The Maid of King’s Court by Lucy Worsley

I’ll admit I’ve been on a heck of a historical kick recently. I took some recommendations from friends, thanks Traci and Sharon, who waxed poetic about how much they adored Lucy Worsley and her documentaries. Naturally they bring up that she’s written several YA books, one featuring Katherine Howard and I was ordering it that night.

I don’t know if you’ve been listening to Six, the musical about Henry the VII’s six wives, but I found out about it last year and I’ve been addicted ever since. Pushing it on my friends and coworkers no less. While I was postponed from seeing the show on Broadway (Ugh, COVID-19). I’ve enjoyed finding stories to keep me in the mind. Worsley’s teen story was perfect. The fast paced read–no really I finished it in a little over two hours–focuses on Queen Kate and her fictional cousin Eliza.

It takes a minute to first get into the story, we meet Eliza on her twelfth birthday and follow her through her time learning how to woo courtier’s at her Aunts, to her and Kate both acting as ladies maids to Anne of Cleeves, and finally to the reign and abrupt ending of Queen Katherine Howard.

The story is rife with imagery, and it’s easy to fall in love (or to hate) the characters in the book. I will say that Eliza is a bit too naive for the court she’s in, however that doesn’t terribly detract from the story. Additionally, I will vouch that even though the story is placed in the adulterous court of Henry, this book is perfect for Junior High / Early High Schoolers. It doesn’t mince the story line about Kate and her many relationships, it tackles what is love, what is being used, and what is self respect. It also doesn’t go into vivid detail about what happens behind closed doors.

I highly recommend this enjoyable book. I will be looking into the other stories that Worsley has written.

You can get Maid of King’s Court here through Bookshop.org, which supports local independent bookstores!

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