Introductions

[Thalia]

Tudor History Lovers, please introduce yourselves. It's so lovely to know others that share your passion/addiction :)

[Thalia]

Hello, I'm married, with three children. I'm currently living in centarl Alberta but have lived in various lcals all over western Canada, including the Territories. I love EVERYTHING Tudor related. I loved it in school and I rediscovered it after I read The Other Boleyn Girl. I had no idea the plethora of tudor fiction (and easy to enjoy non fiction) out there! It's awesome. Looking forward to hearing about all your favourites so I can add them to me reading list! Also looking forward to talking about anything Tudor. Cheers!

[Angela]

Hi, I am married with two kids, I live in Nebraska. I too am a Tudor lover. I am wanting to get the Tudors series to watch, I have heard it is good. I don't always get to read as much Tudor as I like, but I find their lives very interesting.

[[deleted user]]

Hello. I am married with two children and I live in Montana. I am a stay at home mom and also a licensed nail technician. I am 24 years old. I didn't really get into Tudor history until I was 19 or 20. I don't know what really spiked my interest but I remember checking out every biography and non fiction Tudor book my library offered and being teased by my friends for reading them. The first historical fiction novel I read was The other Boleyn Girl and I have been a huge fan ever sense.

[Lyn (Readinghearts)]

I am married with an only child who just finished his freshman year in college. I am 53 and live in the San Francisco Bay Area in California. I worked for 25 years, but am now retired. I have been a Tudor fan since my late teens when I read my first Jean Plaidy book. I love all the Tudor history, and have been reading many books over the years. Believe it or not, though, I have not read The Other Boleyn Girl. I bought a copy when it first came out, but have not been able to get to it. Now that my son is away at college, though, I have much more time to read.

[Susanna - Censored by GoodReads, Mod #4]

I'm a forty-mumble stroke survivor, and I've been interested in the Tudors since the mid-1970s, when my mother gave me a copy of She was nice to mice The other side of Elizabeth I's character never before revealed by previous historians, by, of all people, Ally Sheedy.

[Andrea]

Hi, I am 30, getting married in 5 days and am the daughter of two history/english teachers. I think my first really good fiction book was The Virgin Lover by Phillipa Gregory. I've read nearly all of Philipa's books and am now reading The First Princess of Wales by Karen Harper. It is very well written and I am thinking I will need to get some more of her books.

[Susanna - Censored by GoodReads, Mod #4]

I should add that She was Nice to Mice was my first book about the Tudors. I've been fascinated with them generally since 1972, when my mother let me watch The Six Wives of Henry VIII on PBS. I was six.

[Jennifer, Mod #5]

Hi! I am 26, married with no children as of yet, and from Nova Scotia. I am fascinated by most aspects of English royalty but have a special place in my heart for the Tudors. Before I was born, my parents visited England and I grew up looking at a beautiful big red photo album with pictures from that trip. I know I can thank my parents and that book for my obsession :)
I think my favorite Tudor book to date is An Autobiography of Henvy VIII by Margaret George. I also enjoy Philippa Gregory but agree with other posts that she is quite historically inaccurate. Just got my first Allison Weir book (The Children of Henry VIII) and am excited to start reading it. Looking forward to all of your book reviews and recommendations :)

[Darbus, Mod #2]

I will say that I think I'm in the younger section of this group, but no more than that. I've been interested in Tudor history since I was nine or so, and I think that the Young Royals series was my introduction to the world. The most turned-to page in my almanac was that of the succession of British kings. Page 427, I think.

[Andrea]

Hi! I am a thirty something mother of 2 from Ontario. My first interest in the Tudors came about from a project in high school on the Anglican faith. I was hooked from that point on. I have read books by Philipa Gregory, Margaret Campbell Barnes, Alison Weir, Susannah Dunn and others. I find them fascinating and they were my introduction into the HF genre.

