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Six Tudor Queens: Katharine Parr, The Sixth Wife
- Six Tudor Queens, Book 6
- Narrated by: Beth Eyre
- Length: 19 hrs and 17 mins
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Summary
Alison Weir, historian and author of the Sunday Times best-selling Six Tudor Queens series, recounts the story of Henry VIII's last wife - Katharine Parr, the queen who survived him.
A woman torn between love and duty.
Two husbands dead, a boy and a sick man. And now Katharine is free to make her own choice.
The ageing king's eye falls upon her. She cannot refuse him...or betray that she wanted another.
She becomes the sixth wife - a queen and a friend. Henry loves and trusts her. But Katharine is hiding another secret in her heart, a deeply held faith that could see her burn....
Katharine Parr. Henry's final queen. Her story.
Renowned, best-selling historian Alison Weir reveals a warm, clever woman of great fortitude who rose boldly to every turn her life took.
Critic reviews
"This brilliant series has brought Henry VIII's six wives to life as never before. This novel will enthral and inspire, just as much as it will break your heart." (Tracy Borman)
"Katharine Parr deserves better than to be known just as Henry VIII's sixth wife - the one who survived. And there's no-one better placed than Alison Weir to restore her to her rightful place." (Sarah Gristwood)
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- ChrisintheNorth
- 17-11-21
Spoiled by the narration.
The storyline was excellent but was ruined by the flat, almost deadpan narration which drained all tension from work. Obviously it is down to personal preference but I felt this narrator drained the story of all life. Her soft toneless rendering was more suited to a child’s bedtime story and at times was at clear odds with the character she was representing. I am a great fan of Alison Weir but perhaps it would be better to actually read, rather than listen.
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- S. Morris
- 30-06-21
A Worthy End To A Magnificent Series
Catherine Parr is perhaps one of the most forgotten about queens of Henry VIII. Probably because she outlived him and not being divorced from him as Anna of Cleaves was. History has appeared to focus more on the other queens and so it was with anticipation I awaited the release of this final book in the Six Tudor Queen series. This series as a whole has to be one of Alison Weir's finest works, a masterpiece of story telling and has, for me, been a rich tapestry of the period covered.
Alison Weir, being an esteemed historian, has a solid knowledge of known facts to work with, but what perhaps is her strength is her ability to weave a convincing narrative around those facts that really fleshes out the bones of history. These fictionalized treatments of history fill in the gaps that the text books cannot provide. however, Weir doesn't indulge in flights of fancy and comes up with highly plausible fictionalized sections that cover periods little known about as well as connecting specific events that may have little by way of historical documentation.
All the books in this series achieve this seamlessly with the known facts. Reading these stories really gives one a sense of the personalities, their lives and how they fit into history far more so than a dry history book.
One such example of how Weir is able to draw together known traits, behaviours and likely reasons for the way people act is the famous scene where the young Elizabeth, future queen of England, has her clothes cut to shreds. Now, to be honest, I am not sure if history tells us what the precise rationale was for this and, more importantly, why Catherine seemingly tolerated it by holding Elizabeth while her husband cut her clothes off, but if not, then Weir does a good job of explaining Catherine's behaviour that day.
I imagine that the early life of Catherine left Weir having to create a back story as I would imagine there is little source material from which to work with. This has probably been the case to varying degrees for other books in this series where Weir has to work harder to produce a believable history that fits with the known facts. If I had any criticism, it would be that those early years are rather a slow preface to the main events. I do understand, though, why Weir had to do this, so I'm not marking the book down for this, it's just my only minor niggle.
Narration is handled by Beth Eyre, whom I previously had no experience of. She is a competent narrator, but I did feel that in the earlier part of the book that she read rather quietly, as if reading a story to a child in bed. It wasn't until much later into the book that she appears to become a little more confident. I did note that she pronounced the word ;uncle' rather oddly, as if the word began with an 'O', sounding more like Oncle.
Having now completed this epic series, it would be interesting if Weir turned her considerable abilities to writing fictionalized books on some of the men in this pivotal period of English history. Weir has, for the most part, focused her efforts on the women of the period and done an amazing job of it. However, I'd love to see her also write about the key men that surrounded and influenced Henry VIII. Men such as Thomas Woolsey, Thomas Cromwell, Thomas Cranmer. Thomas Moore and Stephen Gardiner all spring to mind. Perhaps Weir might create a series to do just that. It might be called 'The kings Men' :)
In addition, Weir might write books focusing on the Seymour brothers, Edward and Thomas who feature in this book. They both suffer ignominious downfalls soon after the events of this book. Catherine's husband, Thomas Seymour, only lived a scant six months or so after the birth of their daughter and the story behind his and his brother's fall from grace must be a rich source from which to draw from.
This is a worthy conclusion to this magnificent series from Weir and I look forward to what she may have next in the works.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Peter Dobbing
- 04-03-24
Immersive and revelatory
Expertly and expressively read by Beth Eyre, this is a gripping and immersive account of the vicissitudes of the life of Henry Tudor's last wife. Her gradual transition from Catholic orthodoxy to reformed Christianity is sensitively and convincingly handled. A superb listening experience.
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- Louise Harris
- 11-01-24
Fascinating story
I really enjoyed this book, as I have the previous five. It was fascinating to hear about Catherine Parr's life before she became Queen, which I knew little about.
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- DACT
- 07-09-23
Fabulous
Very engaging and reminds us there is nothing new under the sun regarding political intrigue, human behaviour and love. For me a fascinating dip into our rich English heritage and history. Well worth a guided visit to Sudeley Castle
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- Vicky
- 23-07-23
Wonderful
Another great book. Sad to have completed this series. Loved it. I’m going to try the rest of her books.
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- RM M
- 09-06-23
Disappointed to a degree
Too much use of modern day language. I wanted to know what happened with her daughter and husband as they were part of her story as well.
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- Jacqueline Howard
- 07-06-23
Brilliant book
I have listened to the whole series of books about each of Henry viii wives and I have loved them all! All brilliantly narrated and each book gives a really amazing account of each woman and insight into the culture of that time. What a hugely difficult and dangerous time to live in. Thank you Alison, just brilliant!
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- Helen Cutler
- 14-10-22
Wonderful book and well chosen narrator!
This book is not just about the marriage, but Katharine's life. When the novel begins, Katharine is just a young child; Henry is happily married to his first wife. Therefore, as Katharine grows older, Henry's marital issues are in the background. Only when it is Katharine's 'turn' at being Henry's wife, do we really get an insight into this infamous King.
You do not need to have read the other books to be able to enjoy this one. It's a very interesting book and the extent of Weir's research is incredible.
The narration was perfect.
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- Jack W.
- 10-07-22
Brilliant novel by Alison Weir
Well written novel. It was great to read about life after Henry VIII. Alison Weir manages to keep Thomas Seymour’s negative characteristics while seeing them through Katherine Parr’s loving eyes.
Good narrative, easy, slow paced and calming.
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