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Judith Arnopp
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The Kiss of the Concubine: A story of Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII Kindle Edition

by Judith Arnopp (Author), Cas Peace (Editor) Format: Kindle Edition
4.4 out of 5 stars 1,432 ratings
28th January 1547. It is almost midnight and the cream of the English nobility hold their breath as King Henry VIII prepares to face his God. As the royal physicians wring their hands and Archbishop Cranmer gallops through the frigid night, two dispossessed princesses pray for their father’s soul and a boy, soon to be king, snivels into his velvet sleeve. Time slows, and dread settles around the royal bed, the candles dip and something stirs in the darkness … something, or someone, who has come to tell the king it is time to pay his dues. The Kiss of the Concubine is the story of Anne Boleyn, second of Henry VIII’s queens.
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  1. Print length
    287 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Accessibility
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  4. Publication date
    November 3, 2013
  5. File size
    1.9 MB
  6. Page Flip
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  7. Word Wise
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  8. Enhanced typesetting
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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00GFQKX9G
  • Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ November 3, 2013
  • Edition ‏ : ‎ 3rd
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 1.9 MB
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 287 pages
  • Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 out of 5 stars 1,432 ratings

About the author

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Judith Arnopp

Judith Arnopp

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Judith Arnopp's novels are set during the War of the Roses and the Tudor era. They focus on women like Margaret Beaufort, Anne Neville, Elizabeth of York, Anne Boleyn, and Mary Tudor.

She has a Master's degree in medieval studies and a BA in English and creative writing from the University of Wales, making Historical Fiction the only obvious career choice.

She lives on the coast of West Wales with her husband, John, and now her family have flown the nest she writes full time from her home overlooking Cardigan Bay.

Her early books were set in the Anglo Saxon period but since switching to the Tudor era her career has flourished and she now has a substantial collection of titles in her catalogue. All books are available on Kindle and in paperback, some are on Audible.

Judith also writes non-fiction, her most recent published by Pen and Sword is a study of Tudor clothing and fashion, How to Dress Like a Tudor. Her work features in several anthologies and magazines.

You can find more information on judithmarnopp and follow her blog on juditharnoppnovelist blogspot and most social media

platforms.

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
1,432 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find this book to be a wonderful read with a fine blend of history and fiction. The writing is well-executed, with one customer noting it's written in first person, and the characters are well-formed, with one review specifically praising Anne Boleyn's realistic portrayal. Customers appreciate the book's accuracy, with one mentioning it provides enough detail to bring scenes to life, while another notes it offers a more sympathetic view of both Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. The pacing is nicely balanced, and customers describe it as a fun ride.

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53 customers mention "Readability"53 positive0 negative

Customers find the book to be a wonderful and stimulating read, with one customer describing it as absolutely engrossing.

"...this many times throughout the years and when it happens, the books become dear to me, and a must-have for my own personal library...." Read more

"...In all, a fine read with a perspective not often seen in this genre." Read more

"...I LOVED this book! I found passages on Annes Alzheimer grandmother and her dog absolutely hilarious...." Read more

"...All in all, a fascinating and wonderful read...." Read more

42 customers mention "Historical accuracy"42 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the historical accuracy of the book, praising it as an excellent version of Anne Boleyn's story with a fine blend of history and fiction. They find it interesting from a different perspective and recommend it to readers of historical fiction.

"...’, the life before Henry, fleshes out her character and makes her tremendously relatable; as does the bond she shares with her brother, George, that..." Read more

"...The Bottom Line: Arnopp has given us a unique perspective on the life of Anne Boleyn and for myself I found the voice given to Anne by Arnopp to be..." Read more

"...Judith Arnopp did a brilliant job of taking a historical figure, who's almost become a stock character due to so many similar portrayals, and making..." Read more

"I bought this book based on reviews that it offered a new and interesting insight into the story of Ann Boleyn...." Read more

33 customers mention "Writing quality"30 positive3 negative

Customers find the book well written and easy to read, with one customer noting it is told in first person from Anne's perspective.

"...I found passages on Annes Alzheimer grandmother and her dog absolutely hilarious...." Read more

"...or care much about Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, it's a fast, relatively well written, easy read...." Read more

"...Sure, he's still kind of a toad, but I found him to be more understandable and even likable to an extent...." Read more

"...But I thought it was nicely written and stuck pretty close to the facts of Anne's life, while trying to give sympathetic motives for some of her..." Read more

12 customers mention "Character development"12 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the well-formed characters in the book, with one customer noting that Anne Boleyn is portrayed realistically and not as a schemer or loose woman.

