FATAL THRONE is a collaboration between seven authors. M.T. Anderson fills the role and male voice of Henry VIII. The six female authors; Deborah Hopkinson, Lisa Ann Sandell, Stephanie Hemphill, Jennifer Donnelly, Linda Sue Park, and Candace Fleming; take on a queen a piece. The queens' stories are vastly different because of this. They are given depth and unique personalities. Katherine of Avalon is orderly, where as Anne of Cleves is having a poppy induced fever dream during her last days. No matter what, Anne Boleyn will always be the most vivacious.

It's hard to pick a favorite tale, all the queens have such life, until they don't. This is a work of fiction, so remember liberties are taken. Even so, I was sucked in imagining this world so far distant from today. Each queen is easily consumable on her own. I read them one at a time, with breaks in between, to better absorb and just feel for these women.

At the end of each queen's tale, it's Henry's turn. M.T. Anderson does an excellent job depicting the thoughts of this man with too much power, which is probably the politest way I can say it. These short additions link the timeline of the queens and shows Henry's perspective of meeting the next queen or why the previous one had to go.

I appreciate the level of thought placed on the design of the hardcover. Particularly, the dust jacket. The tear of blood is raised and glistens like fresh blood. Under the dust jacket, the Tudor rose is embossed on the cover. If you do buy a print version of this book, I highly recommend you go with the hardcover. It's a statement piece. The inside is just as stylistically designed. Each queen's story starts with a cover page with their motto and seal or crest. The text of the queens' stories is in a serif font, while Henry VIII is a sans serif. It creates a clear and visually jarring contrast, which I liked. Every time the font switched, I thought "what excuse is he going to spout now?" with a giant eye roll.

FATAL THRONE is a worthwhile read and certainly a departure from my typical romance. I thoroughly enjoyed this unique take on the lives of these seven very real people. I'm recommending this book left and right as my fellow Fresh Fiction book club members can attest.