Review: The Tudor Queens’ Midwife by Brigitte Barnard
Today, I'm delighted to welcome Brigitte Barnard to Ruins & Reading. I'm reviewing her evocative novel, The Tudor Queens’ Midwife. Have a look!
The Tudor Queens’ Midwife is currently on blog tour with The Coffee Pot Book Club. Find enticing excerpts, fascinating historical posts, and more HERE!
The Tudor Queens’ Midwife
Brigitte Barnard
The Tudor Queens’ Midwife is an unusual novel that addresses a number of issues you don't usually find in Tudor fiction. It makes for fascinating reading!
Told in first person through the eyes of first Sarah, a midwife, then later her daughter, Faith, The Tudor Queens’ Midwife is a moving story that takes you to the early years at the court of Henry VIII and Katherine of Aragon.
Sarah is a midwife who has come to the queen's attention by recommendation. What no one at court must know, though, is that Sarah and her family are Jewish. Exiled from Spain by the queen's parents, Isabella and Ferdinand, Sarah's family has led a double life in England. Ostensibly faithful to the Catholic faith, in secret, behind closed doors, they practice their traditional Jewish rituals under strict order that no word of it is mentioned to anyone outside.
This makes for great suspense from the beginning, as the danger is ever-present, and both Sarah and Faith – an English translation of her true name, Emunah – have to watch their every step.
Having a midwife as a main character is a new point of view, as it conveys the creates intimate setting – the bedchamber. Faith learns early in life that not all pregnancies end happily, when Katherine miscarries the first time. And in times when accusations can lead to execution, both women tread carefully.
As the years progress, Faith learns from her mother, and eventually replaces Sarah as the royal midwife. But with each failed pregnancy, Katherine's situation grows more and more precarious, and not even a surviving daughter can banish her worries.
Amidst all this, the queen's Spanish confidante, Maria de Salinas, seems to suspect them, as her attitude is dismissive and scheming.
And as Anne Boleyn's star begins to rise, we sense Katherine's despair through the Faith's eyes. As we know the history, we know the queen's plight, yet her growing sadness is heartbreaking.
At the same time, Sarah and Faith look after women in their own village, and beyond, and many bear healthy children, even though some struggle to feed them. The unfairness of it all is clear.
Will their true faith be uncovered, as the queen loses yet another babe? How do Sarah, Faith, and their family cope with leading a double life? Well, read the novel to find out!
Full of the joy and heartbreak of birth in equal measure, The Tudor Queens’ Midwife is a sensitively plotted novel that shows Katherine's growing distress in close, personal detail. This novel is not about courtly intrigues and politics, though we do get a strong sense of Henry's volatile character, with each failure by the queen to 'produce’ a surviving prince who lives beyond a few weeks.
It is an intimate portrait of the work of a midwife – the author's own profession – and as such, the tone of the narrative is different to other novels about the Tudors. The scenes of surviving children are full of celebration, though in poor cases often with a touch of uncertainty. But the scenes where babes are lost which are most affecting. Written in simple but effective detail, we feel for the queen and ordinary women with each failure.
The novel is written sensitively, and with great care in describing the emotional scenes with respect and honesty. The narrative shows how Sarah and Faith are affected by each lost child, although their faith does not see the babes in purgatory, as per the rules of the Catholic church. I must say I liked that thought, as how can an innocent be so damned in the eyes of an apparently otherwise caring God? For someone as devout as Katherine, that very thought of her children in hell must have been most distressing. An aspect one rarely reads about in Tudor fiction.
My only query would be about Faith's name, the background of which the author has Sarah cleverly explain to Katherine, but it would still have been unusual in those days, as Maria de Salinas’ reaction shows. There are also other hints in the book as to their religious background, which appear to be too easily overlooked. But this doesn't dent the enjoyment of the story.
The detailed description of the secret life as a Jewish family in (then still Catholic) Tudor England makes for fascinating reading, as traditions are observed in their own home, away from prying eyes. And Sarah's and Faith's conversations with the queen on the topic of faith add a wafer-thin layer of danger of being exposed at any point. The threat is ever-present, and it must have been such a worry for many Jews living undercover at the time.
The novel contains intimate details of the birthing process, which creates a close sense of 'being there' in the chamber. We witness a queen at her most vulnerable, just like other women. It's unnerving and intriguing at the same time.
Sensitive and utterly heartbreaking at times, The Tudor Queens’ Midwife is an evocative tale about the plight of women. In the birthing chamber, all women are equal. The emotions conveyed in the novel – sadness and joy, heartbreak and pain – give us a realistic glimpse into a world the male population in those days never got to witness. And given Henry's attitude, that's perhaps a blessing.
Readers of evocative historical fiction, with a sense of religious danger, will adore The Tudor Queens’ Midwife. It's well worth reading. 
In the glittering, glamorous, and deadly court of King Henry VIII and his Queen Katherine of Aragon, the desperate desire for a healthy male heir overshadows all. With each heartbreaking miscarriage, the queen's sense of duty and desperation deepen, her singular purpose clear; to secure a son for the English crown.
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Blurb:
Amidst this struggle, the queen turns to Sarah Menendez, a respected and highly skilled midwife. Sarah, exiled from her homeland, must serve the queen while concealing her true self. As Sarah strives to save Katherine from the perils of childbirth, the shadows of her own past threaten to unravel the carefully crafted identity Sarah has created for herself and her young daughter.
The Tudor Queens' Midwife is a gripping tale of secrecy, sacrifice, and religious turmoil amongst the most opulent court the world has ever seen.
Praise for The Tudor Queens’ Midwife:
“Empathetic, engaging, wonderfully written, this is a terrific 'Call the Midwife' Tudor tale.”
~ Wendy J. Dunn, award-winning Tudor author
“The Tudor Queens' Midwife views history through the unique characters of the women who helped to birth the royal Tudor children. It skillfully immerses us into the era, sharing the love and loss lived by both the queen and her midwives, illuminating the precarious balance of friendship and service to those with absolute power. It is a haunting yet gripping tale that will stay with the reader long after the last page is turned.”
~ Ashley Emma, USA Today Bestselling author of Undercover Amish
Buy Link: Universal Buy Link
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About the Author:
Brigitte Barnard
Brigitte Barnard is an amateur historian of Renaissance English history and an author of the trilogy The Tudor Queens' Midwife of which the first book in the series is available. She is currently writing a non-fiction book about Tudor midwifery for Pen and Sword publishing house.
She is a former homebirth midwife and she lives at home with her husband and four children. She also raises Cavalier King Charles spaniels.
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