An interesting addition to the pantheon of books on Tudor history. Neha Roy presents the reader with 10 chapters of information concerning 6 women imprisoned in the Tower by Henry VIII. The first 4 chapters give an overview concerning the history of the Tower, the life of common women in Tudor times (which is more complex than just a simple chapter), and Henry VIII himself & his inner circle. The remaining chapters cover 6 specific women, only one of which was new to me (Alice Tankerville).

The book was well-written, making it easy to read and understand. I believe it would serve as an excellent source of material for a course centered on the Tudor era, and for Tudor history buffs in general.

Thanks to NetGalley and Pen&Sword for this advanced copy, which I voluntarily read and reviewed.

Neha Roy examines 6 women locked in the Tower over the course of Henry VIII's reign, ranging from the obscure (Alice Tankerville) to the famous (Anne Boleyn). We don't just learn about the crimes the women were accused of and their fates, but also an intense deep dive for each of them about their own lives, their families, their political connections to the bigger picture of the Tudor reign and how their arrests reflected current events in Henry's reign.

Roy loves to give context, and we start first with a history of the Tower itself, going back to William the Conqueror, then a deep look into the causes of the War of the Roses, followed by a look at the Tudor dynasty origins and how their royal dynasty played out, as well as an intense mini-biography on Henry VIII, focusing on his instability and head-choppy attitude.

An EXCELLANT history of the Tudors, shining a well-deserved spotlight on some of Henry VIII's victims.

But after all that, I do have one question: What the hell happened to the gold Alice Tankerville allegedly stole?

I do love books about the Tudors, so was very drawn to this title. The book is a non fiction account of several women who were held by Henry VIII in the Tower of London. I found the writing style a bit dry and long winded and got rather fed up of the history of the Tower in the first chapter, but found the book picked up after that. I knew a lot about some of the women from previous reading, but learned some interesting information about the other (to me) lesser known ones from this book. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in return for an honest review of the book.

Henry VIII's Imprisoned Women: The Women of the Tower by Neha Roy is an interesting nonfiction and historical account of some of the women that were found to be detained and punished within the Tower of London during the reign of Henry VIII.

This is a great collection of some of the women, some more famous than others obviously, that all had something in common: they found themselves on the bad side of King Henry VIII.

Many of these women I knew quite a bit about, some less so, and was able to learn a bit more about their time of imprisonment. I have a personal soft spot for Margaret Pole and obviously gravitated towards her account first.

A great collection that gives us a glimpse into the risky and dangerous times during the Tudor period, especially for women.

4/5 stars

Thank you NG and Pen & Sword History for this wonderful arc and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately (as of 11/11/22, no listing has been created) and will post it to my Amazon, Instagram, and B&N accounts upon publication on 1/30/23.