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Historical fiction has always held a special place in my heart for they are brilliantly researched, complex and mysterious plotlines, almost magical books, written by talented writers with the most influential being the works of Hilary Mantel, Philippa Gregory, Charles Dickens, Victor Hugo and many, many more!
However—just like any other book—historical fiction can quite a dangerous genre to delve into, both as a writer and a reader, due to the heavy amount of research necessary to ensure your book is both entertaining and historically accurate. Even the greatest of historical fiction novels have fell victim to this and it's one of the key aspects of a book that history lovers love to scrutinize—myself included.
When a reader is incredibly knowledgeable in the subject area you are writing about, it can be daunting to see if the reader will not only like your book but the way you interpret/represent history. You either pass or fail the history test.
And I'm proud to say that Clemmie Bennett's wonderful debut novel, The Apple and the Tree, passed the test with flying colors!
Note—this book was recommended to me by dear friend and fellow writer, Jessica Faulkner so I want to thank her for introducing me to one of my favourite reads of 2024!
Historical accuracy
The Tudor period, if it wasn't already obvious, is an era of history that resonates deeply with me, with all its tragedies and dynamic characters, and so it is always nerve-wracking for me to start a new Tudor-era book. Personally, it can become a bit boring to see the same story (or retelling of a story) being rewritten over and over again, and it is easy to do this with Henry VIII and his six wives.
What instantly appealed to me about The Apple and the Tree was Clemmie's brilliant new spin on the story of Henry VIII by combining the present with the past through the main character Ella accidentally travelling back in time to 1510 and being the only one aware of what is going to happen in the future. And because Ella was from the future, it made it easier to have small, perhaps lesser known facts included every once in a while. An example of this would be when Ella is first introduced to Tudor fashion or women dying their hair—trust me, that's a gross fact I will allow you to find out by yourself.
The events of the book all take place within a ten-year period which allows the author to include both minor and major events within Tudor history including the tragic breakdown of the marriage of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon. Whilst the reader is not necessarily spoon-fed information, the clever use of third-person narrative allows just enough information to be shared for us to comprehend what is going on in the background in comparison to what Ella shows us through her interactions with the Tudor court.
One of my favourite aspects of this book is how delicately the relationships and tragedies within them are represented and how the author's own personal views on certain historical figures does not get muddled with the character's views. I am, of course, referring to the inclusion of Queen Anne Boleyn towards the closing chapters of the book—a figure that has been demeaned, sexualized and harassed for her life choices centuries following her tragic demise. Clemmie Bennett spends the majority of the book developing the reader's sympathy for both Ella and Queen Catherine of Aragon so when we are introduced to her replacement and the second wife of Henry VIII, naturally you might expect that Anne is portrayed as the villain in Catherine's story.
But no! This book elegantly portrays both women as the pawns and victims of the society and world they lived in who had to make the most of the limited options they were offered. Never once did I feel like any of the women were being forcibly pitied against one another or expressing extreme hatred for one another—unless it was absolutely justified, of course.
I, myself, could find absolutely no errors in the historical accuracy and this was refreshing for me—often I find myself looking for them in books because 99% of the time, there are errors to be found but I can genuinely say that Clemmie has thoroughly done her research and written a historically flawless book.
The characters
Our main protagonist, Ella, is a character that you have mixed feelings about—in a very good way. When she first appears back in 1510 Tudor England, she is determined to find her grandmother's magical time-travelling ring to get back to her life back in 2020 without making any devastating changes to history as we know it. However, as the book progresses, I love to see Ella struggle between keeping to herself and leaving history unchanged to fighting the struggle to ensure that the tragedies of history do not occur and spare those closest to her, mainly Queen Catherine, from the pain and suffering that she knows she will endure.
We all have asked ourselves at one point whether we would change the course of history if given the chance. I would like to think that a majority of us would struggle to answer that; sci-fi movies have tried to warn us against changing the past as it may destroy our future (yes, I am referring to the classic Back to the Future) but would we be able to stand back and let innocent people suffer.
There are definitely moments where you just wanna reach into the book and slap some sense into not only Ella but other characters in this book—yet, surprisingly, Henry VIII is not one of them.
I absolutely LOVE the way Clemmie chose to write Henry VIII in this book; less of a bloodthirsty, womanizing tyrant and more of the loving, childish and somewhat spoiled young King that I truly believe he was. Everyone has this absurd idea that Henry VIII never truly cared for his first wife and constantly cheated on her, whilst the latter is only slightly true, we do have evidence that he loved and cared for his wife in the early years of their marriage. And this is reflected in the book which was a relief to see as it isn't often portrayed in fiction as often as I would like.
But, oh my gosh, how I cannot stand the Duke of Buckingham! I have never wanted to see a fictional man suffer so much in my life, I swear. I guess this is why I love this book so much—Clemmie Bennett made these characters so relatable and so realistic that you actually wanna hate them.
Without spoiling the ending for everyone, I just wanna say that the cliffhanger broke me, it truly did. I need to know what happens next and what the end of not just Ella's but Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn, Catherine and all the other amazing characters whose names I will allow you to be introduced to.
I wholeheartedly look forward to the sequel and seeing what Clemmie Bennett has in store for us readers.
So, to sum up—dramatic, captivating and heart-wrenching, this book will pull at your heart strings as well as leave you clinging on the edge of your seat for more. If you're looking for arguably one of the best Tudor fiction books out there, this is the one for you!
I implore you to read it!
Until next time!
- Have a ‘Tudor-fic’ week!
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