Murder Most Royal

Murder Most Royal (a.k.a. The King's Pleasure) (1949) is an historical fiction novel by Jean Plaidy.

First edition (publ. Robert Hale)

The novel focuses on two of Henry VIII's wives, Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard. It begins with Anne as a young woman leaving for Brussels, then returning to England; her rise to power in the English court; her marriage to Henry VIII as his second wife; and her subsequent execution. In parallel, the life of Catherine Howard, Anne's first cousin, is also recounted. She becomes Henry VIII's fifth wife, but, after claims of adultery, is also executed.