Secrets of the Tudor Court Boxed Set

For Discussion

1. How did the letters that opened each chapter impact your reading experience?

2. Consider Nan’s reflection: “How odd, she thought, that her mother believed bribes of wine or quails or jewelry were acceptable, but that offering one’s self in return for favors was a sin” (page 124). Do you agree with Nan’s suggestion of her mother’s hypocrisy, or do you think the form of bribery that Lady Lisle engages in is comparatively innocent? Why or why not?

3. What is your impression of Nan’s mother, Lady Lisle? Do you believe that she uses her daughters for her own advancement, or are her actions necessary for survival? Is she more powerful than her husband, Nan’s stepfather?

4. What does the conversation a young Wat Hungerford eavesdrops on between Lord Cromwell and Sir Gregory Botolph foreshadow?

5. Ned plots to court Cat so that he may continue seeing Nan (pages 54–55). What, if anything, do you think this says about his character? How does Ned evolve in this story? What effect does his innocent involvement in Cromwell and Botolph’s plot, including his subsequent imprisonment in the Tower, have on his character?

6. Compare Nan and Ned. Although their destinies diverge, do they share similar ambitions? Would they have made a successful marriage, had Nan accepted Ned’s proposal?

7. Nan’s priorities and desires change throughout the course of the novel. What events account for the change in her sense of purpose? Can you identify any particular turning point for her character?

8. Why does King Henry befriend Nan and grant her favors, even after he marries Catherine Howard? How do Nan’s interactions with Henry maintain his respect and favor toward her?

9. When Catherine Howard’s flirtations with other men in the court begin to get noticed, Nan vows to stay uninvolved. “A remark Catherine Howard had once made, back when she was a maid of honor, niggled at Nan’s memory. She did not wish to examine it closely. It was not safe to know too much, she reminded herself again. Nor was it wise to speculate” (page 287). To what remark is Nan referring? What dangers does Nan avoid by refusing to make further conjecture?

10. Why does Nan surreptitiously orchestrate Henry’s marriage to Kathryn Parr?

11. What does Nan’s marriage to Wat Hungerford indicate about her development as a character?