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The Last Wife of Henry VIII: A Novel Audiobook
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(3.00) - 5,604 listener ratings
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From the luxuries of court to the last gory years of the outsize King Henry when heads rolled and England trembled, Catherine bestrode her destiny and survived to marry her true love. She was the least known of Henry VIII's six wives, but was the cleverest of them all. Alluring, witty and resourceful, she attracted the king's lust and, though in love with the handsome Thomas Seymour, was thrown into the snakepit of the royal court. While victims of the king's wrath suffered torture and execution, Catherine withstood the onslaught, even when Henry sought to replace her with a seventh wife. She survived her royal husband, and found happiness with Seymour—but it was shadowed by rivalry with the young Princess Elizabeth, whose affection Seymour coveted. Catherine won the contest, but at great cost.
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"Will I ever grow tired of hearing about pimptastic Henry and his poor wives? Doubtful. This book was fascinating because it spanned the history of them all and, through the eyes of his last wife Katharine Parr who survived Henry and knew him from the time she was a child, showed a really interesting character portrait of him across his lifetime as king. Particularly in his end years when he was obese, ill, paranoid, cruel, and impotent (yet still, as always, magically expecting a son), he is more like a cautionary character from Chaucer rather than a king. I grew a bit weary of Kat's melodrama; some of the scenes could be straight out of All my Children or something, but--as with The Other Boleyn Girl--I couldn't wait to find out what happened next, even though I sort of knew where it was headed (no pun intended)."
— Stacey (4 out of 5 stars)
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“The author of more than twenty historical works, Erickson brings the life of Catherine Parr, Henry VIII’s last wife, to us in her own words. Erickson knows her history and lures readers into the psyches of flesh-and-blood people, not textbook personages. This is a mark of a gifted biographer and storyteller rolled into one.”
— RT Book Reviews (4½ stars) -
“Erickson is an acclaimed biographer, and Maggi-Meg Reed superbly reads the account as Marie Antoinette might have read it to her grandchildren, had she survived. Between the author and the performer, the listener is drawn into the queen's innermost thoughts so that we feel her joys, her fears, and her sufferings while she struggles to maintain her regal disposition.
— AudioFile on The Hidden Diary of Marie Antoinette -
I read The Hidden Diary of Marie Antoinette in two days, and when I finished it, I reread the final pages, as hungry for more as a child scraping the last crumbs of chocolate cake off her plate with her fingers.... This may be pure fiction, but it hardly matters. As the chronicle of one woman's life and loves, The Hidden Diary of Marie Antoinette rings true.
— Judith Warner, The New York Times
The Last Wife of Henry VIII Listener Reviews
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" Each historical fiction writer has her/his own historical truth to tell. "
— Lily, 1/29/2014 -
" Oh to be a Queen.... I think not! "
— Tammy, 1/27/2014 -
" Very little depth or emotion shown by Catherine, or Henry. Interesting enough to try another of the authors books, but not a must read. "
— Allison, 1/24/2014 -
" Standard Tudor fare but a quick, light (to the extent that regular beheadings can be light) and interesting read. "
— Diane, 1/17/2014 -
" Love this time period, and always interested in reading about the wives of Henry VIII. "
— Sue, 1/7/2014 -
" I did not review this last night, because I read and read until I could get to the end of this book. I have to say that, while I did not love it, the story in The Last Wife of Henry VIII is still an entertaining read. The store follows Catherine Parr and her life as she watches the wives of Henry rise and fall around her. Catherine Parr is a confusing character, and perhaps, she was in life and the fiction follows. However, I found her wishy-washy. At times, she seems to be a complete puppet, and other times, she seems to be on the verge of breaking out of the mold, but never quite gets there. There was portions of religion, which Catherine seemed to have an interest take on, but much of it was glossed over for the historical part of the story. Most of the male characters are not likable in this book, and, I think that it would have been nice to have at least one. Those that are seem to be on the side or have terrible things happening to them. The ending, while I won't give it away, left me wondering what this story wanted me to get out of it. That all said, it is still an entertaining book. There are still character interactions which are lively and interesting. There is some plotting that really catches the reader and makes it worthwhile to read. If you are looking for a historical novel with a strong female character, though, this simply is not it. Catherine is far too meek to be a strong heroine and the book suffers because of this. "
— Leah, 1/1/2014 -
" I enjoyed this book. I am not sure how accurate all the history is, but enjoyable nonetheless. "
— Marsha, 12/30/2013 -
