4Attractive, wealthy and influential, Katherine Willoughby is one of the most unusual ladies of the Tudor court. A favourite of King Henry VIII, Katherine knows all his six wives, his daughters Mary and Elizabeth, and his son Edward, as well as being related by marriage to Lady Jane Grey.

When her father dies, Katherine becomes the ward of Tudor knight, Sir Charles Brandon. Her Spanish mother, Maria de Salinas, is Queen Catherine of Aragon's lady in waiting, so it is a challenging time for them all when King Henry marries the enigmatic Anne Boleyn.

Following Anne's downfall, Katherine marries Brandon, and becomes Duchess of Suffolk. After the death of Jane Seymour, and the short reign of young Catherine Howard, Katherine and Brandon are chosen to welcome Anna of Cleves to England.

When the royal marriage is annulled, Katherine's good friend, Catherine Parr becomes the king's sixth wife, and they work to promote religious reform. Katherine's young sons are tutored with the future king, Prince Edward, and become his friends, but when Edward dies his Catholic sister Mary is crowned queen. Katherine's Protestant faith puts her family in great danger - from which there seems no escape.

Katherine's remarkable true story continues the epic tale of the rise of the Tudors, which began with the best-selling Tudor trilogy and concludes with the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.

"Tony Riches, delivers a vividly descriptive, interesting, and well-written read here with characters and a setting that totally captivated and intrigued me. I was totally taken and fascinated with historically political drama that unfolds within the Tudor Court.." Verified Amazon Reviewer

'Katherine the Duchess' is a novel which gripped me from the start and I felt great empathy for this strong but extremely wise lady who trod a silken threaded path through life joy fortune but great danger. Highly Recommended. Diana Jackson

"Katherine Willoughby finally gets her time to shine in Tony Riches' conclusion to his Tudor trilogy." Review at Adventures of a Tudor Nerd