Media Reviews
"Sharp, emotional, and deeply relevant, Jillian Laine's debut tells the story of queens reclaiming their power. Read this book if you love stories about sisterhood, magic, and a witty 'what if?'" —Jodi Meadows, New York Times bestselling coauthor of My Lady Jane
"Hell hath no fury like a woman who survives her own beheading. Jillian Laine has peeled back history and added a few layers of her own to construct a cast of dangerously clever, witchy women with sharp edges and a righteous cause. Henry Tudor Must Die is an exquisite declaration of female rage, sisterhood, and what it takes to stand against the abuse of power in a deeply unjust world." —Emily Krempholtz, USA Today bestselling author of Violet Thistlewaite Is Not a Villain Anymore
This information about Henry Tudor Must Die was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
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Reader Reviews
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Emily_H
A Tudor retelling! This was such a wild, addictive dark reimagining of Tudor history. The premise alone hooked me—Anne Boleyn on the eve of execution and the unique twists towards revenge.
I loved the way the book flips the usual "history of rival queens" narrative into something way more powerful and almost rebellious. Seeing Anne and Lina (and more) go from distrust to uneasy alliance was one of the best parts—their old grudges don't disappear, but they get buried under something bigger and angrier. That tension makes every interaction feel sharp and unpredictable.
The Hellebore Sisterhood and the blend of historical figures with a slightly mythic, almost "witchy" undertones gives a unique tone that feels fresh rather than purely historical. There is almost a revolutionary energy, where women who've been discarded by history are quietly rewriting the rules and dismantling Henry's power piece by piece. There's a constant edge of revenge and consequence running through everything, and the book doesn't shy away from how personal and brutal that kind of justice becomes. It was incredibly satisfying.
The pacing was a little inconsistent and times I wanted more depth and other times I wanted a bit less.
Overall, a fierce, feminist revenge fantasy wrapped in Tudor history—bold, dramatic, and seriously hard to put down.
Thank you BookBrowse, NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the advanced ebook!
All of these thoughts and opinions are my own.
Angela_W
Anne Boleyn survives This revisionist historical novel reimagines the fate of Henry VIII's second wife, Anne Boleyn, by altering the well-known beheading narrative. With the help of Catalina of Aragon, the Hellebore Sisterhood, and a bit of witchy magic, Anne survives her execution. United by a desire for vengeance, Catalina and Anne, along with the Sisterhood and a few of Henry's other wives, set out to exact revenge on the king.
Brilliantly written and expertly told, this story combines sharp humor with imaginative storytelling. A united Catalina and Anne challenge the patriarchy in a way history could never have imagined.
I highly recommend this novel to readers of historical fiction with a sense of humor, fantasy fans, and anyone who enjoys stories that take aim at the patriarchy.
Thank you to BookBrowse and Berkley Books for providing an early copy in exchange for a fair review. I loved this book from beginning to end and look forward to reading more from Jillian Lane. Five stars.
Stephanie M. (Canal Fulton, OH)
A Good Book I wasn't sure what to expect from this book but part-way through, I couldn't stop reading! I've read quite a few books about Anne Boleyn, King Henry VIII, all of his wives and this book presented a side that I had never thought of. If you like fiction based on the reign of King Henry VIII, I recommend this book!
Joy_B
Witchy Feminism Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for this ARC in return for an honest review.
This is a great romp through Tudor history and a wonderful twist on witchy tales. Featuring real historical women shown as competent, adventurous and full of vengeful thoughts and plans.
The story centers around that infamous womanizer Henry the Eighth with his marvelous wives wreaking havoc. It takes the premise what if Anne Boleyn was really a witch and was able to survive the chopping block, join the Hellebore Society along with his previous wives to protect his future wives.
What would the world be like if powerful men were married to witches who steered them towards not conducting wars, funding libraries, schools and expanding the arts to promote cultural activity and medicinal knowledge.
Set in Tudor times the Hellebore Sisterhood was created by Marguerite de Navarre (French: Marguerite d'Angoulême, Marguerite d'Alençon; sister of the French King )
to support witches and promote and acknowledge the intellect of women through education and medicinal knowledge.
She in fact did create women's universities this book takes that real life fact and explores the boundaries of what witch's have to offer.
Sherrie_Y
What if Henry VIII didn't have all the power? I had such a fun time reading this book!
If you like the Tudor era, are fascinated by Anne Boleyn or any of Henry VII's wives and their plight, I highly recommend picking this up! This won't give you any additional history that you didn't know, but it will give you some really fun alternate history surrounding Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Anne of Cleves, Katherine Howard, and Catherine Parr (that is a lot of K/Catherine's). Imagine if Henry did not have the power, if a group of fierce, determined women were working behind the scenes to make sure the women Henry tried to rid himself of were saved from their fate!
I loved this book, it was well written, well plotted, and got me right back into my obsession with the Tudor women. I am truly excited to see what this author does next, and I hope we see some more historical fiction from her very soon!
Thank you to NetGalley, Berkley Publishing, and BookBrowse for the advanced e-copy.
Linda_B1
Great take on the lives of Henry VIII wives This was a great story, a reimagining of the stories of Henry VIII wives, if some of them had actually survived his wife killing rampage.
I loved that it integrated LGBTQIA folks in a way that proves you can incorporate people throughout history in a completely natural way; I wish more books did this.
I loved the interaction between Lina and Anne, and thought Gisa was an awesome addition to their little group.
Basically if you enjoy stories about women rediscovering their power, this is a great book for you.
I received this book as an advance reader copy and my review is completely my own views and was optional.
...20 more reader reviews
