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    Anne Boleyn, A King's Obsession
    Anne Boleyn, A King's Obsession
    Anne Boleyn, A King's Obsession
    Audiobook19 hours

    Anne Boleyn, A King's Obsession

    Written by Alison Weir

    Narrated by Rosalyn Landor

    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.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateMay 16, 2017
    ISBN9781501948824
    Anne Boleyn, A King's Obsession

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    Reviews for Anne Boleyn, A King's Obsession

    4/5

    114 ratings6 reviews

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    • 5/5
      I'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

    • 4/5
      Its 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.
    • 4/5
      I 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.
    • 4/5
      Born 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.
    • 3/5
      This 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!
    • 4/5
      Book 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.