Audiobook19 hours
Anne Boleyn, A King's Obsession
Written by Alison Weir
Narrated by Rosalyn Landor
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
()
About this audiobook
A novel filled with fresh insights into the story of Henry VIII's second-and most infamous-wife, Anne Boleyn. The new book in the epic Six Tudor Queens series, from the acclaimed historian and bestselling author of Katherine of Aragon. It is the spring of 1527. Henry VIII has come to Hever Castle in Kent to pay court to Anne Boleyn. He is desperate to have her. For this mirror of female perfection he will set aside his Queen and all Cardinal Wolsey's plans for a dynastic French marriage. Anne Boleyn is not so sure. She loathes Wolsey for breaking her betrothal to the Earl of Northumberland's son, Harry Percy, whom she had loved. She does not welcome the King's advances; she knows that she can never give him her heart. But hers is an opportunist family. And whether Anne is willing or not, they will risk it all to see their daughter on the throne.
More audiobooks from Alison Weir
Mary Boleyn: The Great and Infamous Whore Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lady in the Tower: The Fall of Anne Boleyn Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Six Wives of Henry VIII Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Lancaster and York Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Elizabeth of York Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Innocent Traitor: A Novel of Lady Jane Grey Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Katherine Swynford Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Katharine Parr, the Sixth Wife Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Queens of the Crusades: Eleanor of Aquitaine and her Successors Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Last White Rose: A Novel of Elizabeth of York Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Queens of the Conquest Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lost Tudor Princess Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Isabella: She-Wolf of France Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Dangerous Inheritance: A Novel of Tudor Rivals and the Secret of the Tower Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Marriage Game Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Ring and the Crown Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related to Anne Boleyn, A King's Obsession
Titles in the series (5)
Jane Seymour: The Haunted Queen Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Anna of Kleve, The Princess in the Portrait Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Katherine of Aragon, The True Queen: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Katheryn Howard, the Scandalous Queen Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related audiobooks
Jane Seymour: The Haunted Queen Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Last Boleyn: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Portrait of an Unknown Woman: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Katheryn Howard, the Scandalous Queen Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Anna of Kleve, The Princess in the Portrait Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Katherine of Aragon, The True Queen: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Katharine Parr, the Sixth Wife Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Innocent Traitor: A Novel of Lady Jane Grey Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Dangerous Inheritance: A Novel of Tudor Rivals and the Secret of the Tower Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Marriage Game Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Last White Rose: A Novel of Elizabeth of York Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lost Tudor Princess Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Queens of the Conquest Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Boleyn Inheritance: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Isabella: She-Wolf of France Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Queens of the Crusades: Eleanor of Aquitaine and her Successors Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Boleyn Inheritance Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Other Boleyn Girl Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Young and Damned and Fair: The Life of Catherine Howard, Fifth Wife of King Henry VIII Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Other Queen: A Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Virgin's Lover Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Taming of the Queen Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Constant Princess Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Three Sisters, Three Queens Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Mistress Anne Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Last Tudor Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5She-Wolves: The Women Who Ruled England Before Elizabeth Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Queen's Gambit: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Mademoiselle Boleyn Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Ring and the Crown Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Historical Fiction For You
And Then There Were None Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lost Apothecary: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Outlander Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5All the Light We Cannot See: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Tom Lake: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Tattooist of Auschwitz: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Huntress: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Cloud Cuckoo Land: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Song of Achilles: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Lady Tan's Circle of Women Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Weyward: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Reformatory: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The House of Eve Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Rose Code: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Book of Lost Names Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5That Bonesetter Woman: the new feelgood novel from the author of The Smallest Man Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Beneath a Scarlet Sky: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Dragon Teeth: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Alice Network: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Murder on the Orient Express: A Hercule Poirot Mystery: The Official Authorized Edition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Schindler's List Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Perfume: The Story of a Murderer Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5News of the World: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5West with Giraffes: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Let Us Descend: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The River We Remember: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Strange Case of the Alchemist's Daughter Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Rules of Magic: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The House Is on Fire Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Neon Gods Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related categories
