Winner of 2017 Author of the YearBased on historical facts, Circle of Time weaves the story of time traveler Bridget Littleton, Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn, and Bridget’s ancestor Sir John Lyttleton, into a dramatic and fascinating tale of love and betrayal. A student of Tudor history for 50 years, author Debra Shiveley Welch tells the story of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn as she truly believes they … she truly believes they were, and unravels the complexities of Henrician politics.
When 21-year-old Bridget Littleton decides to borrow her father’s yacht and sail off of the tip of Florida toward Bermuda, she discovers that the legends about the Bermuda Triangle are true.
After seeing a face in the ocean waves, her next memory is of spinning water and blackness. She awakens in the town of Bristol England in the year 1532.
Rumors of her beauty reach the court, and soon Bridget, known as Bridge, finds herself in the court of Henry VIII and Lady in Waiting to none other than Anne Boleyn.
Will she get out alive? Will she accidentally change the course of history, or is she indeed a part of the history she has studied since she was a little girl?
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I LOVE time travel stories – I am a history buff and have always been fascinated by the idea of being able to witness history firsthand. That said, I don’t know how well I’d actually DO if I wound up lost in time – the protagonists of these stories so often seem to be in possession of EXACTLY the special skills or knowledge they need to succeed, and I don’t really have any such set of specialized abilities. This of course allows the author to create a story that overlooks the practical realities of being a twenty-first century person suddenly forced to survive without any of the modern conveniences – or sensibilities. Let’s be honest, for most of us, it would be more startling to suddenly find ourselves in a world where 3/4 of the population (at a minimum) was literally the property of the remaining percentage than it would to make do without modern toilet paper or cell phones… Regardless, the fun of these stories (at least for me) has always lied in the suspended disbelief – the ability to imagine that one could fit in as necessary to survive, such that one would be free to enjoy the ride.
Debra Shiveley Welch’s foray into time travel takes her protagonist, the wealthy ingenue Bridget Littleton, into the time of Henry VIII – and to a meeting with her own ancestors. Fortunately, Bridge is an expert in this time period (there is some explanation/rumination as to why this is in the story – to explain it would be a spoiler), so many of the issues of “fitting in” are tidily handled. But even so, Bridge still struggles a bit to make her way in a world where – quite literally – heads rolled if you stood out or the King took issue with you. I liked that aspect of the story very much – although it did make for some stilted-feeling self-aware inner monologues (mostly at the beginning, but occasionally throughout). Still, when one considers the inherent dangers in arriving in Tudor England at the time of Anne Boleyn, it made the story feel a little more resonant (and plausible). There were, however, a number of rather tidy coincidences and “oh come ON” moments, as Bridge navigated – and, let’s be honest, manipulated – the over-large personalities of Henry and Anne. These moments didn’t detract from the story, but they did occasionally make me roll my eyes or giggle to myself a little. Still, I enjoyed Bridge’s adventures – even if they made me suspend my disbelief rather more often than not.
Much of the story is not actually time travel – that’s more the set-up than the point. This is really a story about survival, about love and the dangers of absolute power. Welch’s writing style is easy to read and her characters – and the time period – are painted with lush, rich colors. There is a great deal of sympathy here, and it’s sympathy for characters that have been rather roundly denounced by history. I quite liked that element of the book. Rarely is anyone “good” or “bad” – although history tends to like to paint figures with those exceedingly broad brushes. I enjoyed seeing two sides to Anne and Henry, and to rethinking their places in history. Those elements of the story were handled quite well, I thought, and made what could have otherwise been a fine but pretty well-covered concept into a much more enjoyable read.
My review copy was provided by NetGalley.