A Lady Raised High: A Novel of Anne Boleyn [Paperback]

Laurien Gardner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 28, 2006

Young Anne Boleyn entranced the most powerful man of his time, King Henry VIII. But she would not yield to him unless he offered her marriage and the Crown.

To win her, Henry would challenge the powers of Heaven--and create upheaval on Earth.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

After 2005's heavy-handed The Spanish Bride: A Novel of Catherine of Aragon, Gardner's second entry in her wives of Henry VIII eyewitness series takes a more lighthearted look at the tragic Anne Boleyn. Queen Anne's rise and fall is recounted by her maid Frances Pierce, a country girl brought to court after her impulsive leap to protect the king's paramour from a flung handful of mud. As Frances stumbles her way through the life of a royal servant, encountering court intrigue and political upheaval, she becomes Anne's closest confidante, thanks largely to her sincere devotion and naïve lack of ambition. Seeing the world through Frances's rose-colored spectacles, Gardner remains sympathetic to this controversial queen and tells her tale lovingly all the way to its sad end. Readers looking for a lower-calorie Philippa Gregory will be pleased. With nothing particularly revelatory in the historical backdrop, the novel is free to concentrate on characterization and romance, with agreeable results. (Mar.)
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About the Author

Laurien Gardner is the author of a series of historical novels about the women of Tudor England: The Spanish Bride, A Lady Raised High, and Plain Jane. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Jove (February 28, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0515140899
• ISBN-13: 978-0515140897
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,790,484 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting view of Anne Boleyn, but the way of telling it is insipid., September 20, 2006

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Rebecca Huston "telynor" (On the Banks of the Hudson) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A Lady Raised High: A Novel of Anne Boleyn (Paperback)

I'm one of those stubborn folk who when they start a series of books, unless it is perfectly dreadful, will grit their teeth and stay with it until it ends. Sometimes the effort is worth it, and I'll be rewarded with a book that is enjoyable and I get to escape for a few hours and learn something new. Other times, far too many times, I get disappointed and wished that I could get those wasted hours back.

A recent historical series of novels, based around the six wives of King Henry VIII of England has been released. Each novel, written by a different author under the common psuedynom of "Laurien Gardner," takes on one of the unfortunate queens of this monarch. The first one was about Catherine of Aragon, daughter of Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand of Spain, and the second takes on her rival, Anne Boleyn. This time the actual author of the novel is Jennifer Ashely.

Young Frances Pierce is a girl of seventeen when the King and his lady, Anne Boleyn, come riding through their village on royal progress. The year is 1532, and while Queen Catherine is still mighty Henry's legal wife, Anne Boleyn is able to enjoy all of the perogatives of being a 'queen,' including a magnificent household and fine trappings. Frances, knowing herself to be plain with mousy hair and no great dowry or beauty, is bedazzled by Anne's charm and dark eyes, enough that when Anne is taunted and jeered by the peasant women, Frances rushes to Anne's defense and finds herself smeared with muck.

Soon, Frances is accepted into Anne Boleyn's household as a reward, fitted out with fine clothing and flirting with the gentlemen of the court. She writes her poetry, and views life as a grand and glorious game. But one courtier -- John Carlisle -- doesn't seem to take much delight in Frances being at court. He's grim and dour and seems to be underfoot when she's trying desparately to get Anne's brother, George Boleyn, to notice her.

It's through Frances' eyes that we see Anne's rise to power, as she first plays the game of 'will I, won't I?' with Henry VIII, striving to hold out for a marriage proposal, and the crown. There's a secret wedding or two, a coronation, Anne's first pregnancy that resulted in a princess -- the future Elizabeth I -- and the swift downturn as Anne fails to supply that vital prince, and her eventual trial for adultery and execution. Frances, faithful and loyal, manages to find a love of her own, a stable relationship, but even that might not be enough to save her when her mistress faces the swordsman and enters into legend.

Frankly, I was surprised by this novel. I was terribly disappointed by the first book of the series, finding it overwrought and badly plotted, but this one, despite the rather lifeless heroine, was better than I thought it would turn out. Gardner -- or rather Ashley -- does her research, and peoples the story with those who were actually there throughout Anne Boleyn's hectic time as queen. The only exceptions are Frances and John, along with various servants, but the four courtiers and the musician that would be executed with Anne all lived, along with other ladies who were in Anne's household. Gardner does well with staying within the known facts, except for a few glitches here and there.

The only one that really made me cringe was some of the detailing on clothing, such as 'wimple' and 'veil' which would have been found in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, not the sixteenth. Anne too, gets a bit of an overhaul in this, actually being a bit kindly in her behavior towards Frances, and not the shrewish b!tch that history usually treats her as.

