Anne Boleyn appears in many novels, but most of them are pretty crude productions, rarely written with the nuance and feeling of this one. Anne, George and Thomas are complex, believable people. I would rank it next to Norah Loft's The Concubine and Margaret Campell Barnes' Brief gaudy hour,: A novel of Anne Boleyn.

This is actually the story of Thomas Wyatt, Anne's cousin and admirer, recalling his life, intertwined with the Boleyns, recalled just after Anne's execution. As such, it follows him to Italy and Calais - he sometimes loses contact with Anne for years at a time, or only hears of her at a remove. Those who are not admirers of Anne may also wish to argue that it allows the author to avoid dealing with some of Anne's less attractive behavior. It has the advantage of allowing the author to quote a number of his luscious poems.

I felt that one of its flaws is that it scanted some aspects of Tom's life, such as his relationship with his children. Mary Boleyn tends to fall out of the story as well.

That said, this was a delightful novel and I would be happy to read more by this author. ( )

This is a truely lovely telling of the sad tale of Anne Boleyn. Seen through the eyes of Thomas Wyatt who loved Anne from early on, and watched her trancedence to Henry VIII's queen with romantic longing and her downfall with grief. ( )