Review of The King’s Pleasure

Note: This review has affiliate links within that will result in monetary compensation if clicked on and purchases are made. This book was received through a third party with no expectation of a positive review. The review is also done on a draft of the book where the final proofreading had not been completed so no comments will be made on anything relating to that.

The most famous king next to Camelot’s Arthur is Henry VIII. We know what he was most famous for: breaking from the Catholic church and going through a number of wives by divorcing or beheading them. But do we really know him? Was he really only focused on bedding women and having a son or was there more to it than that? In this book, Alison Weir takes us into the life of Henry VIII in a way that we have ignored or assumed over the years to see what the might have have really been like.

Too often, I have just taken what was portrayed in a book or movie for Henry’s perspective. I never really thought of him as a person with complex feelings. Weir brings that to life for the reader. Starting when he is a young man just thinking that the throne could be his, the book shows the reader Henry’s doubts, confidence, hopes, dreams, frustrations, and plans. He didn’t start his reign thinking of having many lives and leaving the Catholic church. In fact, he thought quite the opposite. Like every other person on the…