The opening sentence in "Songbird" by Karen Heenan immediately sets the dark tone of Renaissance England and hooks you into the story: "Two days before my tenth birthday, my father sold me to the King of England." The historical novel, "Songbird" (The Tudor Court, Book 1), is set in the backdrop of King Henry VIII's court and has an element of romance. The story begins when Bethan's impoverished father presents her to King Henry VIII to audition for an elite group of singers and musicians that entertain the court. A young musician, Tom, offers to accompany her on a string instrument to help her relax as she sings and brings out the quality of her singing voice. The courtiers hush as she sings like a songbird, more to the young musician for whom she feels an instant connection. Her father relinquishes Bethan at a high price to the King. Tom shows her kindness and helps her to adjust to a new family of minstrels at the court. He gives her the pseudonym Bess Llewelyn, more befitting of her Welsh background. The story spans from her coming-of-age teen years to her maturation as an adult. She is caught up in the decadence of courtly life and the lure of passion, dismissing Tom's strong feelings for her. Consequences of past and present reckless liaisons collide when Bethan must come to terms with her place in life and relationships.
Author Karen Heenan is a gifted storyteller who has written a spelling-binding novel from the first-person perceptive of Bethan, a musical servant behind the scenes in the King's court. Bethan's underlying beauty, similar to Anne Boleyn, enthralls men. Impetuous, she often lives for the moment and gives no thought to how her reckless action and words affect others. Devastated by her father's abandonment, Bethan struggles to understand how she fits in the world. I particularly empathize with Tom, whose mother, a prostitute, sells him as a choir boy to the King. Losing his boyish voice at a young age, Tom has to play an instrument and compose music to remain at court. He is Bethan's soulmate, always there to support and advise her. But she dismisses his loyalty and feelings in pursuit of loftier passions. Yet, he has limits on what he will accept from her unrequited love.
Though the novel centers around Bethan and Tom, you can also get caught up in the lives of memorable secondary characters. It reminds me somewhat of the "Downtown Abbey" series that shows the lives of both the aristocratic family members and their servants. Although there is a romantic component to the story, it also explores the consequences of social inequities and injustices forced on children born out of wedlock due to reckless dalliances of nobles with women beneath their status. This theme parallels the national consequences from King Henry's break with tradition to divorce Queen Catherine of Aragon in favor of marrying Anne Boleyn.
"Songbird" is a multi-layered story that weaves in various characters and their sub-plots into a tapestry rich with themes of love, revenge, coming-of-age, perseverance, and redemption. For the most part, the writing style, descriptions, and pacing are eloquent and lyrical like a song. One example of a unique and vivid description is how Bethan perceives the King when she first meets him as follows: "The giant was immense, and from his bright hair to the tissue-like fabric that made up his costume, he seemed to be fashion entirely of gold." A memorable quote that resonated with me is as follows: "A cat may look at a king, but it upsets the natural order of things when the King looks at the cat."
"Songbird" by Karen Heenan is a richly-layered story with engaging, memorable characters that will keep a reader turning the pages to find out what happens next. It is a journey back in time to Renaissance England with universal themes of love, self-discovery, and redemption relevant to modern times. Highly Recommended.
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This book is so much more than the official blurb...
The official blurb, above, does not do this book justice. It's not that there's anything inaccurate about it, but this book is so much more than what's described. We first meet Bess when, as a young girl, she is taken to court by her father and left there. She's confused, she doesn't understand why she can't go home again and she's more than a little intimidated by having to sing in front of a giant. This giant, of course, turns out to be Henry VIII, and Bess has been sold to Henry so that she can join the King's Music. She's a young girl when this happens, and she's a young woman by the end of the book and so we really do see her grow up at court.We get a fascinating glimpse of that rich, vibrant Tudor court, and we do get to meet some key players there - as well as the king, we meet Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn and Thomas Wolsey. Bess, Tom, and their friends interact with these people, but the real drama is with the fictional characters, who walk a strange path between members of the court and the life of a servant. It's not a view which is often presented and I found the premise an interesting one.Tom and Bess' relationship is fraught with difficulties and what I enjoyed was how those difficulties were based on problems which arose from the historical setting. No one here steps out of their period, even for a second. Their attitudes and their circumstances are very 'Tudor', but within that, of course, there is scope for people to behave in very different ways. Bess matures in a believable way, as does Tom. Other characters, though minor, are well drawn: devout, tragic Agnes, Robin, and the minstrel Ewan, all have their distinct character traits.Bess' younger years are almost like being at boarding school, and she does come to view the court as her home. This is a mixed blessing for her and her dilemmas, longings and regrets felt very real.Ms Heenan uses the history well, tying in known events, such as the outbreak of the Sweating Sickness, to provide drama for her fictional characters. This too made their travails seem all the more real.Reviewed for Discovering Diamonds
