First Published: 1997

Rating: Average

"'God's death!' roared Elizabeth."

Sure, it’s predictable and contrived, but Robin Maxwell’s The Secret Diary of Anne Boleyn is actually a good read. Not classic literature, but it’s better than Philippa Gregory’s The Other Boleyn Girl and The Virgin’s Lover. And it's shorter, too.

The beginning of Queen Elizabeth’s reign serves as the framework for the novel, which is really the story of Anne Boleyn as told through a diary. This diary is given to Elizabeth by—who else?—an old crone, and the young queen reads it when she can, in between all her business of state. Of course, as she reads Elizabeth slowly comes to the realization that her mother is not the traitorous whore she was made out to be, but a young woman who struggled to protect her life, and that of her daughter, from the king who betrayed her.

That said, I did like the story told within the diary. Maxwell’s Anne Boleyn is actually a sympathetic character—kind, smart, virtuous, courageous, and willing to do what’s necessary to protect what she loves. Maybe it’s not a historically accurate portrayal, but for purposes of entertainment, I strongly prefer Maxwell’s characterization of Anne to that of Philippa Gregory.

Speaking of historically accuracy, I think Maxwell maybe tried a little too hard to make the book accurate. There are frequent references to random things, such Anne Boleyn’s sixth finger, King Henry as “Harry” and Robert Dudley as “Robin,” that just feel out of place—things that could have been changed to enhance readability without sacrificing historical accuracy. After all, we don’t need to know every little detail in order for the book to work—but that is, I suppose, what happens when historians write novels.

If you’re into Tudor England, I’d definitely recommend picking up this book, if for no other reason than to get a different characterization of Anne Boleyn. The writing isn’t the most mature, and everything falls into place a little too neatly for my taste, but it’s still worth picking up as a guilty pleasure.

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