" Love, love histroical fiction. The twists and turns of historical royalty really get my attention. A great read. "
— Patty, 12/29/2013 -
" Much better and more believable than Josephine. Again, it is historical fiction, but I liked this one better. Maybe because I liked the characters more. Good read "
— Angie, 12/18/2013 -
" Quick read. Such a sad period of time. "
— Suzanne, 12/7/2013 -
" This book would of been a lot better without the cheesy love scenes....and worth another star. Erickson's expertise on the time period makes the story fascinating, but I think I'll stick with her non-fiction. "
— Olivia, 12/6/2013 -
" Carolly Erickson is really good at making history, readable. I wasn't really interested in reading another King Henry VIII book, but when I opened this one, I couldn't put it down. It's a fast, interesting, easy read. "
— Kristina, 12/2/2013 -
" I'm a sucker for the Tudor era, so I'll read most anything concerning them. This wasn't great, more soap-opery than I really wanted, but let's face it - Henry VIII was a walking soap opera. Overall, an enjoyable read. "
— Bookho, 10/24/2013 -
" I'm a sucker for historic fiction, but it needs to have more history to it than this. Inventing stuff is a writer's prerogative, sure, but things that really happened shouldn't get changed too much. And she writes cute. So okay, I like historic fiction but with a little bit of bite, mayhaps? "
— Wendy, 6/9/2013 -
" It was alright. From other reviews I have read, it was not as historically accurate as I would have liked, but it was interestingly. I find Philipa Gregory's writing to be more captivating. "
— Emily, 6/5/2013 -
" I am sucker for historical novels but this was not historically correct. That being said, it was a good book "
— Sandie, 4/24/2013 -
" Very entertaining and well written. The author does a dynamite job of combining historical fact with dramatics. "
— Gemma, 11/5/2012 -
" Absolutely spectacular! So much drama and suspense! Hard to believe it's historical fiction! "
— Evelyn, 10/28/2012 -
" Erickson doesn't write as well as Alison Weir or especially Margaret George, but this was OK. "
— Cathy, 8/28/2012 -
" Loved this historical fiction! Made me want to read more books by this author. "
— B.J., 6/11/2012 -
" Definitely adding more Carolly Erickson novels to my reading list. Loved this! "
— Rebecca, 5/15/2012 -
" I am not a big fan of historical novels, but this was pretty good, very interesting. "
— Helayna, 12/7/2011 -
" I LOVED it!! It was so interseting to read from this girls perspective, especially since she "knew" most of the wives of Henry and saw what they went through! "
— Valerie, 10/18/2011 -
" Having been a fan of The Tudors and Carolly Erickson, this was a natural combination for me. I really liked the book, I just wish the ending were different and less abrupt. "
— Jenelle, 7/30/2011 -
" Catherine Parr was a wonderful character to read about, and it was fun to see King Henry VIII through her eyes. This book is definitely worth reading. "
— Allison, 7/11/2011 -
" I was very pleased with this book. Erickson did a great job tying the fiction to the history of this strong woman's life. A fantastic read! "
— Stacey, 5/17/2011 -
" Although this book shows Catherine parr as being a weak whiny stupid broad, it's a decent read. It does not compare to philippa Gregory at all, so if you're looking for that type of book (the other boelyn girl etc) skip this. "
— Chelsea, 4/19/2011 -
" enjoyable historical fiction read. interesting and I liked that it covered all 6 of his wives. "
— Sharon, 3/28/2011 -
" Very easy read, it was perfect for my plane ride to Boston. You get fully immersed in the book. Plus I love reading how one ups another. Oh and Henry VIII is always an interesting figure to read about. "
— Lorik, 2/19/2011 -
" This book would of been a lot better without the cheesy love scenes....and worth another star. Erickson's expertise on the time period makes the story fascinating, but I think I'll stick with her non-fiction. "
— Olivia, 1/11/2011 -
" It was alright. From other reviews I have read, it was not as historically accurate as I would have liked, but it was interestingly. I find Philipa Gregory's writing to be more captivating. "
— Emily, 1/1/2011 -
" Another great read by Carolly Erickson! I can't decide between the first Catherine or the last as my favorite wife. They are all so tragic, it's no wonder they are the subject of so many books. I can't wait for the next lady that Ms. Erickson writes about. "
— Amy, 11/24/2010 -
" Good telling of the time of Henry VIII from the view of Catherine Parr - a daughter of one of Catherine of Aragon's ladies-in-waiting. "
— Deb, 10/12/2010
About Carolly Erickson
Carolly Erickson is the bestselling author of many distinguished works of nonfiction and a series of historical entertainments, blending fact and invention. Her historical biographies include The Hidden Diary of Marie Antoinette, The First Elizabeth, Her Little Majesty, and Alexandra. She lives in Hawaii.
About Terry Donnelly
Terry Donnelly is a narrator and an actress who has appeared on television in Law & Order. She is the narrator of more than a dozen audiobooks, and her reading of Quentins by Maeve Binchy was a finalist in 2003 for the prestigious Audie Award in the category of Solo Narration – Female. She earned an AudioFile Earphones Award for her reading of The Gathering by Anne Enright in which she was praised for “capturing [the author’s] every subtlety.”