I finally figured out how to use the Libby app to finish the Last Tudor, book 13 of 15 in Philippa Gregory’s historical fiction series. It helps when the app actually tells me when a book is available, and not just when I’ve missed it.
This book follows the three Grey sisters: Jane, Katherine and Mary, from Spring of 1550 to Spring of 1573. These sisters have a claim to the throne of England through their grandmother Mary, sister to Henry VIII. The claim means the sisters are involved in the intrigues around the succession, whether they wanted to be or not. Each sister must deal with their situation in their own way.
The book is divided into three sections, each following one sister in sequence: Jane Grey (Faith), Katherine Grey (Hope), and Mary Grey (Determination).
Jane Grey (Faith)
The first section of the book follows Jane Grey, the oldest sister. In this section, we meet a young woman who is either a pitiable victim of circumstances, or an annoying zealot who needs to calm down, wholly depending on the scene.
Historical Jane
Jane Grey is known as the Nine Day’s Queen, elevated to the throne for a short time after the death of Edward VI. Edward declined to follow his father’s wishes on succession, skipping over Mary due to her religion (she was devoutly Catholic), and Elizabeth (because Edward wanted the throne to go to a male heir). Jane was believed to be young enough to produce one quickly.
Upon his death, Jane was declared queen, but lacked broad support. The country flocked to Mary, and Jane was imprisoned in the tower. After may letters, and several refusals to convert to Catholicism, Jane was executed in February of 1554.
Story Jane
Story Jane is a girl — she’s sixteen — who is caught up in events she cannot control. She has no desire to rule as queen, but the machinations of powerful families force her forward. And here we see Jane’s faith as a devout Protestation, which is often a source of strength to the character, and sometimes an annoyance to the reader.
The strength of the faith shows in how she processes the situation. Forced to be queen, Jane choses to be a queen. She will not be ruled by family, or by her would-be husband. Though this may not aide in her defense when she’s tried by Queen Mary’s court, the scenes where she act as the queen are some of the best she’s in.
That being said, her faith can be an annoyance. She constantly speaks of Catholics as heretics, and looks down on anyone who isn’t as pious as she is. Even her sisters, the only constant allies she has, she sees through a judgmental lens.
Of the three sisters, Jane is the most learned. Her chapters approach the story from an educated perspective, tinged with a fairly selfish faith that God will protect her. In the end, her faith aides her in facing the execution with grace.
Jane Response
As much as Zealous Jane annoys me, I thought this was the best of the three sections. Jane’s intelligence allowed me as a reader to see the flow of the politics and decisions around her. And the moments when she tries to assert herself as queen, upsetting the noblemen around her who expected her to be docile and submissive, were great to read. If Jane was \going to be queen, then dammit, she was going to be queen!
Katherine Grey (Hope)
The second third follows Katherine Grey, the middle sister of the three. After the execution of her sister, Katherine conspired to marry a nobleman for love and without the permission of the queen. For that, she was imprisoned for the rest of her life, which ended seven years later.
Historical Katherine
Katherine Grey survived both her sister and Queen Mary, living into the reign of Elizabeth. Her relation to the throne made her a diplomatic and political asset, as her marriage could seal unions between nations and families. Instead, Katherine participated in a secret marriage with Edward Seymour, without Elizabeth’s knowledge or consent. They kept this marriage so secret that it was hard to prove it was legitimate when Katherine became pregnant with their first child.
Katherine and Edward were removed to the Tower of London, where they continued to meet with each other and produce a second son. As the children were a source of potential conflict (male heirs to the throne), Katherine was finally removed from the tower and spirited around the country to various estates, kept under house arrest and unable to see her husband. She died under arrest in 1568.
Story Katherine
Story Katherine is not as pious or intelligent as her older sister; she enjoys the social benefits of her station. When her family is exiled after Jane’s death, she misses the dances and the dresses. She maintains a menagerie of pets, at various points including cats, dogs, a bear and even a monkey.
