The Private Lives of the Tudors

Uncovering the Secrets of Britain's Greatest Dynasty

By: Tracy Borman

Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble

England's Tudor monarchs - Henry VII, Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary I, and Elizabeth I - are perhaps the most celebrated and fascinating of all royal families in history. Their love affairs, their political triumphs, and their overturning of the religious order are the subject of countless works of popular scholarship. But for all we know about Henry's quest for male heirs or Elizabeth's purported virginity, the lives of the Tudor monarchs away from the public eye remain largely beyond our grasp, mostly not chronicled by previous historians.

In The Private Lives of the Tudors, acclaimed historian Tracy Borman delves deep behind the public face of the monarchs, showing us what their lives were like beyond the stage of the court. Drawing on original material from those closest to them - courtiers like the "groom of the stool", a much-coveted position, surprisingly - Borman examines Tudor life in fine detail. What did the monarchs eat? What clothes did they wear, and how were they designed, bought, and cared for? How did they wield power? When sick, how were they treated? What games did they play? How did they practice their faith? And whom did they love, and how did they give birth to the all-important heirs?

Exploring their education, upbringing, and sexual lives and taking us into the kitchens, bathrooms, schoolrooms, and bedrooms at court, The Private Lives of the Tudors charts the course of the entire dynasty, surfacing new and fascinating insights into these celebrated figures.

©2016 Tracy Borman, Hodder & Stoughton (P)2018 Audible, Inc.

Excellent

One of the best books of the Tutors. It keeps you captive and wanting more .

Good...

I love Tracy Borman but I was expecting more of this book. Unless you're just starting to learn about the Tudors there's nothing new in regard of the "private lives"...
It was entertaining and the narrator was fine but unfortunately nothing spectacular.

Very engaging!

I really liked this! The narrative was engaging and I thought it gave interesting information. The narration wasn’t bad either.

Painstakingly Detailed

If you’re someone who wants to hear literal Tudor receipts read (like me!), this is the book for you. It goes so far into detail that, even for someone who wants to know the minutiae it can be a little long winded. Still, I loved listening to it, as the narrator was excellent.

Delightfully detailed and skillfully narrated

In addition to the intricate details, I greatly appreciated how this book was performed. With historical books where there are numerous figures and direct quotes, it is sometimes challenging for one narrator to carry through the entire performance - there are so many times when the actual words of the historic figures are lost in the narrative through lack of inflection to indicate “someone else” is speaking. In this book however, other performers were used for quotes. This made it easy to follow and a pleasure to listen to.

An Interestingly Delivered History

I appreciated that the story was true to history. Considering English History can be a little bit dry, I thought the author and narrator did a very good job of keeping it interesting. It appears the entire account is based on literature that has been found from the past and not just made up like so many books are.

I would particularly recommend this book to individuals who have an interest in the court & personal lives of King Henry VIII and Queen Elizabeth I. It spends much more time on there personal history then the history of the country.

As I said it’s pretty entertaining for pure history which can be delivered at a yawning pace which this isn’t.

Love the narrator

Narrators voice is a very perfect match for this read. Enjoying this Audible ver much!!

wonderful

I loved it. The voices of the different characters were intermingled with the narrator. it was a true joy to listen to. i do love audiobooks

Great History

This is well written and read! I was hesitant to purchase this,but so glad I did.

Awesome listening Experience!

This review is for the audiobook version. The narrator's narration of the book made it such an enjoyable experience! I love all of the information given in the book by the author, and how she wove it into an experience that brought you back to the Tudor reign. Great job Tracy Borman and Johnathan Keeble!

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