Tudors continues the comprehensive, multi-volume history of England Peter Ackroyd began in Foundations. Despite its title, however, this not merely "yet another Tudor book." By interweaving details of everyday life in the times of Henry VIII and Elizabeth I, Ackroyd continues to provide an accurate portrait of English life through the centuries while simultaneously warning against evaluating historical individuals by contemporary mores.
Beginning with the death of the first Tudor king, Henry VII, the book traces the reign of the notorious Henry VIII, followed in turn by his three children: Edward, Mary and Elizabeth I. Ackroyd's focus throughout is the extraordinary religious upheaval of the Tudor years--a revolution in English history. By focusing on religious changes and their effect on English society, Ackroyd presents the Tudors in a way frequently overlooked by other popular histories and novels, depicting them as a force that continues to affect both English and international societies today, rather than as an early-modern soap opera.
Ackroyd does not sacrifice character for plot. Each player in this real-life historical drama is clearly drawn, their major contributions and connections made apparent without losing the thread of the overall themes.
Tudors takes a comprehensive approach to early-modern English history that is rarely attempted, but is, in Ackroyd's hands, a success. --Dani Alexis Ryskamp, blogger at The Book Cricket