[Mary]

Hi, I'm a 27 year old 1st grade teacher. I first discovered the Tudors when we had to watch Anne of the Thousand days in a high school english class. I was fascinated by Anne Boleyn's story, and rediscovered my love for anything Tudor after I read The Other Boleyn Girl. I can't seem to get enough!!!

[Debi]

Hi: I have always been interested in Henry and his wives. I read TOBG, and have read many of Phillipa Gregory's books. I got interested in Henry's sisters after watching the Showtime series The Tudors. Was I surprised how inaccurate that series is! I am now reading Mary, Queen of France by Jean Plaidy.

[Susan C]

Hi, I'm 38, married with a sweet dog, no children.I am a huge reader of most genres. I live in a small town,can no longer work due to chronic illness but hey that gives me more time to read. I try to remain positive about my illness but some days are a struggle.

I read TOBG and fell in love with English history and now have a rather large collection of fiction and nonfiction. I recently set a goal to actually read all those books and I'm starting with Courts of Love by Plaidy. It's about Eleanor of Aquitaine, the 1100s. My books cover the 1100s to present day. I have Lillibet by Erickson about Queen Elizabeth II, I'm not interested in Prince Charles, William or Harry.

So many members of the following groups: European Royalty, Richard III, and All Things Medieval, were very generous with suggestions and opinions about who and what to buy. Misfit has been a great friend by inviting me to your group, Richard III and All Things Medieval.

I hope to get to know you all better as time goes on!

[Stella]

Hello. I should have done this a few days ago as I joined Goodreads a week or so ago and have been busy adding a lot of the books I have read to my library.

I am a 44 year old sales rep and don't always get time to read, but lately I have been getting through Tudor history book fiction and non fiction like they are going out of fashion. It's become my escape from 21st Century life!

I think my love of Tudor History stems from a childhood visit to Warwick Castle when there was an exhibition of the costumes from the 70's series of the 6th Wives of Henry the VIII.

My fave films are a Man for all Seasons and Anne of a thousand days.

[Marie Z]

I am new here too but have also been a lifelong (well since I have memories) fan of Tudor history.I work for the Court system (don't get me started!) and am a fiber art person on the side. I am a trustee for our library and I read fanatically. I find, though, that when I do not have a good historical fiction read (Tudor that is) on the shelf waiting to be read I feel low! So now I make sure that I have a stack of "want to read" on hand! My interest spans the 13th thru 17th centuries but I find the 16th century the most grabbing.It must be regression for me ! I am in awe of Elizabeth 1st. What an incredible woman she was. I find that the more historical fiction I read the more I understand the world we now live in. Sort of like a same song different day (century) kind of thing

[Wen]

Well guess I will do an intro too despite being on here for a little bit now. I am 38 (nearly 39 but will hang on to the 38 til the last possible moment). I am a single mom to an adopted teenage boy. We live in Florida with a managerie of pets between us. (mine being 3 dogs (17yo toy poodle (Payton), 14yo maltipoo (Paisley) and 5yo toy poodle (Chloe) and a year+ old cat (Clark Kent) that thinks he is a dog. I work from home and read ever yspare snippet of time I can find and always before going to sleep at night. I have found a renewed love for history. I particularly like the Tudor time period but also other historicals about many eras and places specially if they revolve around a woman that maybe was mentioned in school but not really taught much on. I also enjoy reading brain candy(romance novels),religious fictions (again mainly about women from the bible where their stories are elaborated on) and well anything else that catches my eye.

[Deirdre]

I've been here a little while but only just spotted that I should have introduced myself. I am ancient and have lived most of my life in London. The day job I won't bother you with because it's boring and, in any case, I am one of those hit by recession and redundancy. I have a cat (or rather she has me), a geriatric female with attitude called Thingy. She is not too bright and not the least bit interested in history of any kind. Whilst a bit of a modernist on the sly, I have a deep interest in the Early Modern period (sometimes called the Renaissance), having studied aspects of it for my first degree and having read Renaissance Studies for my MA, specialising in English drama and literature but with other stuff thrown in. My only regret with this group is that it cuts us off at 1603 because the period of the early Stuarts is just as fascinating as that of the Tudors with lots of fascinating people and some lively scandals plus the country going into political meltdown as it spiralled towards Civil War and regicide.

