Here’s the thing, she is fiercely independent. I basically read this Anne Boleyn as being quite feminist. Here’s the thing, as a human and a person, I like being able to pick and choose what interpretation of historical figures I like best and because Anne lived so long ago I feel pretty free to do that. AND I LOVED IT, seriously Katherine Longshore can weave a story.įriends, I think that Katherine Longshore’s Tarnish has one of my favorite interpretations of Anne Boleyn. Anne begins to catch King Henry VIII’s eye. Unfortunately, Thomas and Anne catch feelings for each other, only OMG OMG DRAMA DRAMA Thomas is married and there is no way in hell Anne will be anyone’s mistress. This could very well backfire and Tarnish Anne’s reputation. Wyatt instructs Anne in the ways of seduction, like they aren’t actually in a relationship but they have to seem like it to attract the attention of everyone at court so that Anne shines. With no friends at court and bleak prospects, Anne turns to Thomas Wyatt, court poet for help.

Anne totally does not want to marry James.

Anne is engaged to this douche-y Irish dude named James Butler, which sucks for her brother George because if Anne and Butler get married, he gets some lands instead of those lands staying in the family. Only, nobody likes her because she can’t control her mouth. IT’S SO GOOD MY HISTORICAL LOVING SISTERS IN ARMS, SO GOOD.Īfter being sent away to the country for being totally embarrassing to the family, Anne Boleyn is back in court. Turns out, Tarnish is freakin fantastic and one that I closed and practically hugged despite you know, what eventually happens to Anne Boleyn after the events of this book. YOU GUYS YOU GUYS YOU GUYS after being pretty disappointed by a string of duds by authors I like, I was a tiny bit nervous about Tarnish, Longshore’s sophomore book. Yet, as we all know, sometimes authors can disappoint you with subsequent books.

Anyways, after reading Gilt I pretty much decided I would be a fan of Katherine Longshore for life. Actually, last year was kind of a banner year for YA hist fic. When Katherine Longshore made her debut with Gilt last year, she filled a much needed void in my reading life – that void of compelling, sort of romantic, young adult historical fiction. Don’t make fun of me, but I totally ate books like The Other Boleyn Girl up. I totally stan for Tudor related historical fiction - ESPECIALLY when it is YA based.

Tarnish by Katherine Longshore