Katherine’s lack of religious determination helps her to survive; she can act the Catholic in Mary’s court, and the Protestant in Elizabeth’s, because she doesn’t care. She simply wants to be a princess and enjoy the benefits. This is a stark contrast to Jane, who died rejecting conversion, but it works for her.
But Katherine constantly fails to understand her position, especially after she falls in love with Edward Seymour. She expects Elizabeth to be happy with her: she’s removed herself from the scheming around the throne, and provided an heir that Elizabeth can use. Instead, she suffers Elizabeth’s wrath, confined to the Tower and then exiled from London.
Katherine’s section doesn’t end with her death; it ends with Katherine losing hope. Separated from her husband and eldest son, bereft of any support from the court, and at the mercy of a queen who can’t marry the man she loves, Katherine finally gives up.
Katherine Response
Katherine’s section was okay. She was a good viewpoint to watch the transition of the court from Catholic Mary to Protestant Elizabeth. But she could not stand up for herself the way Jane did. She kept hoping for the best and then being surprised when she didn’t get it.
Mary Grey (Determination)
The last section follows the story of Mary Gray, the youngest and physically smallest of the three sisters. Like Katherine, Mary weds someone out of love, trying to protect herself better than her sister did. Against Elizabeth’s fury, she does barely any better at avoiding punishment, but she does endure it.
Historical Mary
Mary Gray is a small woman, standing under five feet tall. She has spent her whole life learning to overcome and adapt to her body’s failings. As part of Elizabeth’s court, she interacts with many nobles and courtiers. And there she finds true love with a porter, Thomas Keyes. They marry in a secret but well documented wedding in 1565.
Mary hopes to be spared the same fate as her sister, but Elizabeth’s anger at the marriage separated the two of them for the rest of their lives. Thomas would die in1571, still writing to the court for permission to see his wife. Mary would remain under arrest for a bit longer, before finally being released to care for her step-children.
Story Mary
Story Mary is more of a realist than her sisters. She sees Elizabeth as a jealous and contemplable woman, who cannot marry the man she loves and therefore cannot stand to see anyone else marry. Mary understands Elizabeth’s actions and decisions better than Katherine did.
Which leads to my biggest problem with the book: why does Mary wed?
Mary watched Elizabeth react poorly to Katherine’s marriage. She knows the storm she is inviting upon herself. But she does it anyway. The only difference is that Mary makes sure there are enough witnesses and documents proving she is married. But the book lacks any explanation for why she takes the chance.
It doesn’t go her way. Mary’s protections do little against Elizabeth’s wrath. Separated from her husband and banished from the court, she spends most of the rest of the book confined to small rooms, limited to one maid and no personal possessions.
Mary’s determination to survive is born mostly of spite. She hates Elizabeth for destroyer her and her sister’s lives. Mary views Elizabeth’s maneuverings as those of a jealous woman, who punishes those who love as she cannot. Her choices as queen are always done for a selfish reason. Even when Mary acknowledges the practical reasons for Elizabeth’s maneuverings, she cannot help but interpret the choice as a failing of Elizabeth’s.
In the end, Mary is freed, but it’s not adequately explained why. The flow of the book indicates to me that it’s because Elizabeth feels secure enough on her throne (having eliminated most contenders) that she can release Mary. But the end comes so quickly, it’s really hard to say.
Mary Response
Mary’s was the most disappointing section for two reasons. First, the decisions of her story aren’t adequately explained. Why did she marry? Why was she released? The reader’s left to guess at why.
Second, much of her section wasn’t even about her. She recounts Elizabeth’s choices in regard to being married, to foreign alliances, and to the Scottish throne. But while interesting, it did make large portions of her section sound like a historical record, not a personal story. Fun, but distracting.
Conclusion
This book is an okay transition, moving the series from Henry VIII to Elizabet I. The three stories involved were all interesting, with their characters each telling their own narrative, but only Jane really had any impact on the throne. Katherine and Mary suffered for their proximity, but otherwise did not influence the course of history.
The book doesn’t do much to make Elizabeth stand out as a monarch. She seems just as jealous and vindictive as her father was. Perhaps we’ll meet a different Elizabeth in the near future?
Only two books to go.
