Bring Up the Bodies by Hilary Mantel

Rating

* * * * *

The book's description from the publisher's website:

The sequel to Hilary Mantel's 2009 Man Booker Prize winner and New York Times bestseller, Wolf Hall delves into the heart of Tudor history with the downfall of Anne Boleyn
Though he battled for seven years to marry her, Henry is disenchanted with Anne Boleyn. She has failed to give him a son and her sharp intelligence and audacious will alienate his old friends and the noble families of England. When the discarded Katherine dies in exile from the court, Anne stands starkly exposed, the focus of gossip and malice.
At a word from Henry, Thomas Cromwell is ready to bring her down. Over three terrifying weeks, Anne is ensnared in a web of conspiracy, while the demure Jane Seymour stands waiting her turn for the poisoned wedding ring. But Anne and her powerful family will not yield without a ferocious struggle. Hilary Mantel's Bring Up the Bodies follows the dramatic trial of the queen and her suitors for adultery and treason. To defeat the Boleyns, Cromwell must ally with his natural enemies, the papist aristocracy. What price will he pay for Anne's head?

What a pleasure this book was for me! I really enjoyed Wolf Hall, the first book in the Wolf Hall trilogy, but because of the style it was written (present tense, third person), it took some getting used to. Bring Up the Bodies, on the other hand, read a lot more smoothly and Ms. Mantel managed to finally engage my emotional side in this novel. I was honestly surprised how quickly I read it and how deeply I sympathized with Cromwell. Although, not so much with Anne Boleyn. But I did have strong feelings towards her and her behavior nonetheless, which is also a testimony to how much improved Bring Up the Bodies is over Wolf Hall.

Another aspect that I liked is that Mantel doesn't seem to subscribe to any one particular school of thought on Henry VIII or the Boleyns, especially Anne. I felt that the characters were presented to me with as much accuracy as possible and I had the freedom to make out of them what I willed. For example, even though there's mention of witchcraft, no credence is given to it. I still dislike Anne (probably always will) but it is after reading Bring Up the Bodies that I felt compelled to truly reexamine the person behind the name of Thomas Cromwell.

Aaaah, Thomas Cromwell. If you think you know all there is to know about him, I encourage you to read Bring Up the Bodies. I realize that facts speak for themselves but Ms. Mantel managed to open my eyes to possibilities. Before I started reading the Wolf Hall trilogy, I had regarded Cromwell as one of the villains of history. When reading Wolf Hall I began thinking that maybe he wasn't all that bad. Bring Up the Bodies has me question why I disliked Cromwell so strongly to begin with. What can I tell you...Hilary Mantel is a persuasive writer in the study of character. He was a 'nobody' in the eyes of his contemporaries. He had nothing working for him, no dues owed him, no loyalties to fall back on. He truly was a man alone. And he knew it. And as much as he conspired against and/or lied to others, he never hid the truth from himself. You will get no excuses, denials or justifications for Cromwell's deeds. But neither will you get an apology. And maybe that is the singular decision of Mantel's that speaks of her skills most strongly, to offer us no apologies for Cromwell (because maybe she liked him and wanted us to like him too) or condemnation of him and his deeds (because maybe she despised him and wanted us to despise him as well).

The quote below represents to me the true depth of Cromwell's inner pain over losing what he loved and somehow shows the man he was (not to mention, it's also one of the most beautiful to me):

"He once thought it himself, that he might die of grief: for his wife, his daughters, his sisters, his father and master the cardinal. But the pulse, obdurate, keeps its rhythm. You think you cannot keep breathing, but your ribcage has other ideas, rising and falling, emitting sighs. You must thrive in spite of yourself; and so that you may do it, God takes out your heart of flesh, and gives you a heart of stone." *

People do not know what the future holds. When the judges awarded Mantel the Man Booker Prize for Wolf Hall, they couldn't have known that what followed would be a lot more deserving of that honor Wolf Hall is a brilliant novel but Bring Up the Bodies has that intangible 'something' that allowed me to make the emotional connection I wasn't able to make reading its predecessor. My only suggestion is to read Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies in succession, without a long lapse of time. I read Bring Up the Bodies right after I finished Wolf Hall, and because I was already acquainted with the somewhat unusual narration, I could just relax and let the story take me where it wanted.

