Mary Boleyn

By: Alison Weir

Narrated by: Maggie Mash

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

Enjoyable look at the Boleyn family

Any additional comments?

Though Alison Weir is always a little extreme in her views, I enjoyed the book thoroughly. It is easy to delineate between fact and the author's opinions. It was good to learn about Mary, as she has become a popular figure without really being better understood. The narrator was fine, though halfway through her voice changes so much that for a couple of minutes I thought they had replaced her.

Academic Study Filled With Intelligent Speculation

I must admit that although I am a fan of Alison Weir and have enjoyed everything that has flowed from her pen, this book in my humble opinion was not her best. It is heavy with speculation that is definitely 'out of the box'. It delves into the period 1522 until around 1536. There is a lot of background information regarding Henry's ever evolving personality plus we read much about the Boleyn family dynamic. Alison Weir discusses the possibility that Anne may well have been the elder daughter which based on my studies was quite an eyebrow raiser!

Normally I cannot put down one of Alison Weir's books as to date I have found that they are real page turners. I may well give this a second listen in the future as it was interesting but not engrossing.

great info

lots of detail on Mary's life and info on all her family, including her children

Little facts and many maybes

About 14 chapters of what could have been two. I admire the research; however, something's just need more information.

Disappointed.

I am a huge fan of Alison Weir. Having said that, this book is a real disappointment to me. There are simply too many "maybe's." For instance, "Maybe Mary never saw Anne again." There is simply too much supposition in this book for me to take it seriously as an historical work. While Mary Boleyn was in many ways a minor character in the Tudor saga, she still had a life unto herself which, if one is endeavoring to chronicle, deserves more fact and less supposition.