I've beefed up the bookshelf here and am by no means finished. I just haven't managed to get to all of my library to add everything of relevance. For anyone who is interested I've also uploaded a handful of photos of buildings that fall strictly within period. There are, of course, loads of buildings that were modified over centuries and include stuff from our period but are not entirely of it.

PS: For film buffs, I can recommend La Reine Margot (based on the novel by Alexandre Dumas) which deals with the events surrounding the marriage of Henri IV of France to Marguerite de Valois in 1572 and the St. Bartholomew Day's Massacre. Brilliant and bloody stuff.

[Susan C]

Speaking about Alexandre Dumas, I have all the Three Musketeers series and The Count of Monte Cristo, can you recommend any others. I just bought La Reine Margot from alibris.com.

[Jennifer, Mod #5]

Hi Marie and Deidre! Welcome to the group :D
Deidre - thanks for posting the pictures. They're great!

[Marie Z]

How funny! I have "La Reine Margot" on my Netflix list. I just moved it to the top of my queue. Thanks for the recommendation


Deirdre wrote: "I've been here a little while but only just spotted that I should have introduced myself. I am ancient and have lived most of my life in London. The day job I won't bother you with because it's bor..."

[Laura]

Misfit and I we just finished to read The Two Dianas, don´t miss this one also, not very known but superb!!!

[Wen]

Laura wrote: "Misfit and I we just finished to read The Two Dianas, don´t miss this one also, not very known but superb!!!"

Who wrote the 2 Dianas?...and Which Dianas is it about?

[Laura]

Wen, http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11... was written by essentially by Alexandre Dumas, please take a look at Misfit´s review. Some of us read them as e-books since it is hard to find them at the libraries. It is a great book and Misfit and I we read the 2 volumes in less of a week, we couldn´t put them down, believe me.

[Tisha]

How have I only now just come across this group?!

Hi, I am 27 and live in San Diego, California. My favorite book (not just Tudor but in general) is The Autobiography of Henry VIII by Margeret George. It's a great view of the familiar story we all know so well...but from the rarely seen perspective of Henry himself. M. George does a brilliant job bringing Henry to life. I'm quite interested in European history in general with the Tudors and Medicis stealing the show.

I'm excited to be visiting England next year on my next trip abroad...and of course the Tudor castles are on my list.

I look forward to getting to know you all and finding my way through all the threads. :)

[Susan C]

Welcome Tisha!

[Jennifer, Mod #5]

Hi Tisha! Welcome to the group :)

[Deirdre]

Tisha wrote: "I'm excited to be visiting England next year on my next trip abroad...and of course the Tudor castles are on my list. "

I don't know which castles you have listed although you probably have the coastal fortifications in mind. Much more interesting are the prodigy houses and monastic buildings converted to secular use after the dissolution so I hope you have as possibles to see: Hampton Court, Knole House, Michelham Priory and Hardwick House amongst many others.

You may like to look at the following books if, of course, you haven't already come across them:

The Royal Palaces of Tudor England Architecture and Court Life, 1460-1547
The Tudor & Jacobean Country House A Building History
Tudor and Jacobean A guide and gazetteer

[Tisha]

Hardwick and Hampton were on my list...but I shall have to look into the others via your recommendation.

Thanks for the book lists! Those are perfect. :)

[Mandy]

Hi everyone, I am 32 years old, married with 2 young boys. I am brand new to reading about the Tudors. Started out by reading Philippa Gregory, which I loved, although I'm learning isn't totally accurate, but at least began a new obsession for me. I'm now reading Six Wives by David Starkey and really enjoying that. I'm looking forward to reading and learning more.

