THE LAST TUDOR by Philippa Gregory

THE LAST TUDOR

by

Philippa Gregory

            Philippa Gregory’s latest work of historical fiction, The Last Tudor, focuses on the Grey sisters: Jane, Katherine, and Mary Grey. The Greys were a Protestant family, and the girls were in line to inherit the crown through their mother, who was the niece of King Henry VIII. Although many have heard of Jane Grey, who had been queen for nine days before Mary was crowned, not much is known about her two younger sisters. After chronicling Jane’s execution, the book picks up with Katherine, the second sister who would be next in line for the throne, and lastly moves on to the youngest sister, Mary.

            The Last Tudor is a lengthy book; I happen to like long books, but I found this one to be very repetitious, tedious, and predictable. I have reviewed other books in Gregory’s Tudor series, and I found quite a bit of repetition in those books as well.

            In general, I would not recommend The Last Tudor. However, at the end of the book, Gregory included an author’s note, which I think is the best part of the book. Gregory does have training in history, and that was evident in this note. In my opinion, this note might make it worthwhile to read the book.