"...already know of Anne and Henry to another level, a rare personal glimpse into their personalities, their fears, their hopes, and their love that..." Read more

"...this novel was unique in that Judith Arnopp protrays Anne as a relatable person with the same emotions, wants, and needs of anyone, could be..." Read more

"Delightful read with fine character development that engages the reader...." Read more

"...Anne Boleyn's story told from Anne's point of view. Well formed characters, great Tudor atmosphere...." Read more

9 customers mention "Accuracy"9 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the book's accuracy, with one noting it provides enough detail to bring scenes to life.

"...Anne’s story and how it all turns out, I found her “voice” to be most convincing and throughout the read I found myself routing for her and hoping..." Read more

"...But I thought it was nicely written and stuck pretty close to the facts of Anne's life, while trying to give sympathetic motives for some of her..." Read more

"...This author does a great job of showing how her rise and fall might have happened. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys historical fiction." Read more

"...Nicely paced with enough detail to bring scenes to life yet not so much as to slow the story...." Read more

9 customers mention "Empathy"9 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the book's empathetic portrayal of Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII, with one customer noting how it shows a gentler, more caring side of the King.

"...In this book, Anne draws a reader’s sympathy, as she is portrayed as a young naïve girl thrust down a path which ultimately brings her ruin...." Read more

"...pretty close to the facts of Anne's life, while trying to give sympathetic motives for some of her outrageous behavior and volatility...." Read more

"...The first person telling really puts one in Anne's head and gives insight into how Henry and she related through the relationship...." Read more

"Balanced portrayal of Anne Boleyn. We see her as the devoted and caring mother, wife and sister and not as a scheming and heartless &#..." Read more

9 customers mention "Pacing"9 positive0 negative

Customers find the pacing of the book nicely paced, with one customer describing it as riveting and another noting its captivating insight.

"...Arnopp also gives her qualities some might not associate with her - passion, curiosity, sensitivity, and even self-consciousness...." Read more

"...don't know much or care much about Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, it's a fast, relatively well written, easy read...." Read more

"...Nicely paced with enough detail to bring scenes to life yet not so much as to slow the story...." Read more

"A riveting and revealing interpretation of what is known about Anne Boleyn's downfall, by a masterful writer...." Read more

7 customers mention "Enjoyment"7 positive0 negative

Customers find the book enjoyable and describe it as a fun ride.

"Well written and enjoyable...." Read more

"This book was a wonderful read! Fun, witty and really made you feel as if you were part of this exciting, yet dangerous, world...." Read more

"...But I still very much enjoyed the story. Easy read. And enjoyable. Recommend." Read more

"Juicey! We all know the ending, but it's a fun ride." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • The Hist Fic Chic
    5.0 out of 5 stars Simply put... this book is stunning! A must-read!!
    Reviewed in the United States on June 18, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    There are moments when, as a reader, you know the second a book impacts you. And when that impact comes at the very beginning, well, you know you are about to take an exquisite journey. I have felt this many times throughout the years and when it happens, the books become dear to me, and a must-have for my own personal library. This is one of those times.
    Reading the blurb, one might think this is just another retelling of the infamous story of Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII, but I am here to say that this book transcends anything I have read to date on this popular subject. When you read lines such as: “...The king’s eyes fly open and his eyeballs swivel from side to side, his disintegrating ego peering as if through the slits in a mummer’s mask.” or “Henry and I are the most powerful couple in all of England and yet, in the face of death, we are powerless,” you are compelled to soak in every last detail. And last, I have to share this... “It is a dead sort of day, the type of day where the sky is white, and there is not even the hint of a breeze. Clouds muffle the horizon and I want to push them away, thrust back the oppression and the fear, and revel for one more day beneath blue skies, feel the wind on my cheeks, the scent of Hever in the air. Instead I am here, in my palatial prison, with no future, no next week to look forward to, perhaps not even a tomorrow.”
    Oh, there are so many many more for you to enjoy on this heavenly journey of words. This is just a small sampling.
    The immense beauty of Judith Arnopp’s selection of words and phrases is a lesson on how to write a historical novel. She takes what we already know of Anne and Henry to another level, a rare personal glimpse into their personalities, their fears, their hopes, and their love that turned England upside-down in terms of religion. In this book, Anne draws a reader’s sympathy, as she is portrayed as a young naïve girl thrust down a path which ultimately brings her ruin. The delicate way the author shows Anne’s love for her family home, Hever Castle, and the simplicities of that ‘other life’, the life before Henry, fleshes out her character and makes her tremendously relatable; as does the bond she shares with her brother, George, that is taken completely out of context by those wishing to destroy her.
    The Kiss of the Concubine is now among my ‘go-to’ books that I will read again and again. Even this review does not do it justice. Simply put... get this book. It is stunning. A must-read!!
    4 people found this helpful
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  • RoloPoloBookBlog
    4.0 out of 5 stars A new perspective on an old story . . .
    Reviewed in the United States on March 2, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    The Kiss of the Concubine: A Story of Anne Boleyn by Judith Arnopp
    Source: Purchase
    Rating: 4/5 stars

    As with all who love the Tudor period of English history, I know Anne Boleyn’s story and know that there is likely never going to be any new or earth-shattering information that will change her story. So, why keep reading her story again and again? The answer is very simple, every now and again I run across a re-telling of Anne’s story that reignites my interest in her, her story and, her legacy. Judith Arnopp’s The Kiss of the Concubine has done just that for me.