[Susan C]

Welcome Mandy! Enjoy the ride!

[Lyn (Readinghearts)]

Wen wrote: "Well guess I will do an intro too despite being on here for a little bit now. I am 38 (nearly 39 but will hang on to the 38 til the last possible moment). I am a single mom to an adopted teenage bo..."

Wen - Have you read the Marek Halter books? They are about different women from the bible. I have only read Sarah, but there are three called the Canaan Trilogy, and the new one is about Mary of Nazareth.

[Lyn (Readinghearts)]

Deirdre wrote: "I've been here a little while but only just spotted that I should have introduced myself. I am ancient and have lived most of my life in London. The day job I won't bother you with because it's bor..."

I loved the pictures you posted in Tisha's thread. Also love your writing style. So - since I seem to be the oldest person in this group, where does ancient start, cuz I think I am there. At least I feel it sometimes.

[Jennifer, Mod #5]

Lyn wrote: "Deirdre wrote: "I've been here a little while but only just spotted that I should have introduced myself. I am ancient and have lived most of my life in London. The day job I won't bother you with ..."


LOL Lyn. You are far from ancient. Far even from old :)

[Jennifer, Mod #5]

Mandy wrote: "Hi everyone, I am 32 years old, married with 2 young boys. I am brand new to reading about the Tudors. Started out by reading Philippa Gregory, which I loved, although I'm learning isn't totally ..."

Hi Mandy! Welcome to the group and your newest, all-consuming addiction of the Tudors. Be careful, it's catching and has a tendancy to spread off into all directions. Soon you'll be reading about all of the crazy European Kings and Queens. :D

[Deirdre]

Best European of the period to my mind was Henri IV of France! Clever, visionary, pragmatic and caring of his people. It was he who, on becoming king, converted to Catholicism with the words, "Paris vaut bien une messe." Daniel Auteuil played him in the film La Reine Margot and you don't get better than that! :D

[Jennifer, Mod #5]

Deirdre wrote: "Best European of the period to my mind was Henri IV of France! Clever, visionary, pragmatic and caring of his people. It was he who, on becoming king, converted to Catholicism with the words, "Pari..."

I wasn't sure what that meant so I had to look it up :)
Is it acurately translated as Paris is worth a mass?

I've never read anything about him. Any books in general you really enjoyed?

[Deirdre]

I have a history/biography by David Buisseret, Henry IV King of France, which I've checked on Amazon is now selling for over £50 (slightly less in the US), even in paperback. I certainly didn't pay that when I bought it. A library may be your best bet.
UK http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/offer-list...
US http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listin...

Although it's a scholarly work, it is very readable. I will warn you that any familiarity with this period of French history will have you addicted. Do see the film La Reine Margot. It's available on DVD:
UK http://www.amazon.co.uk/Reine-Margot-...
US http://www.amazon.com/Queen-Margot-Re...
Terrific cast in the type of film the French do so well, the costume drama:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110963/

[Susanna - Censored by GoodReads, Mod #4]

Yes, "Paris is worth a mass."

Elizabeth I was reportedly ... ticked.

[Wen]

Lyn wrote: "Wen wrote: "Well guess I will do an intro too despite being on here for a little bit now. I am 38 (nearly 39 but will hang on to the 38 til the last possible moment). I am a single mom to an adopte..."

Yes I have read Marek Halter and really enjoyed the books. I have so far read
Sarah A Novel , Zipporah, Wife of Moses A Novel , Lilah A Novel
and have Mary of Nazareth A Novel to soon read and have a copy of The Book of Abraham coming from half . com that I recently found.
I like his take on things. The ones I read so far to me were great in that he depicted how it was at that time period. Since back them people were not just born into Christian homes it also showed how thier belief were from the start and how they were starting to see things differently or believing differently through experiences or other from interactions with other characters in the books.

[Wen]

Lyn wrote: So - since I seem to be the oldest person in this group, where does ancient start, cuz I think I am there.


