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The book begins by introducing Kate, demonstrating how devastated by her death Elizabeth I was and then looking briefly at how history has interpreted Kate’s character ever since. There is something very poignant about the way in which Griggs paints a picture of the distraught Elizabeth, who shut herself away and refused to do state business for several days whilst she mourned Kat’s passing. Right from the start this felt like a very human story, and it is also clear that the research behind it is detailed and sound. The references are detailed and it would be easy to find the sources yourself if you wanted to undertake further research.

The extensive list of key personnel and the family trees included are invaluable, as the Champernownes, Kate’s birth family, are a complex lot, but here Griggs manages to untangle them admirably. It is obvious that she has undertaken a huge amount of detailed research on the family. I loved reading about Kate’s ancestors: William who escaped from St Albans only to die young and suddenly, Philip with his learned mind and Courtney connections - all were fascinating to learn about. Kate’s early life is likewise contextualised extremely well, we find out how she was connected to leading families at the Tudor court and how she came to the attention of important figures. I won’t spoil the book by giving too much away but Griggs illuminated for me a whole network of families which I only had a scant knowledge of.

The book moves through Kate’s life chronologically and one of my favourite sections was when we encountered George Carew again and events down in Devon as the ideas of the reformation began to take hold. This thorough approach allows us to place Kate, and look at her, in the full context of the world, and the family she was living in.

Part 2 moves on to look at Kate’s career, which is where we meet more familiar names such as Henry VIII and of course Elizabeth. I love the way Griggs intersperses her narrative with primary sources which illuminate her life and character - Roger Ascham’s words feature regularly as do those of men such as Sir Anthony Denny.

Of course the Thomas Seymour affair is mentioned and analysed through the eyes of Kate. Again I won’t say too much here, but I feel that Grigg’s scholarship here truly adds to our understanding of these events. There is also a fascinating Appendix which gives the best analysis of Sir Robert Tyrwhitt’s “confusing letter” of 1549 that I have ever read.

In case you haven’t guessed by now I thought this book was utterly brilliant. I really enjoyed it and it’s right up there as a contender for my book of the year. Anyone with an interest in history full stop should go out and buy it.

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