Tudor: The Family Story by Leanda De Lisle

Before this book, the only thing I knew about the Tudors would be from Queen Elizabeth and whatever was in The Other Boleyn Girl. But even for a ignoramus like me, this book wasn't too difficult - in fact, I would say that it's a good, if long, introduction to the Tudor period.

Tudor: The Family Story starts with Owen Tudor and how he married a queen. Then it traces the rise of the family until the death of Queen Elizabeth. It's a long read (over 500 pages), but it's captivating.

I'm actually quite surprised at how engrossing it was. It definitely doesn't read like a historical novel (not that much speculation, and it has the feel of a history book somehow), but it's flows easily.

Because it's focused only on the Tudor family, a lot of extraneous people and details got cut off. That means that it's an introduction rather than a comprehensive book about the Tudor period, but it also makes it easy to follow.

In short, this rather long book was a very enjoyable read into past England. Considering the huge social changes that came with the Tudor period (the Church of England was established for one), so if you're even remotely interested in English history, you should definitely pick up this book!

Disclaimer: I got a free copy of this galley from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a free and honest review.