The Spanish Bride: A Novel of Catherine of Aragon

This is first book in a trilogy about the first three wives of Henry VIII. This book is about a fictional maid of honour to Catherine of Aragon called Estrella. The story weaves from past to present and begins with Cathetine coming to England to marry Prince Arthur. The reader also gets Estrella's story and her observations around Catherine.

Unlike some historical fiction this version was very light and didn't bog me down. As much as I like Philippa Gregory and Alison Weir their books can be a bit heavy and can become a little too much at times. This book was very different, nice and light and a quick read.

What I didn't enjoy so much was Estrella's story. For me I wanted to read more about Catherine as sometimes I can overlook her as I show more like to read about Anne Boleyn more. A lot of Catherines life was missed out and could have been added if not for Estrella's story which didn't interest me at all. Infact I skipped some pages to read just about Catherine.

I do have the next two books in the series and find I'm not looking forward to reading them if they are the same format as this one. I would recommend this book to any historical fiction fan if they want something a bit light. show less

The first in a series about Henry VIII's wives, this is the tale of Catherine. Very rich in historical detail and told through the perspective of one of Catherine's lady's maids, Estrella de Montoya. A little slow at times but leaves a lasting impression on the reader about who Catherine was.

The Spanish Bride is a Historical fiction novel from the point of view of a fictional character named Esterella, who was a Lady-in-waiting to Princess Catalina (Katharine) of Wales when she first came Spain to England to marry the Prince of Wales, Prince Arthur (King Henry VIII's brother). The book chronicles Katharine's rise from Infanta Catalina of Spain to Princess Katharine of Wales and then eventually, after seven long years, to Queen of England, Ireland and France. The book also covers Esterella's exploits with an Earl and her fears that she will never marry. But although the book was entertaining and for the most part, historically accurate, I found the story from the point of view of a fictional character rather than Queen show more Katharine of Aragon herself to be mostly pointless and irretating. show less

Not the kind of historical fiction I usually read. A bit of romanticized fluff with a few pages of bodice-ripping thrown in for good measure.