A fictionalised account of Henry VIII - told from the King's point of view. There seem to be many books written about each of his six wives; but to read of Henry from age 10 until his death brought a new light on to the life of this famous monarch. He began life as 'the spare' to his older brother Arthur, Price of Wales, a serious young man who was perhaps idolised by the young Henry, even though Henry was the more healthy, sporty, intelligent of the two.

Famed for his six wives, Henry was a powerful monarch who had to deal with foreign alliances and wars, warring factions in his own court and in the government, powerful families vying for more power, and religious changes in the church at home and abroad. He was able to use capable and brilliant men - Wolsey, More, Cromwell; but each ended up dead following their fall from favour. As the aging Henry has to come to terms with his own infallibility and likely death due to his ill health, the author skilfully shows how this king had changed the course of English history throughout his reign.

The early chapters (and they are long chapters) dragged somewhat with their endless descriptions of clothes, pageants, sports and food. And more food and lengthy generous feasts. But then that built up a picture of life in Tudor times, and created a framework for all that followed. I admit I did skim through some of those descriptions, however.

Each chapter is of a year of the King's reign. Occasionally it reads like the Court Diary; but again it builds up the full picture of what life was like for Henry and for those who surrounded him. Beset with fears for his throne and from threats to his power, Henry felt he had to do all he could to maintain the aura of power, wealth and privilege due to a King, and a Tudor King at that.

About half way through, I realised I was gripped by the book and instead of giving up, just had to read to the end. I'm glad I did. However, I confess it took me a long time to read the whole book, as the writing is dense and the events endless. It is, nonetheless, an excellent book, especially as it is one of the few I've read (and I studied Tudor history to uni level ) that focus on seeing the period through the eyes of Henry himself.

One of the areas I found most fascinating was the growth of the reformers - those within and without the church who wanted to reform theology and belief and practice, based on the ideas and writings of men on the Continent such as Erasmus, Luther and Calvin. The writings and research of Henry’s last wife, Kathering Parr, a young woman in the early thirties who favoured the reforms, was very interesting. She was perhaps the first woman to have her work published in England. Alongside her ideas and successful translations of the Psalms one sees the torture and killings of those lower down the social scale who were also influenced by the reformation, and how much they endured, to the bitter end, for the sake of the gospel.

This is an extraordinary story of how a man with so much in his favour when he was young, grew into an almost bitter old man, and of the fears and failures, longings and need of love shaped a whole life. A book well worth persevering with to the end.

Many thanks to Netgalley for allowing me the opportunity to read this. All views are my own.