"The Last Fire-Eater" by Charity Bishop

I was fairly convinced through almost this whole book that history wasn't going to let Charity Bishop give the couple at the center of this story a happy ending, and I was kinda mad about that.  Because I got attached to the title character very quickly, and I needed a happy ending for her.  Needed it, I say!  

Lambert Simnel, titular character of The Queen's Falconer (the previous book in the Tudor Throne series), gradually falls in love with Davina, a young woman who knows the secrets of fire eating.  They're both part of a massive entourage accompanying Princess Margaret to Scotland for her marriage to King James there.  Davina has more secrets than just how to handle fire, and the truth about her past ends up threatening to separate them forever.

SPOILER!  Happily, Bishop bends history just a smidge to give them a happy ending.  All is well.  END SPOILER

Sir Thomas Lovell gets a kinder, gentler role in this book than usual, and even makes amends with his wife, Lady Isabel, over the course of the journey.  But don't worry, he got to do quite a bit of rescuing, conniving, threatening, skulking, and generally being a dark hero.  Which made me happy, as he's been my favorite in this series since the beginning.

Although this is part of the Tudor Throne Series, I think you could read it as a stand-alone and not be lost.  This book in particular works well as a self-contained story.  So if you've been curious about Bishop's books, or if you just want to try out some new history-based fiction, I definitely think you could jump into the series here and be fine.

NOTE: I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher.  I was not asked or required to leave a review, positive or otherwise.  All opinions are my own.

If This was a Movie, I Would Rate It: PG-13 for some smooching, a wife and husband who desire each other, and some medieval violence.

This is my 19th book read from my TBR stash for #TheUnreadShelfProject2021.  

"The Queen's Falconer" by Charity Bishop

The fifth book in Charity Bishop's Tudor Throne Series does not disappoint!  Intrigue and treachery still swirl around King Henry VII even while his court celebrates the Twelve Days of Christmas.  Many familiar faces and names return from the previous four books, and I love that I'm really starting to feel like I know King Henry, Queen Elizabeth, Kathrine of Aragon, Prince Harry, and Princess Maggie.  But not Thomas Lovell, because he is, of course #unknowable.  Or so he likes to tell himself.

I was just telling my husband yesterday about how Lovell started out in The Usurper's Throne as this sort of cunning, deceitful, shadowy figure that you told yourself you'd just have to trust even if you weren't sure you should like him as much as you do.  And yet, he was one of my favorite characters in it, and by now, yeah, he's totally my favorite.  In the whole series.  Because you know I love me a guy with a dark, ruthless exterior and a melted-chocolate center.

Anyway.  This book revolves around Lambert Simnel, the titular falconer for Queen Elizabeth.  As a boy, he was used by King Henry's enemies as a Pretender to the throne in one of their many attempts to overthrow the Tudor monarch.  Henry spared his life and allowed him to work in the royal household, no doubt so he could keep an eye on him, and Simnel eventually became their falconer.  All of that comes straight from history.  Bishop weaves a compelling spy tale into this story, with Lovell enlisting Simnel's aid to round up the last cadre of Henry's enemies.

Though the series as a whole has focused a lot on the king and queen, this book makes them its emotional center, as Elizabeth prepares for her confinement and the birth of their latest child.  She and Henry love each other deeply, and the impending separation darkens their yuletide festivities.  Though many things do get sorted out in a satisfactory way by the end of the book, sticking to the historical events means this book has a sad ending, alas.

As always, this book left me wanting more, and I eagerly await book six!

Particularly Good Bits:

"Sin being common does not make it right" (p. 19).

"Never apologize for tears.  I can protect you from many things, but not sorrow.  It is the price we pay for our love... and our mistakes" (p. 65).

If This was a Movie, I Would Rate It:  PG-16 for husbands and wives desiring each other, discussions of marital infidelity and love affairs, and violence.

