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waytoomanybooks's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
In Bring Up the Bodies, Cromwell has decided to ditch Anne Boleyn. His demeanor around her changes completely and irreversibly. It almost feels like a 180°, but if you look back, the bread crumbs become more obvious. I think the book fleshes this out considerably. There were many points that made me stop and have a mini meltdown, (which you can see in my liveblogs lol).
It’s so wild how quickly and seemingly effortlessly he can throw his weight behind someone, be it More, Anne, or Jane. He can so easily flip a switch when he needs to, when it is advantageous to do so. He does show respect to More and not to Anne, but I think it is only because with More, he has these tiny moments from his childhood with him. Moments that weren’t what I’d call happy or positive, but were maybe inspiring to Cromwell? Like More’s life as a young, well-off academic who was clearly going places showed him someone he could aspire to be. Through More, he learns the power of words, of learning them (he asks More if he was at his dictionary when he brought him his bread) and using them to get ahead. I think he feels he owes More something for that, however small and ultimately meaningless.
But he feels he owes Anne nothing. I’m sure he would say, “What did she give me other than headaches?” He would argue Anne didn’t make him, Henry did. Henry made them both, so if Henry wants to unmake Anne, well, he’d better take Henry’s side so that he doesn’t unmake him, too. She’s become a liability to him. By falling from grace in Henry’s eyes, that puts him in danger, so fuck her. Why should she get respect when he’s in danger?
I don’t think he genuinely believes the misogynistic crap Henry spews. When Henry is having a panic attack about “How did she know I’d like sex positions that weren’t just missionary?” Cromwell is mentally rolling his eyes, but physically nodding along because agreeing is expedient. He doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with anyone liking or enjoying sex as a man or a woman, but hating women is convenient and expedient and gets the result he wants, so he goes along with it. Which is it’s own brand of misogyny, but in a somehow more fucked up way. Like he believes in women being educated. He is pained when Jane Rochford tells him about her awful marriage. He admires Meg More’s talents. He mourns his wife and daughters constantly. He is actively betraying his own beliefs and values because it gets him what he wants. He’ll say anything to get himself where he wants to be.
This series is a stunning work of brilliance. I cannot wait to read the final novel, and I am eagerly awaiting the release of the second season of Wolf Hall!
It’s so wild how quickly and seemingly effortlessly he can throw his weight behind someone, be it More, Anne, or Jane. He can so easily flip a switch when he needs to, when it is advantageous to do so. He does show respect to More and not to Anne, but I think it is only because with More, he has these tiny moments from his childhood with him. Moments that weren’t what I’d call happy or positive, but were maybe inspiring to Cromwell? Like More’s life as a young, well-off academic who was clearly going places showed him someone he could aspire to be. Through More, he learns the power of words, of learning them (he asks More if he was at his dictionary when he brought him his bread) and using them to get ahead. I think he feels he owes More something for that, however small and ultimately meaningless.
But he feels he owes Anne nothing. I’m sure he would say, “What did she give me other than headaches?” He would argue Anne didn’t make him, Henry did. Henry made them both, so if Henry wants to unmake Anne, well, he’d better take Henry’s side so that he doesn’t unmake him, too. She’s become a liability to him. By falling from grace in Henry’s eyes, that puts him in danger, so fuck her. Why should she get respect when he’s in danger?
I don’t think he genuinely believes the misogynistic crap Henry spews. When Henry is having a panic attack about “How did she know I’d like sex positions that weren’t just missionary?” Cromwell is mentally rolling his eyes, but physically nodding along because agreeing is expedient. He doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with anyone liking or enjoying sex as a man or a woman, but hating women is convenient and expedient and gets the result he wants, so he goes along with it. Which is it’s own brand of misogyny, but in a somehow more fucked up way. Like he believes in women being educated. He is pained when Jane Rochford tells him about her awful marriage. He admires Meg More’s talents. He mourns his wife and daughters constantly. He is actively betraying his own beliefs and values because it gets him what he wants. He’ll say anything to get himself where he wants to be.
This series is a stunning work of brilliance. I cannot wait to read the final novel, and I am eagerly awaiting the release of the second season of Wolf Hall!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Grief, Murder, and Classism
Moderate: Torture
malloryfitz's review against another edition
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Sexism, and Pregnancy
Minor: Animal death, Sexual content, Torture, Blood, and Alcohol
caidyn's review against another edition
dark
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
4.5/5
Oh, this book. I like it a lot better than the first one. I think the writing is easier to read and it's just easier to understand all in all. This book doesn't cover a huge span of time like the first one does. It's all about the fall of the Boleyns and the rise of Cromwell. So, it's very focused and I enjoyed it. There was so much more heart to it and I can feel how much Mantel put into the book. She says she wants to dig Cromwell out, since he's such an illusive figure, and I do feel that she did a great job at it.
The book does rely on some tired tropes. Like Jane Boleyn's relationship with her husband, George. I loved that Mantel included [b:Jane Boleyn: The True Story of the Infamous Lady Rochford|1206219|Jane Boleyn The True Story of the Infamous Lady Rochford|Julia Fox|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1320429275l/1206219._SX50_.jpg|2053669] as a source in her acknowledgements because it's a book that takes a very different look at her. Same with her talking about things she drew from and read about Anne Boleyn's last days.
All in all, a second book. I cannot wait to read the final book because I've been waiting for years now.
Oh, this book. I like it a lot better than the first one. I think the writing is easier to read and it's just easier to understand all in all. This book doesn't cover a huge span of time like the first one does. It's all about the fall of the Boleyns and the rise of Cromwell. So, it's very focused and I enjoyed it. There was so much more heart to it and I can feel how much Mantel put into the book. She says she wants to dig Cromwell out, since he's such an illusive figure, and I do feel that she did a great job at it.
The book does rely on some tired tropes. Like Jane Boleyn's relationship with her husband, George. I loved that Mantel included [b:Jane Boleyn: The True Story of the Infamous Lady Rochford|1206219|Jane Boleyn The True Story of the Infamous Lady Rochford|Julia Fox|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1320429275l/1206219._SX50_.jpg|2053669] as a source in her acknowledgements because it's a book that takes a very different look at her. Same with her talking about things she drew from and read about Anne Boleyn's last days.
All in all, a second book. I cannot wait to read the final book because I've been waiting for years now.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Miscarriage, and Sexism
Moderate: Blood