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FTC: I've received a galley of Bring Up the Bodies by Hilary Mantel from the publisher, Henry Holt & Co.

*The quote is from an uncorrected proof, please check against a final copy for any inaccuracies.

Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel

Rating

* * * *
The book's description from the publisher's website:

In the ruthless arena of King Henry VIII’s court, only one man dares to gamble his life to win the king’s favor and ascend to the heights of political power 

England in the 1520s is a heartbeat from disaster. If the king dies without a male heir, the country could be destroyed by civil war. Henry VIII wants to annul his marriage of twenty years, and marry Anne Boleyn. The pope and most of Europe opposes him. The quest for the king’s freedom destroys his adviser, the brilliant Cardinal Wolsey, and leaves a power vacuum.

Into this impasse steps Thomas Cromwell. Cromwell is a wholly original man, a charmer and a bully, both idealist and opportunist, astute in reading people and a demon of energy: he is also a consummate politician, hardened by his personal losses, implacable in his ambition. But Henry is volatile: one day tender, one day murderous. Cromwell helps him break the opposition, but what will be the price of his triumph?

I'm starting this review off with my interpretation of the title. I've seen it mentioned that the title had nothing to do with the content of the novel or that it's only connected in relation to the residence of the Seymour's household by the name of Wolf Hall. It may be that I am over-analyzing, but I think that the title has a significant meaning. Cromwell has his sights set on Jane Seymour, the lady in waiting to Anne Boleyn. Even though she is a young girl, I believe that Jane mights have been the proverbial wolf in sheep's clothing (she is even referred to as a sheep by Mary Boleyn in a conversation with Cromwell). The way I see it, Thomas Cromwell being the forever scheming, forever thinking ahead man, somehow suspected that Anne Boleyn might not have been the last serious target of Henry VIII's attentions. I don't think it was ever Cromwell's intent to marry Jane himself. He loved his deceased wife too much, thinking of her almost constantly throughout the whole novel. Think what you may, but why else would Hilary Mantel, who is obviously an intelligent writer, who knows what she's doing, titled her major piece of work in such a seemingly careless way?

On to my personal impression of Wolf Hall. This is not a 'fast and furious' type of read, so if you're looking for a lot of nail baiting action and quick pace, Wolf Hall will not meet your expectations. Ms. Mantel wrote a 'slow and steady wins the race' kind of book. And to me, it was a rewarding read. Especially in a sense that, for once, I got to use my mental capacities while reading, give my full attention to the book and oil those rusty brain cells of mine. I'm glad to know that books requiring readers to think a little deeper, and making us want to analyze and interpret what's written, are still being not only written, but internationally recognized.

Hilary Mantel has a rare style of narration. Third person, present tense is not commonly employed by authors, mostly, I imagine, due to its trickiness. It is very easy to make a story unbearable with this kind of narration. The first couple of pages of Wolf Hall may be teetering on the verge of confusion. The author's usage of third person pronouns, especially 'he', is one thing that readers complain about most often. I'm not sure that there is, first: an easy way around it, narration being in present tense, third person; second: all that much confusion there. I honestly wasn't confused and if you notice, all the other times when the narrator refers to characters other than Cromwell, 'he' is followed by the last name of the person mentioned. Does it require more effort on the reader's part? Yes, it does. But this narration gives us a better insight into who Thomas Cromwell was, what he felt, what really motivated him and a reason why Cromwell really was only a man, a human being, although a  very unique, very smart, very observant and perceptive human being. Also, as I mentioned above, Wolf Hall is on the whole such a novel that will spur your brain cells into action. I'm happy about it and recognize the value of this book because I'm of the belief that literature is not to be written or read for entertainment only. If you prefer books that are entertaining only (not that there is anything wrong with it, we all have our tastes and opinions), you will not enjoy this novel.