This is my 30th book read from my TBR shelves for #TheUnreadShelfProject2020

"The Secret in the Tower" by Charity Bishop

Well, Charity Bishop has done it again.  She's made English history so engrossing in her latest Tudor Throne installment that I put down the other two books I've got going at the moment so I could concentrate on this this one.

The Secret in the Tower focuses on Katherine of Aragon, widowed wife of the late heir to the Tudor throne in England.  She was married to Prince Arthur to build an alliance between England and her native Spain, but Arthur's death in a previous book threatens that alliance.  No one knows quite what to do with her -- had she borne Arthur a child, that would make her situation secure, but as it is, she  has no real reason to remain in England.  But King Henry VII doesn't want her to return to Spain either, because then he'll have to return her dowry, which he's already spent on his costly efforts to rid himself of the biggest threat to his crown.

Katherine makes friends with the scholarly Thomas More, who often visits and advises her.  The plot grows more and more complex, with rescued waifs, missing prostitutes, a series of thefts, and scandalous rumors, before coming to a satisfactory conclusion.  And fear not!  Fellow fans of that foxy fellow Thomas Lovell will see plenty of him in these pages too.

Particularly Good Bits:

"The past shapes us, but we choose our future" (p. 72).

"Art and beauty are the same.  Our Lord intends us to enjoy them" (p. 89).

If This was a Movie, I Would Rate It:  PG-16 for discussions of prostitution, suggestive material (mostly dialog), violence, and scenes of peril.

This is my 5th book read from my TBR shelves for #TheUnreadShelfProject2020 :-)

"The King's Players" by Charity Bishop

This series just keeps getting better and better.  And that's saying something, because The Usurper's Throne and The Welsh Gambit were totally engrossing and enjoyable.  But The King's Players made me truly care about some of its characters, not just observe them, and that makes it a cut above, in my opinion.

This book is all about King Henry VII and his loyal, ruthless, wily enforcer, Sir Thomas Lovell (#youlikemebecauseimascoundrel), who are trying to discern if Sir William is a traitor like his brother, the Duke of Suffolk, or if he's innocent and just wants to live a peaceful life with his new wife, the much-older Lady Keelyn.

Into the mix come a troupe of actors seeking a new patron.  One of them falls in love with a local girl who serves Lady Keelyn.  Also, people die.  Also, there's a shipwreck.  Also, there's an assassination attempt.  Like the two preceding books, this book moves at a fast pace and I didn't want to put it down to do mundane things like fold laundry or make supper or go to sleep at night.

(From my Bookstagram account)

If This was a Movie, I Would Rate It:  PG-13 for some off-page lovemaking, spouses appreciating one another's appearances in a sexual way, people talking about illegitimate children and mistresses, a little mild cursing (I think -- I can't remember specific instances, I just feel like there was some), and scenes of violence and suspense.

"The Welsh Gambit" by Charity Bishop

Book one in the Tudor Throne series, The Usurper's Throne, was one of my ten favorite reads of 2017.  Book two, The Welsh Gambit, is very likely going to be one of my top ten new reads of 2018.  It's every bit as breathless and engrossing as the first book, and I read the last quarter of the book in one sitting because I just had to know what happened next!

The action in this book centers around a castle in Wales where Edward Stafford, the Duke of Buckingham, is preparing to host a tournament in honor of the memory of the prince who died at the end of The Usurper's Throne, but in the interest of not spoiling things, I won't say the prince's name.  Anyway, the tournament means that lots of people get thrown together as they gather to watch or participate in the festivities.  Friends and enemies alike mix in the crowds.  

Of particular interest to me was the Lady Anwen, who spent months as a tormented captive of Lord Meuric and his brutish protege Beynon.  Though they never actually assaulted her virtue, they threatened to do so repeatedly.  Anwen is now free, but traumatized.  She breaks off her engagement to a wonderful young man named James because she cannot bear to be touched by anyone.  Gradually, she finds healing for body, soul, and mind by learning new things and eventually confronting her tormentors.  

