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Keeper of the King's Secrets (Susanna Horenbout and John Parker #2)

by Michelle Diener (Goodreads Author)

3.93 of 5 stars 3.93 · rating details · 126 ratings · 34 reviews

A priceless jewel. A royal court rife with intrigue. A secret deal, where the price of truth could come too high . . . The personal artist to King Henry Tudor, Susanna Horenbout is sought by the queen and ladies of the court for her delicate, skilled portraits. But now someone from her past is pulling her into a duplicitous game where the consequence of failure is war. Soo...more

ebook, 304 pages

Published April 3rd 2012 by Gallery Books

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Dec 07, 2011 Amanda rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

After thoroughly enjoying In a Treacherous Court, I couldn't wait to get my hands on the sequel, Keeper of the King's Secrets. Picking up not longer after Treacherous Court left off, Keeper continues the adventures of the spirited artist Susanna Horenbout and her betrothed John Parker. This time, Susanna embarks on an intriguing mystery to discover who stole the Mirror of Naples. A priceless jewel in the king's treasury, the Mirror of Naples was rumored to have been given to Henry VIII by his si...more

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Aug 29, 2012 Victor Gentile rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Michelle Diener in her new book, “Keeper of the King’s Secrets” Book Two in the Susanna Horenbout/John Parker series published by Gallery Books takes us to England in 1525.

From the back cover: A priceless jewel. A royal court rife with intrigue. A secret deal, where the price of truth could come too high . . .

The personal artist to King Henry Tudor, Susanna Horenbout is sought by the queen and ladies of the court for her delicate, skilled portraits. But now someone from her past is pulling her i...more Michelle Diener in her new book, “Keeper of the King’s Secrets” Book Two in the Susanna Horenbout/John Parker series published by Gallery Books takes us to England in 1525.

From the back cover: A priceless jewel. A royal court rife with intrigue. A secret deal, where the price of truth could come too high . . .

The personal artist to King Henry Tudor, Susanna Horenbout is sought by the queen and ladies of the court for her delicate, skilled portraits. But now someone from her past is pulling her into a duplicitous game where the consequence of failure is war. Soon, Susanna and her betrothed, the King’s most dangerous courtier, are unraveling a plot that would shatter Europe. And at the heart of it is a magnificent missing diamond. . . .

With John Parker at her side, Susanna searches for the diamond and those responsible for its theft, their every step dogged by a lethal assassin. Finding the truth means plunging into the heart of the court’s most bitter infighting, surviving the harrowing labyrinth of Fleet Prison—and then coming face-to-face with the most dangerous enemy of all.

Michelle Diener has done it again which means get ready for a nail-biting, page-turning thriller. Susanna Horenbout and John Parker’s lives are in deadly danger as they race about trying to find a stolen diamond, dealing with a threat to the kingdom all the while trying to dodge an assassin. Michelle Diener knows how to craft suspense. She also knows how to write a good romance as well. To really add to the pot this is a historical novel. There really existed Susanna Horenbout and John Parker and they really did have a romance. Now whether any of the rest of the story is true is a matter for the historians. Ms. Diener creates characters are so real that you care for all of them. “Keeper of the King’s Secrets” is great fun to read. I am so looking forward to the next book in this series.

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Gallery Books. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”(less)

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Nov 04, 2012 Pamela Mingle rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I just finished reading KEEPER OF THE KING’S SECRETS, by Michelle Diener. This was the second book about Susanna Horenbout and John Parker, a courtier to Henry VIII. Susanna is an artist in the king’s service. She and Parker are betrothed. As in the first book, IN A TREACHEROUS COURT, the two manage to face down danger while foiling the plans of those who would go to any length to achieve their goals.

