Anne of Cleves is one of the more intriguing of Henry VIII’s wives if only because she is so routinely passed over and even denigrated, despite not only surviving him but living on - apparently happily - through the reign of Edward VI and into that of Mary I, so I was excited to get the opportunity to read this new biography of her by Sarah-Beth Watkins.

However, one problem with those in history, especially women, who were not at the center of affairs, is that there is generally very little material available that can be used to flesh them out and bring them to life. For Anne, this seems to consist mainly of mentions in letters and dispatches, some (relatively formal) letters of her own, and household records. This means that even a short biography such as this contains a lot of narration about what was going on at the time but not much about how many of these events would have affected her personally.

Watkins certainly does do her best with what is available, and I found new information (to me, at least) in her recounting of Anne’s early years and relationships, Henry’s search for his fourth wife, and her life after her brief tenure as queen. Since Watkins also seemed to try to avoid speculation about what Anne was thinking or feeling (except during her marriage and the process of its dissolution), which is understandable since it’s a pet peeve of mine with other authors, especially when it becomes excessive, I didn’t get a real feel for the type of person she was - except that she obviously was a warm person (making lasting friendships with people like the Duchess of Suffolk and the king’s daughters, particularly Mary) who did not hold grudges. I would also have liked to know how she went from being “one of the richest women in England” to someone who was continually having money troubles, though that may have been mainly due to Henry and his successors not honoring his financial commitments except for right after the annulment.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Anne of Cleves: Henry VIII's Unwanted Wife is a well-researched, if short, biography of Henry VIII's fourth wife.

It is clearly very well researched, but it seems that there is little source material to be found, and it is hard to discover who Anne truly was, and just what she thought of the bizarre situation she found herself in. There are some very lengthy quotations from the correspondence of the period, and while these add to the story, the insistence on keeping the original spelling can make it a bit of a challenge to read pages of letters.

Much of the book is taken up with Anne's short marriage to Henry VIII and I thought the biography was at its strongest when discussing what happened to Anne after the annulment of her marriage, much of which I didn't know.

Overall, an interesting and short, and enjoyable read. Recommended.

I previously read Margaret Tudor, Queen of Scots by the same author and this is much in the same vein. Well researched and easily digestible. Anne of Cleves always seemed a fascinating character to me, being the wive that Henry VIII spurned, but treated fairly well after divorcing her.

I enjoyed learning more about this woman, who left home and country to marry a king, who was already infamous for forcing a divorce on his first wife and beheading his second. It is hard to get an idea of what Anne of Cleves was really like, but Watkins presented the evidence of her life and character as far as she has been able to discern from the sources available.

Of course history is never unbiased and Watkins is very aware of that. She presents correspondence, bits of reports and rumours contemporary to the time period, but also notes if there were conflicting accounts, which happened fairly regularly.

If you are interested in the Tudors, this book will definitely interest you.

A very interesting and informative book about the wife that is mostly overlooked when talking about Henry and his six wives.
I don't really feel as though there is a great deal of new information in here or new interpretation which is a shame.

Anne of Cleves has always been the most overlooked of Henry VIII’s wives. She has often been glossed over as Tudor enthusiasts happily relish Catherine Howard’s juicy story. In this new biography of Anne of Cleves, Ms. Watkins shows that she was an ordinary woman who was not meant to be queen. Her future was meant to be as a duchess. However, through an odd twist of fate, she wound up becoming queen of England for a few brief months. After Anne’s divorce, she quickly became the wealthiest woman in all of England.

This short biography details Anne’s upbringing in Cleves. The author stressed that Anne’s lineage was the most impressive of all Henry’s wives, except for Catherine of Aragon. She was related to both the Kings of England and France. She was originally meant to be the wife of Francis of Lorraine. However, their engagement fell through. She then became the unlikely bride to Henry VIII. When the marriage was agreed upon, she quickly packed her bags and left her family and home for England. The author also suggests that the reason why she was disliked by Henry was also because she had ignored him upon their first meeting. Since then, Henry never forgave her. The biography also stressed that Anne never got the treatment she deserved either from Henry VIII or his court. Throughout her life, she was always overlooked and seen as Henry VIII’s discarded bride.

Overall, this was a very short but detailed biography of Anne of Cleves. There was no groundbreaking information about Anne, and it was very similar to Elizabeth Norton’s biography of her. However, I did think that Ms. Watkins biography is much easier to read than Mrs. Norton’s because there were not as many primary documents included in this biography. While this book is mostly a rehash about Anne of Cleves, this biography will still fascinate those who do not know her story. Anne of Cleves: Henry VIII’s Unwanted Wife shows that she was truly a survivor and was an accomplished woman.

Anne of Cleve's is a straight forward, simple biography of the German fourth wife of Henry VIII. The author doesn't provide any earth shattering new revelations about Anne. What began as an unfortunate match actually turned beneficial as Anne was treated with more dignity not being Henry's wife. She had her own estates and money. However, once Henry died her financial support dried up and she was constantly in debt. She was quite close to her stepdaughter Mary. A solid biography of woman who survived being married to Henry, no easy feat.

