Robin Maxwell

WOW. I enjoyed this book even more than I did "The Other Boleyn Girl". I don't know if I've ever enjoyed a historical fiction novel more than I did this one. Everything was perfect: the language, just the right amount of sexiness, strong female characters... Anne Boleyn and her daughter Elizabeth I are just the way I imagined them to be. No, they're more than that. Robin Maxwell took these larger-than-life historical figures and made them real people. Real women. This book was so strong, and show more had such a strong ending, I think I'm going to read it again before I turn it ack into the library.
Seriously, read this book. Put down your Phillipa Gregory and pick it up. You won't be sorry! show less

Anne Boleyn's childhood is both fascinating and under-explored. Most historians and novelists expend their efforts on the more well-known part of her story: the lead-up to her controversial marriage to Henry VIII and the tragic consequences of that union. Instead, this novel fictionalizes Anne's childhood, which she spent largely outside of England, first in the Netherlands under the care of Margaret of Austria and then several years in France at the royal court. I find this period show more fascinating and I appreciated this author's attempt to explore this part of Anne's life (the lack of sources keeps many historians away), although I did think some of the scenes were a bit implausible. Overall, this novel is well-worth the read for Anne Boleyn and Tudor history fans. show less

Everything an adventure should be. I love Jane's character: her ambition, her determination, her intelligence. Seeing her wild journey throughout the trials she faces and how she works through and triumphs over them was...so freeing for me as a reader, actually. It was immensely satisfying.

I cannot praise enough the description and complexity in this book. There are many character arcs and plotlines that converge and move each other along. The paradisaical "Eden" is portrayed so well that I show more felt like I was there and getting the same awed inspiration that Jane does. I got completely swept up in some of the scenes, like the fire dancing. So powerful, so enticing.

I had some minor quibbles with some of the story arc framing (e.g. a flashback from Tarzan's perspective somehow delving into another character's thoughts); the "I'm not like the other girls and therefore better" aspect Jane takes on (though she does work through this slightly); and a couple instances of sex happening after the characters are angry. However, none of these things last long, happen often, or detract from the excellent aspects of this story.

Note that I have not read the original Tarzan stories so I cannot make any comparisons, but this retelling from Jane's perspective is brilliant. show less

This is one book when it's perfectly fine to judge a book by its cover. The pages between take the reader on a trip back into time, with a portrayal of Jane that is fresh, captivating, and spirited. I realized about half way through that I've never read the original Tarzan book(s) and only know the story from comics, hearsay, and the movies. I'm curious now how close to the original this book flies, especially with the ending (which seemed like something out of an old Hollywood adventure.) show more

Robin MAxwell's Jane is intelligent and willful, determined to pursue her interests in anthropology, biology, and archaeology, even if such interests deny her a husband, and leave her tottering on the edge of spinsterhood at age 20. Yet despite all the objections of society (and her mother's despair), she leaves with her father to head into Africa in search of the bones of missing link between apes and humans. What she finds instead is treachery, adventure, some pretty cool learning curves to climb, and a glimpse of various societies that give her much to ponder. Oh, and she also find this perfect specimen of manhood that seems to fancy her, too. Not bad for the jungle.

Actually, the meeting occurs after Jane has been mauled by a panther, and is saved by Tarzan. As he nurses her back to health, the two begin to build a common language and understanding. Together they try and make sense of some mysteries in their world, and together, they must face not one, but two evils.

I was pretty captivated up until the very end, when the novel moved into some realms of big screen adventure film stuff. That's why I'm interested to know if that bit was in the original book, or movies (I can't remember. Indiana Jones has clouded my mind.) This particular novel was authorized by the Edgar Rice Burroughs Estate, so I guess the ending fits into something somewhere in the Tarzan lore. It wasn't bad, just not to my taste: a little too over the top/fantastic/tomb raider-ish. It by no means diluted my sheer enjoyment of the first 3/4 or more of the novel, and definitely lived up to the cover.

Sent to me by Tor books. Thanks! show less