Momma's Boy: Both Arthur and Harry are, most definitely, closer to their mother. Arthur allows her to fuss over him, which he doesn't allow others to do, and Harry is almost completely broken and barely able to function when his mother dies. In the beginning, the switching of POVs made some sense; something would happen to Catalina, then she would think about what happened. But towards the end, it seemed the POVs changed willy nilly. First person present now had action scenes, scenes where actual dialogue between characters was exchanged. In fact, the number of 1st person POVs increased towards the end, as if Gregory was tired of writing in 3rd person. Catherine of Aragon first appearance in the movie is shortly after giving birth to a male still born child. Catherine is devastated by the loss of another the child and apologizes to her only living child Mary for not producing a male heir to make England safe for her. I'm tired of writing this, but other characters are one-note. "Childish" Harry. "Lover" Arthur. "Crass" Henry. "Wise and respectable" Moor physician. I just get tired of seeing characters written as one thing and never given any chance to change or grow or be anything like a real person.

Gilligan Cut: One of Catherine's servants tells Lady Margaret that Catherine wants to arrive in London in a "special way." Margaret snorts "How does she want to arrive? In a gilded chariot driven by the horses of St. Mark's?" Cut to Catherine arriving behind Arthur's funeral procession (drawn by those very horses) riding a simple mule. The second season have this as well. Henry will dump Catherine for Anne Boleyn, and while they won't have any sons, their only daughter will be one of England's most powerful monarchs. But consequently, Spain will become one of England's rivals. Catherine of Aragon was not at all respectful to the body of James IV. The Scottish King's body was presented to her and she wanted to present his head to Henry VIII. She was dissuaded from doing so by the court and settled for his bloody cloak. In the novels and The Spanish Princess, Catherine and Arthur consummated their marriage. That however, is untrue.After the death of Arthur, the ambitious Katalina aims to marry Arthur's younger brother Henry Prince of Wales against the opposition of the king (who had himself hoped towed Catherine) and the dowager king's mother Margaret. On two occasions Katherine consults in secret with Yusuf, a Moorish physician. What does she come to realize about Yusuf during their clandestine meetings? How about the Moors in general and her mother's treatment of them in Spain? How does this realization impact her later decision not to lay waste to Scottish lands after she defeats them in battle? There are two types of narrations in this book, unlike the previous ones which were all in the first person. We have a third-person narration and also a first-person narration that is written in italic font. Not sure why Philippa decided to do that.

Awful Wedded Life: Meg, as the Scottish queen, is absolutely miserable taking care of her king's rowdy children that he refuses to round up or discipline, of which many are not even hers. This forms the base of the narrative. The truth is we will never know and historical novel writing is indeed about surmising and filling in the gaps. In reviewing the book, Publishers Weekly summarized the book as: "Gregory's skill for creating suspense pulls the reader along despite the historical novel's foregone conclusion." [1] The Historical Novel Society review wrote: "The facts are well known, but the way that Gregory tells the story is a wonder." [2] From #1 "New York Times "bestselling author and "queen of royal fiction" ("USA TODAY") Philippa Gregory comes the remarkable story of Katherine of Aragon, Princess of Spain, daughter of two great monarchs, and eventual Queen of England when she marries the infamous King Henry VIII. Catherine se simte singură, îi este dor de casă, în special de mama ei, regina Isabella I a Castiliei. Oficial este soția Prințului de Wales și este foarte sigură că într-o bună zi va fi regina Angliei. Lucrurile se desfășoară armonios, lin și într-o măsură deosebită pentru a capta atenția cititorului. Pe a mea a captat-o încă de la bun început. Situația se înrăutățește în momentul în care Arthur, soțul Catherinei, moare pe 2 aprilie 1502, lăsând-o pe aceasta văduvă. Statutul său devine foarte nesigur din cauza pierderii soțului său. În tot acest timp menit doliului pe care trebuie să-l poarte, Catherine se închide în sine, nu mai mănâncă, nu mai scoate nici măcar un singur sunet și unde o puneau să stea acolo stătea stană de piatră. Stă și se gândește la soțul ei pe care l-am iubit cu adevărat. M-au impresionat dialogurile lor, comportamentul lor, dar și faptul că din străini au ajuns să fie într-adevăr soț și soție. Moartea lui Arthur a lăsat-o într-o mare de neliniște, nesiguranță și singurătate.Aw, Look! They Really Do Love Each Other: Meg Tudor for all her frustration with her husband is crushed when he dies in battle, she tearfully describes him as the father of her sons and "her best friend".

Now, I'm no fan of Philippa Gregory. To be honest, I HATE the way she writes. She spins in circles, repeating the same crap over and over again. She includes tons of unneeded fillers. Ugh. I simply read her books because I like the history. Driven to Villainy: Princess Mary Tudor is portrayed this way. She is also more sympathetically portrayed in The Spanish Princess than she usually is. The Tudors also portrayed her as a tragic anti-villain. the first section of the novel is told from Margaret Tudor's perspective and as such Catherine is viewed as a rival if the attention and affection of the English court. Margaret envies Catherine and is also deeply mistrustful of her motives and she partially blames Catherine for the deaths of her brother, mother and infant sister. She also criticises the growing bond between Catherine and Princess Mary.Catherine speaks in English even when talking to her mother in Spain, and among her Spanish ladies-in-waiting. Justified in that Catherine is training to be the future Queen of England and integrate into the English court.