Anne of Cleves has always been my favorite of Henry VIII’s wives. I admire pragmatism and, not counting things outside of her control (like Henry’s initial response to her), Anne rarely missed a step. I enjoyed this very readable biography, which was loaded with excerpts from contemporary sources.

The forgotten life of Anne of Cleves, the one that got away from Henry VIII, might be interesting, right? There's a reason it's forgotten: she mostly just bounced between houses of her brother and then of Henry. The one slightly unique thing about her was the fact that her Catholicism made her friendly with Queen Mary, though that's not really explored because it wasn't recorded much. Most of the problem with the book has nothing to do with the writing or the research; it is in the fact that her life was not worthy of chronicling in the first place, so this book has only random mentions in other Tudor histories to go off of, making the work feel highly derivative. The only qualm with the writing is the inclusion of so many full length letters that serve little purpose and seem to only fill space in this small book. I am sure that once the author finds a better subject, she will be able to do a good job.

This is a quick and fairly easy introduction to the life and times of Henry VIII’s fourth queen. It seems I’ve usually thought of her only as an image from a painting; but thanks to this book, I feel like I have gotten a peek at the woman behind the painting.

I enjoyed the beginning of the book very much as it told about Anne’s life leading up to her becoming queen. The latter part seemed to drag a bit with so much contemporary correspondence included In my opinion, this really slowed the book down. Also, I would have liked more information about the end of Anne’s life. But, perhaps, that information isn’t available.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I read Sarah-Beth Watkins' book about Margaret Tudor earlier this year, and so I was excited to try her newest release about one of my favourite Henry VIII's wives. It was a fast and easy read, but slightly less satisfying than the previous one. While I did learn something new about Anne, she remained a little nebulous throught the book, and it was difficult to form an opinion on her. This is probably due to the fact that not many informations about Anne survive today. However, some letters written by herself are included, and one of the appendix is Anne's will, which was interesting to read.
Not an in depth study, but still a good read.

This was a fascinating look at Anne, a wife that is often overlooked. The writing was brilliant and I can imagine many Tudor obsessed readers loving this.

Anne of Cleves: Henry VIII's Unwanted Wife is an interesting read. I give it four stars and recommend it who love reading about history and Tudor era.

I am a massive lover of all things Tudor; especially Anne of Cleves. The only downside of being a research nut, is that eventually, you run out of reading material. So when I saw this book by Sarah-Beth Watkins, I jumped at the chance to read it. I then subsequently devoured it. This was so, SO good. The research was impeccable, the writing easy-to-understand (without sounding novice), the author's love of the subject apparent. My new favorite Anne of Cleves novel!

Sarah-Beth Watkins explores the life of Anne of Cleves, fourth wife of King Henry VIII, in her upcoming book Anne of Cleves: Henry VIII's Unwanted Wife.

Anyone who has been following my blog for a while is well aware of the fact that I'm utterly fascinated with Tudor history, and the many wives of Henry VIII, in particular. It's no surprise I was immediately intrigued by this biography of Anne of Cleves.

Henry's fourth bride proved to be an unsavory choice for King. Having agreed to marry Anne sight unseen, their first meeting left him displeased with her, and he attempted to put a halt to the wedding, only to proceed as planned when he realized there was no way out of the agreement. Six months later, she agreed to having marriage to be annulled, and was thereafter treated as the King's "sister" who showed her great generosity in her settlement, which included several properties. As a result, Anne was the richest woman in England for a time. Anne outlived Henry and all his other wives, and saw both Edward VI and Mary I ascend to the throne. Anne died in 1557, having never returned home after coming to England to be Henry's wife.

This was a quick read for me—I managed to start and finish reading it before I bothered to update my reading status on Goodreads. The only other book I recall reading about Anne of Cleves was a novel, so I looked forward to reading a strictly biographical account. Partial text of various letters and documents are included throughout, along with three appendices, which includes the marriage treaty for Henry and Anne, and Anne's will.

Anne of Cleves: Henry VIII's Unwanted Wife didn't feel quite as in-depth as I'd hoped it would be, but it was an interesting read, nonetheless, and I'm glad I read it.

I received an advance reading copy of this book courtesy of Chronos Books via Netgalley.

Fascinating and comprehensive history of one of Henry VIII's least-known queen. The book gives a clear picture of Anne and how she navigated successfully her difficult situation and ended up as 'one of the richest women in England' by skilfully managing her relationship with Henry. By agreeing to become the 'King's Sister' and relinquish her position as Queen and Wife of the King, she succeeded in achieving probably the best possible outcome for herself. It is clear from this book that the stereotype of the 'Flanders Mare' is unwarranted - in many ways, Anne was arguably Henry's most successful wife...

