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  • Mary Boleyn

  • By: Alison Weir
  • Narrated by: Maggie Mash
  • Length: 13 hrs and 11 mins
  • 4.2 out of 5 stars (182 ratings)
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Mary Boleyn cover art

Mary Boleyn

By: Alison Weir
Narrated by: Maggie Mash
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Summary

Mary Boleyn was the mistress of two kings, Francois I of France and Henry VIII of England, and sister to Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII’s second wife. In this astonishing and riveting biography, Alison Weir’s extensive research gives a new and detailed portrayal, in which she recounts that, contrary to popular belief, Mary was entirely undeserving of her posthumous notoriety as a great whore.

©2011 Alison Weir (P)2011 W F Howes Ltd

What listeners say about Mary Boleyn

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Scholarly biography

I have enjoyed other biographies by this author who usually combines scholarship with lively narrative. This book veers more to the former with a lot of genealogical lineages and historical detail less suited to an audiobook. After a slow start with too much turgid detail about Mary's family history the book becomes an eye-opening account of Mary Boleyn's life and dismisses many false beliefs about her reputation and gives a different slant on the turbulent Tudor period.
The reader is very good and helps the book crack along, despite all the detailed information and scholarly argument against other biolographer's works.

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24 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Mostly conjecture

What would have made Mary Boleyn better?

Having more actual facts about Mary Boleyn and not having every quote spoken in annoying voices.

What will your next listen be?

I'm going to steer clear of new historical non fiction around the Tudor Dynasty. I don't think there's much new information to be had.

I'll be looking for summer reading now :)

Would you be willing to try another one of Maggie Mash’s performances?

Not sure. The non-stop quoting in ridiculous voices drove me nuts from the start. If there are books out there without the relentless quoting then I'd he happy to give it a go.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Disappointment and sometimes anger.

I was expecting a full bio of interesting facts about Mary's childhood and her relationships etc. However, the most used word throughout this book is "probably" along with others of that ilk (possibly, maybe, assume etc) and I ended up howling every time it was spoken.

The thing that annoys me most is that this feels like someone just turning out another "Tudor" volume because of the public's incessant interest when really there is no story to tell - certainly nothing we haven't learned from other sources.

And I felt like a sucker for falling for it.

Any additional comments?

After listening to this its clear that there is not an awful lot known about Mary Boleyn at all (which was the most interesting fact the book delivered to be honest).

Misleading and deliberately entitled to encourage people with an interest in Tudor history to buy it.

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17 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Enjoyable listen of a interesting book

As a "Tudor time fan" I often check what's available on the subject. Alison Weir writes an interesting story and gives much information in an easy-to-listen manner. So much fiction has been written on Anne Boleyn and her sister that it is refreshing to come upon a carefully researched book that not only tells the story but gives background and opinions on many other versions of it. Maggie Mash reads the book in a clear, beautiful voice which is a delight to listen to. I'm sure to check what else she's read!

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Worth reading if you love the Tudor period.

Any additional comments?

Alison Weir has the gift of being able to pack out a book about someone whom actually pretty little information actually exists. She confirms and dispels the assumptions that have been made in historical fiction and explores the Boleyn family and Mary's offspring in detail. It's a book worth listening to.

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Very interesting

Considering how little information there is on Mary, Alison has done a pretty good job indeed. It was very nice to get to know more about Mary herself as well as new information on her contemporaries as descendants that I hadn't known before. Maggie, as usual, was excellent

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars

A story about how there is no story to tell

I usually like Alison Weir's books, this one is a bit of a disappointment as it mostly seems to be about fact that there isn't much to tell and that what there is is mostly speculation and conjecture.



Maggie Mash is a good reader though and, personally, I think the readers are quite important - still a good reader cannot make a bad book into a good one.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great book

a fascinating insight into Mary boleyn, not the person I had been led to believe, another great book by Alison weir, well worth a listen.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

A great piece of historical discussion

If, like me, one of your pet hates are fictionalized accounts of the Tudors dressed up as qualified conjecture then this is a glorious antidote.
I have yet to read a book by Alison Weir that I didn't find thoroughly enjoyable, well reasoned and honest about its sources (or lack of them!) . This is a book as much about the brevity of factual information as about what that information tells us but, to my mind, the lack of documented fact does not mean the subject is not worth discussing. And that is essentially what this book is. An educated discussion rather than an examination of facts.
This book tells a story that we all know only too well but told from a different perspective. For instance, it had never occurred to me to consider what had happened to Mary during and following the downfall of the Boleyn factor at court and what became of her children and grandchildren.I particularly enjoyed the discussion on the likelihood of Henry VIII having fathered any of them.
Thought-provoking and enlightening and without the aid of a single laundry list. Hoorah!

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Good Production Great Story

The subject matter is really interesting and this production tells it well. Very intertaining, entertaining, educational and enjoyable.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Disappointed

Not a lot about Mary herself to learn here ,lots of critique of other Authors.

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1 person found this helpful