Part of the problem with this novel is that the main character, Frances, is so passive. She's literally plucked out of obscurity to become one of Anne's attendants, flirts and plays at love, marries, and finally gets to observe Anne Boleyn's downfall at a very close range. While I do like the fact that the author did do her research and manages to weave in what did actually happen, the main character is such a milksop and not that entertaining, even when she is arguing with her one true love. Only towards the final chapter or two does Frances start showing a backbone, and while it is welcome, it's not quite enough to save this one either.

Fans of the Tudor period, or historical fiction will find this one interesting. In my opinion, it's infinitely better than the bestselling The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory. Say nearly four stars for this one, as the author does try hard to get it right, and very nearly succeeds at it.

Recommended.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Insipid telling of Anne Boleyn and second effort by Gardner..., May 23, 2006

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CoffeeGurl - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A Lady Raised High: A Novel of Anne Boleyn (Paperback)

Having read and enjoyed The Spanish Bride, I had looked forward to reading the second installment of Laurien Gardner's Tudor wives series. A Lady Raised High, Anne Boleyn's story, however, pales in comparison to Catherine of Aragon's compelling fictional account. Here we get Frances Pierce, a young, naive woman who becomes Henry VIII's notorious mistress's trustworthy confidante after she protects her from having mud flung at her. When Henry gets rid of Catherine of Aragon as his wife and takes Anne Boleyn from being his paramour into being his next queen, Frances is given quite an important position of being Anne's handmaiden, a position that made her more valuable to the queen than the ladies-in-waiting in return for her devoted services and loyalty. But Frances soon finds herself in the middle of all sorts of intrigue and problems centered on King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, one of which is the problem of producing heirs and of Anne's persuading her husband to change from the Roman religion to the Lutheran faith. Yes, Anne values Frances's loyalty and in turn Frances is in awe of the queen, but will Frances wake up to reality and see all of the problems surrounding her? There are various twists throughout the novel.

I have read a few fictional accounts of the Tudor dynasty and this one, though interesting in some parts, is the less substantial one I've read. Frances is far too naive for me. She overlooks Anne's flaws and continues to idolize her throughout the novel. That is the major problem for me. There is no character growth, no realization or waking up to the realities around her. I know these things aren't always the objective in literature, but I nevertheless felt that this was vital in this sort of story. Anne is seen in a much lighter way through the eyes of Frances and I wasn't able to identify with this character. Estrella Montoya, the main character in The Spanish Bride, is much more fleshed out and complex than Frances Pierce. The rest of the novel, namely the biographical aspects, is familiar to me, and, aside from Frances's perspective and her naivete regarding Henry VIII's second wife, the author added nothing new to make things a little more interesting. In short, A Lady Raised High underwhelmed me in more ways than one. This is surprising to me, given what an interesting and arresting figure Anne Boleyn had been. I figured that the fictional possibilities centered on her would be endless. Ah, well, I hope that Plain Jane (Jane Seymour's story) will be better than this.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Lovely Romance - Good Historical Background, March 3, 2006

By 

M. Rondeau (West Springfield, MA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A Lady Raised High: A Novel of Anne Boleyn (Paperback)

In A LADY RAISED HIGH, the author gives us a remarkable story rich in historical background of the rise and fall of the most infamous Anne Boleyn, second wife of King Henry VIII, mother of Queen Elizabeth, and the very first English queen to be publicly executed. It is told through the eyes of Frances Pierce, a simple, plain young woman who enters Lady Anne's circle after shielding her from an assault by an angry mob. While most considered Anne as a whore to the king, Frances saw only a beautiful lady and wished only to serve and love her with undying loyalty.

Frances was spellbound by Lady Anne. In the ways of the court Frances was extremely naïve and not of noble birth, yet Lady Anne needed loyal friends and sensing Frances' devotion kept her close. During those tumultuous times Anne found Frances' idolatry a balm for she was no fool and knew that while Henry loved her at the moment, he was capricious and she could only retain her place of power only by bearing him a son. When she failed at that, the vultures would move in and Henry's wandering eye and mood could be swayed by a new beauty and politics.

In the meantime, Frances' loyalty was rewarded as Anne arranged for a marriage between Frances and one of Henry's loyal Knight's, Sir John Carlisle. It was a surprise marriage for Frances who had secretly had a crush on Anne's brother George, but after the wedding night Frances found herself totally besotted with her new husband bearing him a healthy son. As Anne's inability to provide the king an heir and political maneuverings played out, Frances would remain steadfast in her loyalty to her queen, though Anne's loyalty towards Frances wavered. When loyalties became a dangerous pastime, Frances would have to make a choice between the queen she loved, or her family.

*** While this story seemed focused more on Anne Boleyn, the secondary love story between Frances and Jack was quite lovely. Frances' protagonistic attitude towards her future husband was entertaining, and their romance quite enjoyable, but both were employed as vehicles to give background to the rise and fall of one of the most fascinating woman in English history. In any event the tragic life of Anne Boleyn is surely an enthralling tale. I give this high marks for historical background and recommend it to all lovers of Tudor history.