Reviews for Anne Boleyn, A King's Obsession
Rating: 4.130434855652174 out of 5 stars
4/5
115 ratings6 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I've read many books on this subject but never has it felt so real. I just finished and my heart is still pounding.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Its a very brave author to take on a Tudor subject in the wake of the Wolf Hall juggernaut, but veteran Alison Weir, with the confidence of being a respected Tudor historian in her own right, has launched into a series of 6 novels dealing with each of Henry's wives, Anne, naturally, being the second in the series. Weir takes Anne's story from being a young naive provincial girl, sent to the most dazzling courts in Europe, where she learns to dress, act and flirt like a court lady, but her horror at finding that one of her friends has been raped by a royal, and she begins to develop decidedly feminist ideals. Returning to England she caches the idea of the still young and attractive King Henry, who's own marriage has gone cold due to lack of a male heir. Anne is not at all attracted to Henry, she has lost her heart to another, but under pressure from her family, she begins to see the advantages of being the King's favourite but will accept nothing less than being Queen. She guards her virginity zealously for long years before the King can make her his wife, but her desires are ultimately disappointed by her failure to produce a son, the continuing dislike of her subjects, who want Queen Katherine back, and her husband's failure to subdue the resistance of her stepdaughter Mary. All the while she nurses her secret desire for her real love, and in the end it an an innocent moment with him that proves her downfall. Her end is tragically well-known but Weir gives it an extra tinge of horror by positing that Anne remains conscious for several seconds after he decapitation. Weir's Anne is smart, vivacious, and bold, she can also be waspish and brutal when it comes to ensuring her percieved place in the world. This is a tidy book, somewhat spoiled by a long drag in the middle, but well-realised and well-crafted. Worth reading by anyone who loves the Tudor period.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I found this book to be a vast improvement from the first in the series in several ways. First, the writing seemed to be much more lively. In the book on Anne Boleyn's predecessor the writing was stiff, whereas here it was more down-to-earth. Possibly the difference had to do with the subject. Second, I found the story from Anne's POV to be much more entertaining, and believable. Most books that I've read on Anne Boleyn with a 3 person narrative tended to make her out to be a scheming hateful person, but she comes across much better in this book.However, as much as I enjoyed these differences there were still aspects that could stand some improvement. The book could have stood additional editing - there were way too many detailed scenes that could have been eliminated and the story still would have been just as good. The first half /three quarters of the book had Anne as a strong decisive woman, but the last section has her as a whiny paranoid hag. Only the last scenes with her in the tower redeemed the last section.Overall, a fascinating look at a woman who may have only wanted to improve the world and had to take Henry VIII as a husband to do it.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Born into a noble English family, Anne is barely a teenager when she is sent from her family's Hever Castle to serve at the royal court of the Netherlands. This strategic move on the part of her opportunistic father also becomes a chance for the girl to grow and discover herself. There, and later in France, Anne thrives, preferring to absorb the works of progressive writers rather than participate in courtly flirtations. She also begins to under the inequalities and indignities suffered by her gender. Anne isn't completely inured to the longings of the heart, but her powerful family has ambitious plans for her future that override any wishes of her own. When the King of England himself, Henry VIII, asks Anne to be his mistress, she spurns his advances - reminding him that he is a married man who has already conducted an affair with her sister, Mary. Anne's rejection only intensifies Henry's pursuit, but in the absence of a male heir - and given an aging Queen Katherine - the opportunity to elevate and protect the Boleyn family, and to exact vengeance on her envious detractors, is too tempting for Anne to resist, even as it proves to be her undoing.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5This biography of Anne Boleyn is told in minute detail, and could perhaps have benefited from some editing which would have reduced the 500+ page book by about 150 pages or so. The best part was the last couple of chapters when Anne is awaiting trial and then death, and the recounting of the beheading itself was rather astounding, to say the least. Four more queens to go in this series!
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Book received from Net Galley.I have been a fan of this author's non-fiction books for years, but I wasn't sure about her switch to historical fiction. Sometimes, though an author excellent in one genre, trying to write in another doesn't go so well. So I was pleasantly surprised that I enjoyed this book so much. She did really well in combining the fictional elements with the historical to flesh out the part of Queen Anne Boleyn's life that we don't know much about, especially her childhood. It made her a bit more human, rather than just a part of history, for me. I cannot wait to read the rest of the books in this series.