The Tudor Prophecy

Finished April 25

The Tudor Prophecy by Julie Strong

This historical novel takes place in 1541 in the latter part of the reign of King Henry VIII. Hester Vaughan and her younger brother Dickie have lived in England with her maternal uncle Sir Hugh Grantmire and his family, consisting of his wife and daughter. The daughter, Lady Alice, is close in age to Hester and they are close friends. Hester's father is Welsh and still lives at his property there. His grief at the death of Hester's mother precipitated this move. 

Hester has teenage dreams of healing King Henry from his leg tumours and being chosen as his next wife, but her attempt to make this happen results in disaster. At the same time, Sir Hugh has finally come to the point where his refusal to make an oath to King Henry's new church means that his life and lands are in jeopardy. 

When Hester is summoned to join her father in Wales, she goes, but unwillingly. She has strange dreams that she struggles to understand. In Wales, she finds her father in his dying days, and struggles to hold off the strange and disturbing fates that her uncle there plans for her. A young bard and her Welsh maid are the only ones she can trust. 

Meanwhile Lady Alice, her mother, Dickie, and his minder John struggle to make ends meet in their reduced circumstances. Dickie, who is developmentally delayed and has seizures, is unpredictable and loyal to his family, which sometimes puts them in dangerous situations. 

When Hester's path crosses that of the young Elizabeth, Kind Henry's daughter, she realizes that she has been led to show her that her father's way is a cruel one and she can make different choices. 

I was really engaged with this novel and while I was sometimes frustrated with Hester's choices, I see how they all led in a certain direction. Hester grew through the course of the novel, as did Lady Alice as she adjusted to her new reality. As the book neared its end, the final scene leads me to believe there will be a sequel to this book, which I look forward to. 

The main parts of history were adhered to, with the real historical figures being where they were at the time. But the introduction of Wales and the Welsh people was interesting as it showed how religion disrupted the lives of the people in ways that I hadn't thought about. 

Death in the Cotswolds

Finished December 8

Death in the Cotswolds by Rebecca Tope

This is part of the mystery series featuring Thea Osborne, although she's not the primary character in this novel. The narrator here is Ariadne, a woman who lives across the road from the home that DI Phil Hollis's aunt Helen lived in. Thea has come to the village of Cold Aston with her boyfriend Phil to go through his aunt's house, which has sat empty for some time, and clear it out. Ariadne has known Phil since she was a child and he was a teenager, and he has been paying her a small amount to do a regular cleaning of the empty house. The house has had the power cut off for some time as well, a decision Phil made after his aunt's death a year ago. 

Ariadne has changed her name from Mary to better suit how she feels about herself, but Phil keeps forgetting and using her childhood name. Back in the day, Ariadne had often babysat for Phil and his wife Caroline when their children were young. His aunt had wanted Ariadne to move in with her, but Ariadne bought the place across the road as a compromise. She lives an independent and unusual life, making her living by knitting, weaving, and spinning and sells her stuff mainly at markets and stalls. As Helen was in her final illness, Ariadne did most of the caregiving and thus a lot of her belongings are still in the house. Somehow she feels reluctant to take them away as they provide a feeling of coziness that feels right to her. 

Ariadne is also part of a local group that practices paganism, and they are planning their activities for the upcoming Samhain celebration. When she comes across a body near the site they are planning to use, everything in her world changes and she doesn't know whether any of the people she's considered friends really are. 

This is a mystery with many discoveries, and many secrets. I really enjoyed seeing it unfold.