The Catherine Howard Conspiracy

Written by Alexandra Walsh

Narrated by Emma Gregory

Whitehall Palace, England, 1539

When Catherine Howard arrives at the court of King Henry VIII to be a maid of honour in the household of the new queen, Anne of Cleves, she has no idea of the fate that awaits her.

Catching the king's fancy, she finds herself caught up in her uncle's ambition to get a Howard heir to the throne. Terrified by the ageing king after the fate that befell her cousin, Anne Boleyn, Catherine begins to fear for her life . . .

Pembrokeshire, Wales, 2018

Dr Perdita Rivers receives news of the death of her estranged grandmother, renowned Tudor historian Mary Fitzroy. Mary inexplicably cut all contact with Perdita and her twin sister, Piper, but she has left them Marquess House, her vast estate in Pembrokeshire.

Perdita sets out to unravel their grandmother's motives for abandoning them, and is drawn into the mystery of an ancient document in the archives of Marquess House, a collection of letters and diaries claiming the records of Catherine Howard's execution were falsified . . .

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc
• Release date: Dec 17, 2019
• ISBN: 9781515941491

Alexandra Walsh

Alexandra Walsh is the bestselling author of dual timeline historical mysteries. Her books range from the fifteenth century to the Victorian era and are inspired by the hidden voices of women that have been lost over the centuries. Formerly a journalist, writing for national newspapers, magazines and TV.

Reviews for The Catherine Howard Conspiracy

[Ina Henseler · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Silliest book I've ever read.
And I read Twilight. Horrible.

[vesper1931 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

London 1539 and Catherine Howard has arrived at court to be a maid of honour to Anne of Cleves. Unfortunately for her she catches the eye of Henry VIII and her fate has been sealed.
Modern day and Dr Perdita Rivers is on a dig when she is informed of the death of her estranged grandmother, an esteemed history author.
Two stories, one of Catherine Howard's life and a what if, and one of Perdita and what she discovers of Catherine's life.
I found the historical story much more interesting probably because I have an interest in history, and I couldn't take to the character of Perdita.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book

[vanessacw · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Book one of a new trilogy, this is a gripping conspiracy style, dual timeline thriller set in the present day and in the 16thC. Archaeologist Dr Perdita Rivers inherits Marquess House in Pembrokeshire, a stately home with a mysterious past connected to Henry VIII’s fifth ill-fated wife. As skeletons in the closet are discovered, it becomes a matter of life and death to unearth the truth.I thought this was a well researched and written tale. I liked the writing style, it’s easy to read. It’s very exciting in places, so much so that I found it difficult to put down. I was eagerly turning the pages to find out what happened next. A lot of thought, imagination and effort has gone into this story. It skillfully combines historical fact with fiction. I did have to suspend belief at times as it does stray into the ‘Da Vinci Code’ arena but, nevertheless, I found it very entertaining. It’s a fabulous and impressive debut which I thoroughly enjoyed. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the trilogy, The Elizabeth Tudor Conspiracy.Many thanks to Sapere for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

[cathyskye · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Sometimes I like to sit back and wonder "What if?" I was just in the mood to do that, and Alexandra Walsh's The Catherine Howard Conspiracy was just the book satisfy my craving. The tale is told in two timelines. One in 2018 in the fabulous Marquess House in Pembrokeshire, Wales; the second beginning in 1539 when Catherine Howard arrives at Henry VIII's court to be maid of honor in the household of his new bride, Anne of Cleves.For the first half of the book, the Catherine Howard timeline was much the better. I have read quite a bit of Tudor history, and at first my reaction to Walsh's portrayal of Howard was, "Wait a second... I've been told that she was a flibbertigibbet whose only interests were flirting, gossiping, dancing, and the latest fashions?" Then I remembered two things. The history of that period was written by men-- mostly in the employ of the king-- so who knows what Catherine was really like? And... this is fiction. Let's see where the story goes.I loved where the story went. Total willing suspension of disbelief here. The portrayal of Henry VIII fit my personal opinion of the man, the political machinations were pitch perfect, and Walsh had me living with these characters in the 1540s.Not so much in 2018 with Dr. Perdita Rivers. Since childhood, she's been estranged from her Tudor historian grandmother, Mary Fitzroy, and when Fitzroy dies and leaves her (and her twin sister Piper) her entire estate, Perdita spends way too much time moaning about poor little me, my grandmother never treated me right. Evidently I'm more mercenary; I would've cut the old girl some slack because of the centuries-old Marquess House and its fabulous research center filled with ancient documents and other treasures.The first half of The Catherine Howard Conspiracy was extremely slow. It took too long to set the stage-- especially with Perdita and Piper, whose nicknames (Perds and Pipes)-- were over-used and drove me batty. Halfway in, characters stopped calling the two by their nicknames, and they put their shoulders to the wheel to begin piecing together the mystery of Catherine Howard. That is when the story really took flight. I may have had a couple of other minor concerns, i.e. the Duke of Norfolk's behavior at the end of the book and the feeling that MI One seemed a bit far-fetched, but having read the entire story, I now have an idea of where book two in this trilogy is going... and I can't wait to get my hands on it.Love to read tales of Tudor England? I think there's an excellent chance you'll really enjoy Alexandra Walsh's The Catherine Howard Conspiracy.