The Kings Pleasure, Alison Weir
The Kings Pleasure, Alison Weir
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The King's Pleasure
A Novel of Henry VIII

Author: Alison Weir

Narrator: Rosalyn Landor

Unabridged: 23 hr 6 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Recorded Books

Published: 05/30/2023


Synopsis

The New York Times bestselling author of the Six Tudor Queens series explores the private side of the legendary king Henry VIII and his dramatic and brutal reign in this extraordinary historical novel.

Having completed her Six Tudor Queens series of novels on the wives of Henry VIII, extensively researched and written from each queen’s point of view, Alison Weir now gives Henry himself a voice, telling the story of his remarkable thirty-eight-year reign and his six marriages.

Young Henry began his rule as a magnificent and chivalrous Renaissance prince who embodied every virtue. He had all the qualities to make a triumph of his kingship, yet we remember only the violence. Henry famously broke with the pope, founding the Church of England and launching a
religious revolution that divided his kingdom. He beheaded two of his wives and cast aside two others. He died a suspicious, obese, disease-riddled tyrant, old before his time. His reign is remembered as one of dangerous intrigue and bloodshed—and yet the truth is far more complex.

The King’s Pleasure brings to life the idealistic monarch who expanded Parliament, founded the Royal Navy, modernized medical training, composed music and poetry, and patronized the arts. A passionate man in search of true love, he was stymied by the imperative to produce a male heir, as
much a victim of circumstance as his unhappy wives. Had fate been kinder to him, the history of England would have been very different.

Here is the story of the private man. To his contemporaries, he was a great king, a legend in his own lifetime. And he left an extraordinary legacy—a modern Britain.

About Alison Weir

Alison Weir is the New York Times bestselling author of the novels Innocent Traitor and The Lady Elizabeth and several historical biographies, including Mistress of the Monarchy and The Six Wives of Henry VIII.


Reviews

After renowned British royal author Alison Weir wrapped up her "Six Queens" Tudor historical fiction series, I was delighted to learn that she would next write from the point of view of King Henry VIII. What a fitting wrap up to this whole, luxurious collection. At the same time, this is the next in......more

Goodreads review by Natasha

The second book in Alison Weir’s Tudor Rose series is just as detailed and well written the first (which follows Henry’s mother Elizabeth of York.) And once again expertly blends historical fact with a deft, fictionalised rendering of the innermost thoughts, feelings (loves and grievances) of the in......more

Goodreads review by Monika

This is the second book in the Tudor Rose trilogy. The first one told the story of Elizabeth of York – Henry VIII’s mother (which I absolutely adored!) and this one is all about the man himself. The story starts when Henry is a young boy and his beloved mother dies, following complications after givi......more