One of my favorite scenes in the book occurs early, when Susanna is called upon to illuminate a...more

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Dec 15, 2012 Rick F. rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

"A priceless jewel. A royal court rife with intrigue. A secret deal, where the price of truth could come too high . . .
The personal artist to King Henry Tudor, Susanna Horenbout is sought by the queen and ladies of the court for her delicate, skilled portraits. But now someone from her past is pulling her into a duplicitous game where the consequence of failure is war. Soon, Susanna and her betrothed, the King’s most dangerous courtier, are unraveling a plot that would shatter Europe. And at th...more

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Apr 24, 2012 Stephanie Tracy rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: tudor-book-challenge-2012

This was the second in Michelle Diener's series, starting with "In a Treacherous Court." I read that one a few months ago, and I have to say I liked it more than this newer one. I found the details in this novel to drag on, and (maybe it's just me) but I feel like the author's writing style isn't always clear. Sometimes I'll be reading and all of a sudden a new character has been introduced and I've completely missed it. There are a lot of action scenes in her books, which is fine, IF you explai...more

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Apr 09, 2012 Patty rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is the second book about Susanna Horenbout by Ms. Diener. The first. In a Treacherous Court set up her story and had her meeting her betrothed, John Parker. In this installment Susanna sees an old family friend - a diamond cutter - and calls to him. Instead of being happy to see her, he tries to kill her. This sets off a series of events that has Susanna and John working to safeguard one of King Henry's most prized jewels - the Mirror of Naples. The book pulls in famous characters from the...more

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Oct 28, 2012 Jenny Schwartz rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012, authors-i-know, history, romance

Michelle Diener set the bar high in her debut book, In a Treacherous Court This time we're not getting to know Susanna and John. They're involved and the romance is less the journey to love than the journey of adjusting to what loving one another means -- in this case, with John being who he is, that means lots of danger!

The historical setting is brought vividly to life. The characters feel modern enough to understand their sensibilities, yet the court intrigue is there, shaping everything.

A rea...more

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Apr 06, 2012 Blodeuedd Finland rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: historic-adventure, historical-fiction

My thoughts:
This book is a mix of things, first we have historical fiction, and it feels to be on the lighter side, then we got a bit of romance. But most of the book is suspense/mystery. And it certainly works well, set in Tudor England as it is and filled with court intrigues. The book is part 2 of a series and sure it could work on its own, but still it would be better to read book 1 and see how they met. But yes I guess it could be read on its own too, they way its made up should make that p...more
My thoughts:
This book is a mix of things, first we have historical fiction, and it feels to be on the lighter side, then we got a bit of romance. But most of the book is suspense/mystery. And it certainly works well, set in Tudor England as it is and filled with court intrigues. The book is part 2 of a series and sure it could work on its own, but still it would be better to read book 1 and see how they met. But yes I guess it could be read on its own too, they way its made up should make that possible.

In this book Susanna and Parker is resting after their ordeal in book 1. They are in love and hope to marry. Susanna still paints and Parker is snooping around keeping the king safe as always. I like how Susanna does not back down, she stands her ground, she is still very much a woman of her time, but just as some dared to do more so does she. And Parked does his best to keep his lady from harm as she made a few enemies (and so did he). So him I like.

The Duke of Norfolk is still a baddie but more in the background because this book belongs to Woolsey. A good fitting bad guy who is plotting for his own agenda. Just like they all are. And behind things we see more plots, The French, Norfolk, those irritating Boleyns. They will sure become a problem in later books as in this one Henry is still married to Katherine. And Susanna has already had her run-ins with them.

The suspense is high as an assassin is running around, as people try to hide what they are doing and there is danger and action plenty. The plot is well done and keeps the suspense high, along with the mystery.

I do think I liked this one even more than book 1, I can't say what made it so, it just was. I liked how things never slowed down, how light the book still was and how I practically read it in one sitting.

Conclusion:
This one is for fans of historical fiction and for those who want mystery and suspense. The best of two worlds all in one. It's light and good. So easy to read and a book you can finish in one day. The plot will have you coming back for more.

Cover:
Gorgeous!
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Apr 10, 2012 Meghan rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction, goodreads-swag

I won this book through Goodreads!

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Apr 17, 2012 Edie Ramer rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: historical, henry-the-viii, historical-romance, historical-suspense, suspense, tudors, tudor

This is a book I'll read more than once. It has so much: suspense, history, mystery, a love story. And two of the greatest leads I've read in a book for a long time. There are more than one villain. Two were real men of power in the king's court. One villain I think is fictional, though he seemed very real, very scary and very interesting. I won't leave any spoilers about the ending, so I'll just say it left me breathless!

Though this is the second in a series, anyone reading it first shouldn't h...more

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Sep 21, 2012 Sanchi rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Well I picked this book up just to check it out and ended up staying up all night reading it! I won this book on goodreads from firstreads, and had put it in my to-read from goodreads pile and couldn't help myself, and picked it up. This book has everything in perfect proportion! A little murder, mystery, and love story. I gave this book 5 out of 5 stars hands down! I do recommend reading book 1 in the series before starting this one, however. I wished I had read the first book before this one,...more

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Oct 21, 2012 Mel rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: buy-gifts-2012, request, owned-books, read-2012, reviewed

After my first meeting with Diener's work, I couldn't wait to dive into this book. I wasn't disappointed. From the first page I was hooked to Susanna's story and there is more than enough action to keep it fast-paced and interesting 'till the end.

Summary.
Susanna is attacked by Jens, an old friend of her family. This activates a chain of events she never suspected. Jens was working for Wolsey and now the Mirror of Napels - one of the King's favorite piece of jewelery - is gone. The keeper of the...more

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Oct 06, 2012 Guineviere Ann rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: first-reads

**I won this book through goodreads. I’m really grateful that I was chosen but I’m sorry, I didn’t really enjoy it.

Honestly I expected more from the book and I have to admit, I’ve never read the first sequel. I knew about it but I just didn’t pick it up.

I liked how it was an easy, fast paced book and I was able to read every single page in two hours. The cover looked really nice and attractive and that there were a lot of characters inside. The storyline –the plot/idea- was really good as well....more **I won this book through goodreads. I’m really grateful that I was chosen but I’m sorry, I didn’t really enjoy it.

Honestly I expected more from the book and I have to admit, I’ve never read the first sequel. I knew about it but I just didn’t pick it up.

I liked how it was an easy, fast paced book and I was able to read every single page in two hours. The cover looked really nice and attractive and that there were a lot of characters inside. The storyline –the plot/idea- was really good as well. The author was very focused on the relationship of the main characters and there were quite a number of action scenes. I loved how even though the main characters were working beside royals, they were very adventurous and weren’t afraid to do what they needed. The choices of words she used for each character, she portrayed them each as really smart individuals with different personalities. She was able to understand the characters well to know how each character would respond and react to the situation.

There were a lot of things that I didn’t like about the book. Maybe it’s because I’ve not read the first book I didn’t understand what was going on. When I started reading the first chapter, I wasn’t able to understand the book. I thought Parker was the ‘jewelry killer’ and I kept flipping back to the first page thinking ‘what was going on’, ‘who is who’ and it took me awhile to understand ‘oh Parker is her fiancé’. As I’ve mentioned the book was fast paced, there weren’t much details of the character or the storyline. How did they get the idea? How did they know where to go look? Who is he? There were a lot of characters that just popped out of nowhere and disappearing and the author assumed that we know who he/she is. I think that even if the character was written in the first book, she should have further explained who they are and their relation to the main characters and made a short introduction of the first book. She was also an artist and there was a part where she had to draw a man’s face. I thought the author could have further elaborated that part making it more detailed and that would have made it more interesting.
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Oct 29, 2012 Amy rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012, historical-fiction-romance

This was the second book in a series with In a Treacherous Court as the first book. I liked this one even better. I think this is partly because I knew the characters this time and could keep up with everyone’s relationship. But, I also just loved the story in this one. Michelle does a fantastic job of storytelling, too. She gives you enough information to know a little more than the characters at times, but not enough to ruin the mystery for you. Just like her last book there are several villai...more

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Jul 03, 2012 Jane rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is the second book in a series, but it did just fine on its own. I will be trying to get my hands on the first book though to read. The perfect book for a hot summer day, when I wanted to stay inside out of the heat.

If you are looking for a historical novel, this isn't the book you want to read. If you want a novel with some mystery and romance set in the court of Henry the VIII, this is your book.