    The Kiss of the Concubine begins in 1521 when Anne is just a teenager living in her father’s home at Hever and her sister Mary is King Henry VIII’s mistress. Raised to prize and protect her virtue, Anne understands that her sister Mary is ruined and that she (Anne) will never place herself in such a position. To be any man’s whore is to be ruined and to have no future; to be the King’s whore is to be ruined entirely. At such a tender age, Anne Boleyn can’t even begin to imagine the course her life will take and just how completely ruined she will truly be when all is said and done.

    As we all know, Anne Boleyn not only catches the eye of King Henry VIII but becomes intimately involved in a grand romance that is not consummated until just before Anne is married to the King and sitting beside him as the Queen of England. For seven long years, Henry courts Anne openly and fights the Church in Rome to set aside his marriage to Catherine of Aragon thus paving the way for his marriage to Anne. To say that the road to the throne was long and arduous doesn’t even come close: Anne and Henry, in their bid to be together not only piss off the Pope (more than one, in fact!) but alter the way the entire country worships. These two people, in an effort to be together (and satisfy their shared lust if we’re being fair) break with centuries of tradition in order to legitimize and justify their relationship. Setting aside and in some instances killing those who oppose them, Anne and Henry forge ahead in their endeavor and for a very brief moment in time, all is right with the world. Anne finally marries the man she has grown to love, Anne’s daughter is recognized as the heir to the throne and, England’s separation from Rome becomes official and complete. Did it never occur to the poor girl that once she had everything she wanted she would still have to fight to hold on to it all?

    Though Arnopp certainly doesn’t introduce anything new in her version of Anne’s story she does allow Anne to tell her own story. The Kiss of Concubine is certainly based on the historical accounts of Anne and her life but is also a fine blend of that history and fiction. Arnopp has had to imagine how it is that Anne would have perceived the events in her life and then create a dialogue and interactions to match. While many authors have a tendency to portray Anne as a conniving and heartless woman bent only on achieving her own pleasures and goals, Arnopp has taken a different approach entirely. Arnopp has given Anne a voice that is strong and capable in many instances yet wholly uncertain and vulnerable in many, many other instances. Arnopp gives us an Anne that struggles for most of her life with the uncertainty of her situation, the uncertainty of her King’s love and, the uncertainty of the world around her. She relies heavily on her brother George, and trusts that the men who have fought for she and Henry’s cause will support her to the end. Unfortunately, for George, Anne and, many, many others, Anne’s trust is sadly misplaced at nearly every level and to her great disbelief she is replaced in Henry’s heart, his bed and, beside him. As Anne tells us in her “own” words she believes in Henry to the bitter end. Sadly, Anne goes to her death loving a feckless man who betrayed her mind, body and soul.

    The Bottom Line: Arnopp has given us a unique perspective on the life of Anne Boleyn and for myself I found the voice given to Anne by Arnopp to be quite fascinating. Despite knowing Anne’s story and how it all turns out, I found her “voice” to be most convincing and throughout the read I found myself routing for her and hoping desperately for her success. But alas, even Arnopp cannot change the history nor save the head of the doomed Queen. Of particular note in this read is the demeanor and character of Henry VIII as seen through Anne’s eyes. Rather than a strong and confident man, Anne “tells” us that Henry was a man who constantly wavered in thoughts and opinions just as much as he wavered in his feelings toward his Queens. In many ways both Anne and Arnopp remind us that Henry’s quest to produce a male heir so consumed him that he treated his wives and Queens as nothing more than toys who, when they lost their luster or could not give Henry what he most desperately wanted, he tossed them aside. In all, a fine read with a perspective not often seen in this genre.
    9 people found this helpful
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  • CANDACE HICKMAN
    5.0 out of 5 stars The BEST of Anne Boleyn
    Reviewed in the United States on January 8, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    I highlight passages in novels for many different reasons. I highlight to help me remember important dates or events, tidbits of information i find interesting. I highlight for beauty; the structure of a sentence, or description of a scene or object that is so beautiful it touches your soul and you want to remember it. I highlight for humor. For those things that came flying out from nowhere and hit my funny bone.
    It us rarely that I am blessed to enjoy all these things in just one novel! I LOVED this book!
    I found passages on Annes Alzheimer grandmother and her dog absolutely hilarious.
    The passages on The Sweating Illness are some of the most horrifyingly descriptive of any I have read before. As I was suffering with COVID while trying to read this, my heart went out to Anne as I was mot feeling nearly as bad as she.
    I believe the author gleaned deep truths from her own research on Anne and the medieval times she lived in that she was able to present an Anne to me that I truly admired, sympathized with and truly loved.
    What an amazing and heroic impact she made for the benefits of Protestant believers. I will be reading through this one again, and following the author. Wishing i could give more than 5 stars! 💘
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Top reviews from other countries

