Tag: [the novel

This is the point where the book begins making it painfully clear that the plot is not going to live up to the potential of the premise. Anne begins leaving random bouquets of daffodils around Whitehall in order to induce panic in Henry and the new queen Jane Seymour, but after a night-time visit to Mary Boleyn in the country (during which Anne weirdly rebukes her for not sending a letter while she was in the Tower, like every channel of communication wasn’t locked down) Anne accepts Mary’s evaluation of Jane as a good woman who is “very family-oriented” and decides to leave her alone. Except, wait! The ghost of Katherine of Aragon is lurking in Whitehall as well, leaving the occasional pomegranate as a sign of her presence, and her purpose there is to protect Jane from Anne, who has already decided not to hurt her, except Anne seems to forget that occasionally and is annoyed to see Katherine present even at Jane’s deathbed, guarding her to the last. (I had hopes for Katherine’s character, but unfortunately the only thing she ever says to Anne is “All hail, Anne, the scandal of Christendom” and she promptly vanishes from the story after Jane dies.)