From the Publisher
Praise for Katherine Longshore's first book, GILT:
"A substantive, sobering historical read, with just a few heaving bodices." —Kirkus
"...royally riveting for the reader." —Booklist
"This is an enjoyable novel to recommend to girls interested in history, love, and betrayal." —VOYA
Praise for TARNISH:
"An un-put-downable historical romance." —School Library Journal
VOYA - Laura Woodruff
In this novel, Anne Boleyn, recently returned from France to England, arrives at the court of Henry VIII as lady-in-waiting to Queen Katherine. Although her iron-willed merchant father has betrothed Anne to an Irish nobleman, she rejects this alliance and vows to make her own life. Anne chooses Percy, son of one of the wealthiest and most noble families in the country; even though she succeeds in capturing Percy's heart, her weak-willed suitor succumbs to his father's anger and disavows Anne. Her courtier brother, George, makes a bet with court poet Thomas Wyatt that Anne cannot be made attractive or marriageable, a challenge Wyatt accepts with an unforeseen peril: he himself comes to love her. All the while, Anne deals with the pressures of her older sister's position as the king's mistress and the various intrigues and political machinations instigated by those seeking the king's favor. Eventually, Wyatt's efforts succeed in making Anne attractive to King Henry. The novel ends as she begins her ascent toward a royal marriage and eventual beheading. Based upon the few known facts of Boleyn's early life, Tarnish is overwhelmingly introspective and devoid of action. A sound track of this novel would consist of heavy breathing, repetitious dialogue, and occasional sobbing. Unfortunately, while there are flashes of brilliant description, the general tone is simply...boring. In this second novel (Gilt [Penguin, 2012/Voya June 2012), author Longshore has done her homework but had little with which to work. Reviewer: Laura Woodruff
School Library Journal
Gr 8 Up—In this companion novel to Gilt (Viking, 2012), Anne Boleyn arrives in King Henry VIII's court amid whispers and stares from the courtiers. She knows her position is precarious; that she is talked about because of what she's done in the past and for the fact that her sister, Mary, is mistress to the king. Yet she is determined to be held in high esteem at court. Her brother, George, tells her she is too different to obtain that goal. She speaks her mind and gets into trouble. Enter renowned ladies' man Thomas Wyatt. He bets Anne that he can turn court favor to her side if she does as he asks. If the plan succeeds, he will have her in his bed because she will want to be there. After some thought she concedes and their game of courtly love begins. He pursues her and she encourages it. Soon she realizes that Wyatt's plan is working. People-especially men-are beginning to notice her. More importantly, the king has turned his attention to her. These developments excite her, but what she doesn't count on is Wyatt falling in love with her, and realizing that she loves him as well. She comes to understand the importance of love, but in the end rejects Wyatt in favor of the king. An un-put-downable historical romance.—Wendy M. Scalfaro, G. Ray Bodley High School, Fulton, NY
Kirkus Reviews
Following on Gilt (2012), which told the tale of Henry VIII's doomed fifth wife, Catherine Howard, is another beheaded wife's story. The oft-rehearsed tale of King Henry VIII's second and best-known wife, Anne Boleyn, is recounted in this mostly factual reconstruction of the years before Henry's divorce from Queen Katherine and marriage to Anne, an event that is said to have changed the course of English history, since Henry broke with the Roman Catholic Church in order to secure a divorce. Anne's confident, present-tense narration conveys her tempestuous personality, her feelings of alienation from the ladies of the court and her desperate ambition to secure a position there. Flirtations with figures of history, including the poet Sir Thomas Wyatt and noble Sir Henry Percy, as well as Anne's strong attraction to the king himself, a deeply charismatic individual, propel the narrative. They add spice to a complex tale that occasionally gets bogged down in historical detail and is sometimes marred by linguistic anachronisms. However the raw emotions and unflinching honesty of a young girl caught in a whirlwind of history shine through, keeping readers engaged to the end of this sizable novel, which ends before her marriage to the king and subsequent beheading. Teens with a love of history will not be able to resist this skillful retelling of the remarkable achievement of Anne Boleyn, who rose from tarnished foreign outcast to the king's bride. (Historical fiction. 13-17)
