Zoe Williams’ important question about what lies behind the recent flood of retelling of Tudor history makes many interesting points, but misses the most important of all (‘Henry VIII is a serial killer and abuser’: why is Britain still so obsessed with the Tudors?, 12 November).
Tudor historical novels by a wide variety of superb writers have clearly involved deep research into the period. Hilary Mantel, CJ Sansom and Philippa Gregory are part of this trend. Their characters have to be recognisable to today’s readers; their actions have to be meaningful now. Williams’ article on this element is clear.