  • Vielleserin
    5.0 out of 5 stars The book I've been waiting for
    Reviewed in Germany on December 13, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    Ever since I learned about Anne Boleyn in school, I was puzzled by the bad light she was painted in. There seems to be so little evidence for her being a shrewd, conniving woman set on getting her will. I always thought it was not only recommandable by the morals of the time that she refused to sleep with Henry unless married, but it was also totally understandable as she saw what happened with concubine based on her own sister's example. I could never quite the hirstorians who insisted on her being so terrible.
    This is the Anne I thought I could glimpse through the little facts we know about her - not a pushover, but also not a conniving shrew.
    I thoroughly enjoyed this book, not least because of the unique approach. Highly recommandable!
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  • Tribalchick
    5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant historical fiction
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 29, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    Told in the first person, this is the story of Anne Boleyn, second wife of Henry VIII. We relive Anne's life through her own eyes, from the happy, privileged daughter, playing with her siblings Mary and George in the grounds at Hever Castle to her last lonely months in the royal apartments at the Tower of London.

    Though this story is fiction, the book is well researched and the historical figures we knew from history lessons about the Tudors at school, are vividly portrayed and brought to life as real and rounded people.

    Henry is first portrayed as the dashing, fit and brave young horseman, his duty foremost in his mind, to produce a male heir to rule after him. We watch him age, his obsession with duty mixed with a desire for ultimate power over his people and his advisers push for the changes to please the king, all in the name of God. His desire for Anne becomes an obsession to marry her and the rest, as they say, is history.

    This book is a page turner that kept me reading late into the night. If you like historical fiction, you'll love this book.
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  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Anne from a different perspective.
    Reviewed in Canada on February 5, 2015
    Verified Purchase
    I’ve read other books by Judith Arnopp and really enjoyed them. I particularly like the way she takes a different approach; The Kiss of the Concubine is no exception. It begins with Anne’s attendance as a spirit at the deathbed of Henry VIII. I love the originality in that. It works in part because the story of Anne Boleyn is so well known that a first person account from the point of view of someone already dead, who refers to the tale's outcome throughout, allows for something new in the telling. Arnopp rightly assumes her readers are familiar with the history, and this provides her with opportunities to recount it from a new slant - that of hindsight.
    The author is very skilled with description; as other reviewers have noted, she brings the court, the food, the clothes, all the sights and smells and tastes of the era, vividly alive. I also love the way we are privy to the thoughts and feelings of the narrator. It adds a richness and immediacy lacking in third-person accounts.
    Anne is presented in a positive light, as a young and innocent woman genuinely in love with the king. I believe this could be entirely possible; and I certainly believe Henry was in love with her in return. While I do suspect that ambition and the king’s need for a male heir played their part, more and more so as time passed, it was refreshing to read this respectful account that pays tribute to the protagonists' better selves.
    The ending is poignant and touching. Though it has been told many times, I found it particularly affective in this account.
    The book is overall lively and easy to read, and I highly recommend it.
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  • wej foxall
    4.0 out of 5 stars The times and trial of an influential Queen
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 2, 2019
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    Anne Boleyn was undoubtedly one of the most influential women who ever trod the shores of Britain. She was indirectly and directly responsible for the cataclysmic break with the Pope and the catholic church and was of course the mother of possibly our greatest Queen, Elizabeth the First. Boleyn was from a Kentish family of good connections, eg Duke of Norfolk, but nevertheless commoners. She lived her early adult life in the courts of France and was therefore a fluent French speaker and a cultured lady of wide interests and knowledge. This fascinating novel is related in the first person singular and, as such, purports to express the intimate feelings of the main character while only speculating what others feel about her. It is written fluently and with much style and captures the enveloping and nauseous atmosphere of the English court at the time. Of course we all know how it all ends but the specific interest was how Judith Arnopp would handle the last days and hours. She does so with imaginative skill and leaves many of us convinced of the innocence of Anne of the horrific crimes that a sovereign and husband, Henry VIII,accused her of and which in the violent times that were the middle 16th century, reflected awfully on the King. A thoroughly good read.
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  • michael gevay
    5.0 out of 5 stars the kiss of the concubine judith arnopp
    Reviewed in Germany on March 19, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    I like books of the tudor time and i fund this book very goog on anne boylin she had a bad time in her life
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