Katharine Parr, the Sixth Wife

December 1, 2020

In the New York Times best-selling Henry's People We Meet on Vacation, vivacious travel writer Poppy once vacationed yearly with straight-and-narrow best friend Alex, but their last vacation left their relationship in shreds, and Poppy must talk him into one last trip so they can right the balance. In Jenoff's The Woman with the Blue Star, 18-year-old Sadie Gault is hiding in the sewers after the liquidation of the Krak�w ghetto when she forms a tentative friendship with wealthy Polish girl Ella Stepanek (500,000-copy paperback and 10,000-copy hardcover first printing). In Just Last Night, the latest from the internationally best-selling McFarlane (If I Never Met You), Eve is still crushing on Ed, among their group of four forever best friends, but her questions about what might have been are interrupted by a catastrophe upending all their lives (50,000-copy first printing). Best-selling novelist/memoirist Maynard returns with Count the Ways, which tracks the fate of a family when the parents break up after an accident that permanently injures the youngest child (50,000-copy first printing). Oakley follows up You Were There Too, a LibraryReads pick whose film rights have been sold, with The Invisible Husband of Frick Island, featuring an ambitious young journalist disgruntled about having to cover a fundraiser on Chesapeake Bay's Frick Island until he discovers the townsfolk pretending to hear and see a man who's not there--all for the sake of his widow. Inspired by a real-life individual, Phillips's The Family Law stars a crusading young family lawyer in early 1980s Alabama whose efforts to help women escape abusive marriages brings death threats that eventually endanger a teenager she has befriended. In Shipman's latest, terminally ill Emily wants the lifelong friends she made at summer camp in 1985 to scatter her ashes at the camp, and The Clover Girls find another life-affirming request from her when they oblige (100,000-copy paperback and 10,000-copy hardcover first printing). No plot details yet on Weiner's That Summer, but the setting is sunstruck Cape Cod, and there's a 350,000-copy first printing. Weir's Katharine Parr, The Sixth Wife, tells the story of twice-widowed Katharine, cornered into marriage with Henry VIII and shamelessly used by an old lover after Henry's death.

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Starred review from April 15, 2021
Henry VIII was neither her first nor her last husband, yet it's Katharine Parr's status as his sixth wife, naturally, that commands the most attention. Weir's admirable conclusion to her best-selling Six Tudor Queens series reveals Katharine as a woman of intellect, kindness, and strategic acumen who plays the long game to attain her heart's desires. Twice-widowed when she marries Henry, she brings a diverse range of experiences to her queenship. Weir smoothly knits all these life segments together, showing how Katharine's background shapes her character and beliefs. Raised in a loving family that respects women's education, she first weds a nobleman's son and, second, an older Catholic baron. The story strikes a clear path through the complicated political and religious circumstances of 1520-40s England as the action sweeps from Lincolnshire to Yorkshire during the Pilgrimage of Grace to dazzling London. In choosing Henry over personal happiness, Katharine, secretly Protestant, seeks to guide the realm in that direction. She comes to love the king despite his age and infirmities, but influential women tend to acquire enemies. Weir handles Katharine's relations with her stepchildren with realistic nuance as well as how Henry's death leads Katharine into intense romantic intrigue. This wide-ranging novel expertly showcases Katharine's courageous, eventful life and many noteworthy accomplishments.

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May 1, 2021

Tudor historian Weir concludes her popular series of novels about each of Henry VIII's wives with this title (following Katheryn Howard: The Scandalous Queen), which tells the story of the wife who outlived her notorious husband. Katharine is a wealthy widow looking to finally marry for love after two prior marriages dictated by duty, when she unfortunately catches the king's eye. Though she's disappointed she won't be able to marry the man she truly loves, she becomes determined to use the opportunity to sway Henry for the religious reforms she favors. Then a dangerous endeavor puts her at risk of being the third of Henry's wives to meet an untimely end by the executioner's blade. As with the earlier books in Weir's series, the major draw here for Tudor fans will be the detailed account of Katharine's life outside of her marriage to Henry--territory that will likely be unfamiliar to most readers. VERDICT Weir creates a believable portrait of a savvy woman able to hold her own despite often having her life shaped by forces outside her control. A solid choice for Tudor enthusiasts looking for a well-researched, entertaining novel.--Mara Bandy Fass, Champaign P.L., IL

Copyright 2021 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.