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Apr 20, 2012 Kelley rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: first-reads

I was lucky enough to win this book on Goodreads.com. I really enjoyed this book! I haven't read historical fiction that made one of the main characters a woman with brains and power. Susanna and Parker, the heroes of the story, were written as "real" people with dreams and ambitions that we of the 21st century can understand. The historical facts were followed while allowing room for fiction to flourish. The only problem with the book is that the spies of the three warring factions of the book...more

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Mar 16, 2013 Judie rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

While I enjoy reading series, this is one I won't continue with. I enjoyed the first book "In a Treacherous Court", but "Keeper of the King's Secrets" added nothing new to the characters, there was less history in this historical fiction and too many "Perils of Pauline" to make it remotely believable. I was bored and read quickly through a lot of the dialogue pages, but I did finish it.

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Jun 17, 2012 Melinda rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

An interesting work of historical fiction highlighting a very strong-willed, powerful yet emotionally fragile female protagonist. Susanna Horenbout's and John Parker's romantic relationship was a bit overdone for me, but the mystery and search for the missing jewel was captivating. Maybe if I read the first book, I would become more enthralled with the romance.

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Nov 16, 2012 Laura rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Although I usually enjoy reading series of books, I think that this is one I will not continue with. I wanted a little more romance with my history when I read this. Again, characters and relationships seemed flat and one-dimensional, and Diener tells the reader what the characters are feeling and thinking instead of showing.

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Feb 04, 2013 Nidah (SleepDreamWrite) rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is a pretty good book and sequel.
It takes place not too long after the first book. It looks like Susanna and Parker are now in another mystery.
This time investigating the disappearance of a missing jewel. The descriptions and pace was good. T
he ending and author's note was also interesting.

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Aug 13, 2012 Liana marked it as to-read · review of another edition

When I first saw this book, I immediately clicked the link. I was like, oh my lord. Pretty cover, gorgeous cover! I love books set in the Medieval period. I really want to read this.

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Nov 17, 2012 Stephanie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

lovely book, well written and the characters are very ... good. i like how susanna comes more bold and stands on her own feet and how parker loves her for it. very very good

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Aug 01, 2012 Angela rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Fun mystery, historical fiction. Easy read set in Tudor England. Didn't realize it was second in a series. It did okay on it's own. Might read the previous book.

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May 31, 2012 Venetia Green rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

compulsively readable - this book will throw you into Tudor England and you'll never want to emerge!

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Apr 05, 2012 Caitlin rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 16th-century, historical-fiction, mystery, england, real-life-characters

Good story, good characters, good history. It's just that the focus is so much on the mystery that we get little development of the characters themselves and their relationships. Considering the shortness of the book (only about 280 pages of actual story) I feel like there could have been more exploration into the main characters' relationship or into secondary characters' lives. Just because the first book established a lot of that doesn't mean it has to all fall by the wayside from now on.

Stil...more

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Aug 10, 2012 Dawn rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Exceptional tale of adventures in Henry VIII's court.

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May 09, 2012 Liz V. rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

ARC from SOS ALOHA: http://sosaloha.blogspot.com/

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Aug 11, 2012 Michelle Diener rated it 5 of 5 stars · (Review from the author) · review of another edition

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Jun 14, 2012 Danielle Rush rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This was an interesting book set in an era in history I find fascinating. This one is different because Henry VIII and his court are at the periphery, rather than being the main characters and set. I enjoyed the suspense, and had a hard time putting this book down until I got to the end.

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Apr 07, 2012 Misty Rayburn rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Official review coming soon!

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About Michelle Diener

Michelle Diener writes historical fiction. Her Susanna Horenbout and John Parker series starts with IN A TREACHEROUS COURT. Set in the court of Henry VIII, it features the real historical figures of artist Susanna Horenbout and Henry’s Keeper of the Palace of Westminster and Yeoman of the King’s Robes, John Parker. It was followed by KEEPER OF THE KING'S SECRETS, also featuring Susanna Horenbout a...more

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Books by Michelle Diener

In a Treacherous Court (Susanna Horenbout and John Parker, #1)

Dangerous Sanctuary (Susanna Horenbout and John Parker, #1.5)

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Keeper of the King's Secrets (Susanna Horenbout and John Parker #2)

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