Parker and Catherine Howard, who is bothered by the fleeting thought that – somehow or other – both were ‘Reverting to Type’? Reverting to type is an old fashioned phrase, not heard much today but means ‘Returning to former behaviours’ like ‘reverting to old ways’. I have had this bothersome little thought more than once so put it up for demolition.
Hooray! Can’t wait.