But my favorite character was once again Sir Thomas Lovell, the sly, devious, but often honorable Enforcer.  He spies and connives and bullies, and sometimes I want to slap him.  But just when I think I'm done with him, he does something absolutely wonderful and then I'm a fan again.

There's lots of mystery and intrigue in this book.  A dead woman is said to haunt the castle, and several characters make it their mission to find her remains.  Treason and envy and desire lie at the root of several other mysteries entwined throughout the story, keeping me on the edge of my seat through the last nine chapters.

If This was a Movie, I Would Rate It: PG-13 for a little bad language, discussions of attempted rape, violence, bloodshed, and some intimate scenes between married people that do not progress beyond passionate kisses.

Full disclosure:  I received an ARC copy in exchange for my honest opinion, which I have given here.

You can pre-order the Kindle version here, and there will be a paperback edition available soon as well.  The Goodreads page for this book is here.

"The Usurper's Throne" by Charity Bishop

When I first heard about The Usurper's Throne, I figured it was going to be a little similar to The White Queen by Philippa Gregory, since they both deal with British history in a novelized way.  I read The White Queen a few years ago and liked it okay, but I ended up getting bored by the court intrigue and how hard it was to tell the characters apart, since so many of them have similar names.  So I was a little worried that I might get lost in all the names in The Usurper's Throne, since British history is not one of my strong points.

I am overjoyed to say that my worry was completely unfounded.  While I wished The White Queen would have been about a hundred pages shorter, I wished The Usurper's Throne was a hundred pages longer.  It's that engrossing!

Happily, since I wanted more and more, this is book one in a projected series about the Tudor monarchs.  I eagerly await the next book!  Ms. Bishop had better write fast, because I want to dive into the next adventure right away.

The story here revolves around the marriage of Prince Arthur of England to Princess Katherine of Spain.  Prince Arthur's father, King Henry, is desperate to secure his children's position as rightful heirs to the English throne, but he's beset by traitors.  He hopes the alliance with mighty Spain will help dissuade potential usurpers.  Together with his chief enforcer, Sir Thomas Lovell, he seeks to keep order in England at any cost.  But a determined Duke of Suffolk wants to take the throne for himself, and various devious schemes twine through this book as Suffolk and the king try to thwart each other.

If all that sounds kind of confusing, don't worry!  I had very little trouble telling various characters apart even though I am not well-versed in English history.  Bishop's characterizations are sharp and vivid, and she's also included a list of characters at the beginning of the book, with their names, ages, what side they're on, and other useful facts.

I had two favorite characters in this book:  Meg Pole and Sir Thomas Lovell.  One is a heartsick, worried woman whose brother dies a traitor's death in the opening chapter, and the other is a wily, cunning, devious, but ultimately sympathetic cynic.  Because I'm not very knowledgeable about English history, I had no idea if either of them were going to survive to the end of the book, which was very suspenseful!

Particularly Good Bits:

"Books are friends that never change even when abandoned."

"Never let an opportunity for benevolence pass unnoticed."

"There are many prisons in life, Margaret... I cast people into them as often as I pluck them from their depths."

If This was a Movie, I Would Rate It:  PG-16 for a lot of sensuality and some language.  It never quite crosses over to where I felt uncomfortable reading it myself, but I would not let a teen read it.  There's a lot of suggestive dialog and sexual situations that are not described in detail, but are still more involved than I would recommend to anyone under 18.  A lot of the plot revolves around whether or not Arthur and Katherine's marriage was ever consummated. 

Full disclosure:  I received an ARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion, which I have given here.

You can pre-order the Kindle edition here, and the paperback should be available to pre-order soon.  The official release date is November 24!  Meanwhile, you can also check out the Goodreads page here.

This is my 11th book read and reviewed for the Adventure of Reading Challenge 2017 hosted by Heidi at Along the Brandywine.