The Confession of Katherine Howard

"Definitely lesser Tudor fiction, nothing to compare with the sublime Phillipa Gregory or Carolly Erickson. It doesn't help that this episode deals with some of the stupidest and least appealing characters in the Tudor saga: hot-to-trot teen queen Katherine Howard and her far too merrie men. Kate's girlhood companion and frenemy, Catherine Tylney recounts the familiar tale of their debauched upbringing in the Howard household, of Kate's scheming ways, her unexpected elevation to queen, and the adulterous scandal that eventually trapped not only Kate and Catherine, but Catherine's beloved Francis. The naivete and innocence of the protagonists might be believable for those unfamiliar with the real story, but for Tudor-philes it will be hard to swallow. The real life Catherine and Francis were both accomplished schemers as well, who played loose and fast with the truth when it suited them. Neither had the slightest scruple about betraying Kate once their own lives were threatened."

"I give this a 3.5/5. It was bad, but it wasn't wow. I sometimes have a hard time with the story told in 1st person, so that might have an effect on how I rated this. Basically the story is told from a friend of Katherine Howard, Catherine Tilney and she tells us some of Katherine's story. She is not a Katherine that I would sympathize with - very selfish and self centered. Personally I want to feel sorry for Katherine, I have always pictured her a victim of her circumstances. What I mean by that is as a young girl in the Tudor era, she would have had little power over her own future and perhaps was forced into marrying the king by her power hungry family, but that's just my opinon."