An entertaining read, although it does take some liberties with the history. Mary Boleyn was indeed Anne’s older (not younger) sister, and she was indeed Henry VIII’s mistress and bore him two children before her first husband died of plague, after which she remarried far below her rank and left her sister’s court. The rest of the details are a bit fantastical, but who cares? The soapy scheming of the various familial factions keeps the plot moving along nicely. The author does a nice job of keeping a period-sounding tone without becoming archaic, and beautifully describes the contrast between the luxury of the glittering, frenetically joyous court (which must please a spoiled monarch at all costs) and the far-less-sumtuous, earthy delights of country living.

A good beach book for history buffs.

I did not like it. In fact, I had to stop reading it because it was bothering me that much. Perhaps it redeemed itself further in, but I couldn’t get past the way the author rewrote history to suit the plot. I’ve read far too much non-fiction about the Tudors to really enjoy any fiction about it, so most likely this is my own personal bias and most people will enjoy the book. Just please don’t assume it’s true.

The Other Boelyn Girl is fascinating. This is my first truly enjoyable foray into historical fiction. Total page-turner, resulting in many late nights reading when I should have been sleeping. My only miniature complaint is that the subject material of the book probably isn’t interesting to a wide range of readers, making me less likely to get into a good conversation about this book.