The only complaint of mine and the reason for four stars, instead of five, is that I was emotionally distanced. Not completely detached, mind you. In a way, I felt for Cromwell, for his losses in personal life (his wife and his two daughters) and especially for his strong love for Liz, his late wife and his eldest daughter, Anna. In the end however, I noticed the lack of strong bond between me and the characters. And, if there is one thing that will always decide between my extreme like and utmost love for a novel, it's how emotionally vested I am in it.

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Wolf Hall is book one in the Wolf Hall trilogy.

Book two, Bring Up the Bodies (which deals with the fall of Anne Boleyn), is coming out from Henry Holt & Co. tomorrow, May 8, 2012.

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FTC: I bought my copy of Wolf Hall.

The Tudor Rose by Margaret Campbell Barnes

European history, or really any history at all, has never been my strongest forte. I couldn’t tell you why exactly but I struggled with that subject even in my college years. I do however love historical fiction because it allows me to get familiar with history the only way I know, through reading. Even if a book is not necessarily historically 100% accurate, if captivating enough it makes me want to look up the facts afterwards. The War of Roses, or the period immediately preceding the Tudor era is one such subject I am not greatly familiar with. Therefore I was really excited to read The Tudor Rose by Margaret Campbell Barnes, because this is the time this novel is set in.

The subtitle to the book is The Novel of Elizabeth of York but it’s really not only about her. Elizabeth is the oldest daughter of Edward IV and a sister to two brothers who were imprisoned in the Tower by their uncle Richard as he usurps the throne of England after his brother’s untimely death. In the novel, the boys get murdered on the order of Richard who thinks that this will clear his way to be the ultimate ruler without any pretenders to the throne. Well, he got that wrong, since there is his niece Elizabeth and she is seen by the people of England as the legitimate Queen. Richard can’t really murder her therefore he proposes a marriage, as incestuous as it is. But there is one more candidate to the throne and to Elizabeth’s heart. This person is a Lancastrian, Henry Tudor. It is now up to Elizabeth to decide the fate of England and make the unthinkable decision to merge Yorks with Lancasters and give birth to a new dynasty.

As with every historical novel, it is a difficult task for a writer to create something both historically accurate and captivating to an average reader. And then there comes a question of how we really deem what is true and what isn’t. Every few years new facts are discovered, new theories made and so what might have been accurate fifty years ago, doesn’t necessarily have to be today. Ms. Barnes wrote The Tudor Rose in 1953 and besides portraying some characters differently to what contemporary historians agree on, I think that all the major facts she really did get right. And I appreciated the fact that she breathed life into this period of history that until now was shrouded in mystery for me. I guess this is just a convoluted way of mine to say that I truly enjoyed The Tudor Rose. It brought me closer to the period of British history that just may be far more interesting than the pounded-into-our-heads-in-all-the-media Tudor era. I will admit here that I was getting slightly sick with Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn and Elizabeth I. For that reason, I read Ms. Barnes’s that much more eagerly.

Putting all the accuracy questions aside, The Tudor Rose is a very entertaining read. For the first time in months (I’m not exaggerating) I read a book in two days and was extremely upset when I had to stop reading because my daily life called. Ms. Barnes was a skilled writer that managed to give personality to figures who were long dead. And what complicated personalities they were. Not one person was purely good or all evil. I couldn’t even bring myself to hate Richard despite his awful deed or completely admire Elizabeth despite of what she had to go through or sacrifices she made. It’s just like real life; we are all a mixture of both. I think this book is definitely worth recommending especially for people who do not read historical fiction because they think it’s boring, or harrowing to get through. The Tudor Rose is not. It is instead an interesting glimpse into history with action flowing smoothly until you’re at the end and want to know more.

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Special Thanks to Danielle J. from Sourcebooks, Inc for sending me a copy of this book for review.

Note: If you read and reviewed this book on your blog, please let me know, as I would love to link it to my review to give readers as full a picture as possible.

Book Info:

Author: Margaret Campbell Barnes

Title: The Tudor Rose

Published in : 2009

By: Sourcebooks Landmark, an imprint of Sourcebooks, Inc

ISBN: 9781402224683