It's an easy, quick read with lots of information. It's not in-depth but as a starting point it gives me plenty to go on and the intrigue to go find out more. Really enjoyed this

I have loved Tudor history ever since my first visit to Hampton Court when I was 9 yrs old and on a school trip.
Since that time I have devoured book after book about Henry VIII and life during his reign – however, most books skim over Anne of Cleves so my knowledge of her was pretty brief and if I’m honest she never attracted my attention – I was more caught up by the intrigue and tragedy of Anne Boleyn and Katherine Howard.
So reading Sarah-Beth Watkins book – Anne of Cleves: Henry VIII’s Unwanted Wife was a bit of a revelation for me!

This is a very reader friendly book – she doesn’t make the subject too complex. Research must have been difficult as of course there is much less personal information about Anne, than there is about Henry’s other wives. It’s hard to gage a fully rounded picture of the person that was Anne of Cleves – however the author does a marvellous job in bringing Anne to the forefront of what was going on during Henry’s turbulent reign and it can’t be underestimated the terror Anne must of felt given Henry’s previous relationship history!
What I particularly loved about this book was learning of Anne’s relationships with Henry’s children and his wives after Anne. I was also fascinated by the way Anne navigate the politics of the time so successfully – as with the succession of Edward VI and the events surrounding Lady Jane Grey
I would like to have known more about the lead up to Anne’s death – she died at a relatively average if not even good age for Tudors at that time but still tragically young at just 41.
This is a quick book to read – I read it over three days – but I feel I learned so much from it and would definitely recommend this publication if you’d like to know a bit more about Anne and what was going on in England during her lifetime.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers John Hunt Books for providing me with a digital advance reader copy for my honest and unbiased review.

Rating: 4.0/5.0

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. Anne of Cleves sounds like a fascinating person. This book covers Anne's story from her early days until her death. How she becomes Henry VIII's fourth queen and how she lost it all. We also get to see how her life turns during the reign of two more queens, Queen Katherine and Queen Mary I (Known as Bloody Mary).

I liked how the author included the letters between the different personalities which made the reading more interesting. The book is not long but it gives you an adequate impression and information on what Anne of Cleves was as a person and how her relationship with King Henry VIII affected her.

I have been provided with a digital advance reader copy of this book by John Hunt Books (Thank you) through NetGalley and this is my honest unbiased review.

A nice, quick read for anyone who is just beginning to have an interest in the Tudor time period or who would like to discover a little more about Anne of Cleves than is in the general history book.
A really good starting point.

Anne of Cleves is a bit like Anne Bronte- you appreciate her more when you’re older. Sure, you crave the glamour and drama of Anne Boleyn/Wuthering Heights as a teenager, but you come to understand the importance of keeping your powder dry and not putting your head above the parapet (or on the block) to get your message across.
I have always been fascinated with Anne of Cleves. As a young Tudor enthusiast in Year 4, I remember having a heated conversation with a boy called Ryan when he said she was ugly and I passionately defended her. I’ve visited the mis-named house in Lewes a few times and I even dyed some yarn based on the most famous portrait of her.

I also recently learnt that she owned the land my very house was built on as part of her divorce settlement from Henry VIII. The woman was a badass- she SURVIVED. She had a good relationship with one of the biggest dictators this country has ever had. She deserves more than to go through history being defamed as a ‘Flanders mare’ (which, btw, Henry never called her) and stinky (which… he kind of did. Rude, considering he had a FESTERING ULCER ON HIS LEG THAT WOULD HAVE STUNK TO HIGH HEAVEN.) Obviously, when this biography appeared on Netgalley, I snapped it up.
I must confess that I came to this book having read quite a few biographies of Henry VIII and his wives, including Antonia Fraser’s (the best biographer of queens, in my opinion), David Starkey’s (much quoted here) and Alison Weir. So I have more than an passing interest in the subject, albeit from the distance of a few years since I read them.
This book feels quite light on analysis and relies heavily on primary sources, some of which are quoted in full. This is fine, although I would prefer an author to pick these apart with some detail. As a biography, this feels like more of an introduction than an in-depth exploration of its subject. I get that historical women are ill-served by male-dominated record keeping and I understand this is frustrating (what I would give to have a brilliant biography of Eleanor of Aquitaine). But I felt that the socio-political environment that meant Anne was packed off from what was essentially a provincial dukedom was not explored as it could be. I felt that I didn’t really learn who Anne was, or what really happened to her after Henry’s death. I wanted more about the relationship between Anne and her step-daughters Mary and Elizabeth. I didn’t quite understand just how Anne got to the decision to go along with Henry’s divorce. I just didn’t get… much of her. She feels less like the joke of history and more of a Tudor Miss Haversham, constantly asking money in her later years.
Overall, I’d consider that this book is a primer, rather than a full biography. It’s be a great place to start before going on to the more detailed, fuller biographies mentioned above. I think it’ll be quite a while- if ever- before any of Henry’s wives receives the full biography she deserves.