Oh yes someone please define Ancient. I would like to know how much time I have left...giggle. (pushing the big 40 here)

[Deirdre]

Lyn, you aren't the oldest person in this group...

... and for those who want to work it out, I'm exactly one year older than the Princess Royal and from tomorrow I'm entitled to a Freedom Pass

[Wen]

Sawyer wrote: "I feel like I've found a home, after so many years of wondering if anyone else is interested in what fascinates me. I live in Utah, work at a boring govt job, and find much solace in reading, espe..."

Well since I seem to be the first to spot you newbie post, I will get to say welcome first too. This is a great group. You may find a great many books to add to your to read list from being a member here.

[Jennifer, Mod #5]

Hi Sawyer! It's fantastic to be able to meet people who love the Tudors and I've met so many wonderful people through this group! Looking forward to lots of great conversations with you. Welcome :)

[Susan C]

Welcome Sawyer! It's worth reading old threads just to see all the books that have been discussed and recommended. I highly recommend it.

[Tisha]

Hi Sawyer, welcome! I felt just like you when I recently stumbled across this group. :)

[Lyn (Readinghearts)]

Welcome Sawyer - you have found a home. There are many of us out here who love anything to do with the Tudors. This group has pointed me to so many great books that I never knew existed.

[Wen]

Sawyer wrote: "Thank you for all of the kind welcomes! I spend a lot of time browsing Amazon, and have noticed that this past year there have been an enormous number of new HF books about the Tudors. I read all ..."

Well on the authors I think most here have favorites. Seems some are agreed on by many but I dont think ever by all simply because we all have different tastes. On Phillipa Gregory, the only one I have read was The Other Boleyn Girl and that was after seeing the movie. I had liked the movie costumes, scenery and so on) but thought there had to of been some stretching of the truth. I got the book to see how different it was. To me it was a good book but it left me wanting to see what someone else might have written on Ann Boleyn to see if (to me) made more sense of what it could really have been like.
So far the books I personally have read and liked the most have been by some of the older printed books. While may not be completely historically accurate I liked the writing styles and how the people were characterized in the books. Two authors that I enjoy reading are Margaret Campbell Barnes and Jean Plaidy

And as for the animal menagerie...I have Reading time for my pets so you are not alone. My oldest pet is a 17 yo toy poodle, Payton (cause I paid a ton for him). He cant see and can barely hear but loves cuddle time with mommy when I get comfy to read.

[Jennifer, Mod #5]

Sawyer wrote: "Thank you for all of the kind welcomes! I spend a lot of time browsing Amazon, and have noticed that this past year there have been an enormous number of new HF books about the Tudors. I read all ..."

I agree with Wen. We all seem to have our favorites and for the most part they all tend to be the same, although not always.

I've read all of Gregory's Tudor books and as soon as The White Queen comes out in trade, I'll get that one too. I think a lot of people don't like PG's books because of her massive inaccuracies, myself included. That being said, I love her books as just a good fiction read.

I never realized either how many books there are on the Tudors! I don't know if it's more popular now due to PG's success but I do know quite a few people I've spoken to were introduced to the genre mainly through The Other Boleyn Girl.

A couple of other authors to check out are Alison Weir (fiction and non-fiction), Margaret George (fiction), John Guy (non-fiction) and Chris Skidmore (non-fiction - Edward VI, The Lost King of England. We're doing this one as our first group read and it's really well written! I think this is his only book though)

Oh, and I used to have 3 cats but I had to give 2 away last year because of my husband's allergies. So sad. But so glad I still have my boy :)

[Susan C]

Don't feel alone Wen and Sawyer, I read to my husband and dog before bed. My husband's legally blind in one eye, so after reading all day at work, he's done.
We read all the Harry Potters and are working are way through Doyle's Sherlock Holmes series. We get cozy in bed and I read about 15 minutes. It's quite nice.