Bring Up The Bodies cover art

Bring Up The Bodies

 Preview

Get 30 days of Standard free

£5.99/mo after trial. Cancel monthly.
Try for £0.00
More purchase options

Bring Up The Bodies

By: Hilary Mantel
Narrated by: Simon Vance
Try for £0.00

£5.99 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for £14.63

Buy Now for £14.63

Season's Savings | £0.99/mo for 3 months

£5.99/mo after 3 months - terms apply. Cancel monthly
Winner of the Man Booker Prize 2012 Bring Up The Bodies chronicles the downfall of Anne Boleyn through the eyes of Thomas Cromwell, chief minister to Henry VIII. Sir Peter Stothard, chairman of the judges, hailed Mantel as 'the greatest English prose writer of modern times'.

By 1535 Thomas Cromwell, the blacksmith’s son, is far from his humble origins. Chief Minister to Henry VIII, his fortunes have risen with those of Anne Boleyn, Henry’s second wife, for whose sake Henry has broken with Rome and created his own church. But Henry’s actions have forced England into dangerous isolation, and Anne has failed to do what she promised: bear a son to secure the Tudor line.
In Bring up the Bodies Hilary Mantel explores one of the most mystifying and frightening episodes in English history: the destruction of Anne Boleyn. This new novel is an audacious vision of Tudor England that sheds its light on the modern world.©2012 Tertius Enterprises (P)2012 Macmillan Audio Europe Fiction Genre Fiction Great Britain Historical Fiction Science Fiction World Literature Thought-Provoking Witty Tudor Middle Ages
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1

Continue the series
The Mirror & the Light cover art
The Mirror & the Light By: Hilary Mantel
All stars
Most relevant
This book takes up where Wolf Hall left off. Henry VIII has married Anne Boleyn but his enchantment with her is waning, especially after his disappointment at her delivering a daughter. He is planning to ditch her and marry Jane Seymore. This short period of history is described in minute detail combining facts with imaginative speculation as to what was said or happened. There were times when the detail and sheer number of names was confusing, but overall it was a good listen. I think Wolf Hall is marginally the better book.
As with Wolf Hall, this short period of history is seen through the eyes of Thomas Cromwell, who, in this book is a less sympathetic character as he becomes embroiled in often repellent manoeuvres to find grounds to get rid of Anne. It must have been a dangerous time to be a member of the Court as Henry is a frighteningly unpredictable, selfish and self-righteous.
I thought the reader did a good job of giving the characters different voices which helped with so many characters to keep track of.

Tudor turbulence continued

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This is the first exposure I've had to either Hilary Mantel or Simon Vance, and my ignorance of the historical period in question is almost total. Possibly I was more entertained than the majority of the less ignorant general population would be.

It says something about the quality of the source material, and the performance of the narrator that I was by turns:

* laughing out loud like an idiot in public, in reaction to a sarcastic discussion of a prized Christmas hat

* on the edge of my metaphorical seat anticipating events I already knew were certain to happen

* a lot closer to actual tears than I might care to admit at several points


Simon Vance's narration was just about flawless in terms of delivery - perhaps slightly reminiscent of a Pythonesque French accent at one point but nothing distracting.

Technically (at least in HQ) the recording had an intimate quality - no background hums, hisses, pops or clicks to break the illusion that it's just you, the narrator, and the story; a perfectly matched voice, punctuating deep silence.

I've seen some criticism of Hilary Mantel as a novelist; perhaps again from people with a greater depth of knowledge of the subject matter, and I'm not qualified to judge that aspect.

But as entertainment, I'm not sure what more could be expected from a novel.

Densely plotted and surprisingly tense and moving

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I read Wolf Hall in print, but, for this sequel, decided on the audiobook and am so glad I did. As it is mostly dialogue it works particularly well in this format, especially with an excellent narrator like Simon Vance. It is as if you had travelled back in time to eavesdrop on the conversations! Hilary Mantel breathes life into her long-dead characters in a quite amazing way. As with Wolf Hall, the story is gripping, entertaining and completely fascinating.

Absolutely terrific

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Incredibly well researched and presented. I was hooked from the first chapter. I had not read any of this author's books before, but I am a fan now. The characters are so lifelike you feel almost as if you are there with them! A fantastic feat for someone writing about events of the 16th century. It even had my teenage son listening in and he hadn't the slightest interest in Tudor history-until now. Well done Hilary!

First Class!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies gave me an unusual insight of Tudor Times presented in a story format that I found unusual, but never the less, compulsive reading. The story of Thomas Cromwell, a person of whom I had little previous knowledge, and his wheeling and dealing, a virtual power game, kept my attention throughout. Nowadays I read by audible books all the time and the presentation was absolutely first class. Speaks out the quality of the listened book these days. Overall an absolute cracker of a read aid absolute first class piece of entertainment. Thanks, from Colin.

Best Overall Book / Entertainment Ever.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews