Review: The Lost Book of Elizabeth Barton by Jennifer N. Brown

The Lost Book of Elizabeth Barton

by Jennifer N. Brown

Release Date: April 14, 2026

2026 St. Martin's Press

Ebook ARC; 320 Pages

ISBN: 978-1250383594

ASIN: B0F5PCC13S

Audiobook: B0G5HK7F63

Genre: Fiction / Historical / Tudor England

Source: Review copy from publisher

 

3 / 5 Stars

 

Summary

Historian Alison Sage has made a groundbreaking archival discovery―she found a manuscript containing the prophecies of a 16th century nun, Elizabeth Barton. Barton’s prophecy condemning Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn led to her execution and the destruction of all copies of her prophecies―or so the world believed.

With Alison’s discovery, she is catapulted to academic superstardom and scores an invitation to the exclusive Codex Consortium, a week of research among a select handful of fellow historians at a crumbling manor in England, located next to the ruins of the priory where Elizabeth herself once lived.

Alison’s cutthroat world of academia is almost as dangerous as Elizabeth Barton’s sixteenth-century England, where heretics are beheaded, visions can kill, and knowing who to trust is a deadly art. The Lost Book of Elizabeth Barton is a thrilling novel, crackling with the voices of the past and propelled by a mystery that will leave readers in suspense until the very last page.

 

My Thoughts

The Lost Book of Elizabeth Barton features the story of Elizabeth Barton who was a 16th century prophet who was eventually hanged at the age of 28 due to her conflict with King Henry VIII.  This book blends historical fiction, a mystery, a thriller, and a typed of locked-room thriller told through two distinct time lines, but I definitely felt like Elizabeth's voice was not really heard in her time line and couldn't really connect with her character.  

 

The first time line deals with Elizabeth Barton, from her life of servitude when she had her first vision to her eventual torture and death.  Told through a couple of POVs, I thought Elizabeth's was actually the weakest as she came across as confused half the time and although I think the author was trying to showcase how the men around her manipulated her into saying and doing things they wanted her to say and do, I don't think it came across very well, especially in the second half of the book.  Considering these men had to deal with King Henry VIII on a regular basis, I think they would have been far more subtle in their dealings with Elizabeth as they would know the end game if they were not careful.  Taking into account Elizabeth's lack of education, something that was mentioned a multitude of times, it is entirely possible she didn't listen to advice, especially as her fame grew, and she thought she would be protected by that, something that didn't really come through the pages very well.  There was a hint of her recklessness at times, and I did think that was more realistic, but I don't think it was because she wasn't counseled otherwise. Considering the circle who surrounded her, she would have been aware of the beheadings as well as the powerful people who had fallen under Henry VIII's axe by this point. She would have been cautioned to be careful and this wasn't highlighted enough.  I do believe she was manipulated and used politically as the events surrounding Henry VIII's marriage to Anne Boleyn were quite politically charged and the men surrounding the throne would have used whatever they could to either support or destroy the throne. Because she didn't grow up around the court, she didn't have the wisdom or the wiles to manoeuvre and play such dangerous games.

 

The second time line dealt with the present when the MC finds a journal supposedly written by Elizabeth Barton (no such thing has currently been found BTW), and embellished her advisor Edward Bocking (another real-life person from Elizabeth's circle). I enjoyed this time line for perhaps the first half of the book until it descended into a silly romance-type thing in the second half.  I am not a fan of romance, but can handle it if it's subtle and done well, but this was so annoying and I couldn't help rolling my eyes.  And while I also love mysteries and read a lot of them, this also descended into silliness.  I didn't enjoy the connection to Elizabeth Barton and the abbey and wished the author had just focused on that mystery as that was quite enjoyable.  While I don't mind the blending of multiple genres in a novel, they didn't quite work in this book and it ended up being distracting, to the point where something I was enjoying reading became something I just wanted to finish.  And that ending? Oh, yeah, there wasn't really one as it just ended.

 

Verdict

The Lost Book of Elizabeth Barton had some enjoyable moments to it and I did enjoy the mystery for the first half of the book.  It did lose me completely in the second half of the book as it descended into a murder mystery that really felt like it was pushing the boundaries of credibility. I did enjoy Elizabeth's story much more and wish the author had fleshed out Elizabeth's character quite beyond the one-dimensional person we saw in these pages and really showed the manipulation and political struggles that would have gone on during this time period as tensions were extremely high and things were quite dangerous.  The book was well-researched however, and I think readers will enjoy the descriptions of both time periods.