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The Red Queen cover art

The Red Queen

By: Philippa Gregory
Narrated by: Emily Watson,Gareth Armstrong
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Summary

The second book in Philippa's stunning new trilogy, The Cousins War, brings to life the story of Margaret Beaufort, a shadowy and mysterious character in the first book of the series - The White Queen - but who now takes centre stage in the bitter struggle of The War of the Roses.

The Red Queen tells the story of the child-bride of Edmund Tudor, who, although widowed in her early teens, uses her determination of character and wily plotting to infiltrate the house of York under the guise of loyal friend and servant, undermine the support for Richard III and ultimately ensure that her only son, Henry Tudor, triumphs as King of England. Through collaboration with the dowager Queen Elizabeth Woodville, Margaret agrees a betrothal between Henry and Elizabeth's daughter, thereby uniting the families and resolving the Cousins War once and for all by founding of the Tudor dynasty.

©2010 Philippa Gregory (P)2010 Simon & Schuster

What listeners say about The Red Queen

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Overall
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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

A wicked woman wins!

Unusually the "heroine" of the story is obnoxious: self-righteous, full of pride and scheming, all the time believing that God is on her side and that she has been chosen for great things. But it's a crackingly good story even when one knows how it will finally end. I thought the book got better and better as the pace of history quickened. I don't know how accurate some of the details are regarding Richard Third's culpability over the presumed murders of the Prices in the Tower. I don't think anybody is sure, but this book gives a plausible alternative to Shakepeare's version the latter coloured by a Tudor queen being on the throne.
The female reader does a great job of dramatizing the narrative by her ability to create different voices for the characters.

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12 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Fiction based on history

Brilliant, thoroughly enjoyed it. I love fiction based on an actual historical character. It doesnt have to be factually accurate for me. Besides, we can only see what life was like then by the documents that survive and the only ones writing then were the upper classes, from both sides. I fully appreciate Philippa Gregorys imagination for adding a story to go with the facts.

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Good

It's not often that one reads (listens to) a book where one so dislikes the lead character. Self-righteous and self-centred, obsessed with class priviledge to the point of disbelief.....I could go on. A very different character to Ms Gregory's White Queen. I read The White Queen quite a while before listening to The Red Queen, so I didn't find the repetition of the history lesson too tiresome (some reviewers of the book on Amazon are quite critical of this). What was most intriguing was the way this character is portrayed - she really isn't likeable at all. The story is well told, and in typical Philippa Gregory style. If you are a fan of her work, and if you are happy to listen to the same period of history just told from the opposite side of the war, then you won't be disappointed.
Probably only deserving of four stars, but have opted for five as I enjoy good historical novels, and I always come away from a Philippa Gregory novel feeling as though I have learned something.

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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

The Red Queen

Really enjoyable, the two narrators helped to bring out the characters of Margaret and Jasper, while other characters were made distinct. The music added to the atmosphere of the historical area and, while the narrative lags at times, descriptions of battle scenes make up for this.

If I have a criticism it may be that it is just too long as Margaret narrates events that are outside of her perception and she tells us things in too much detail at times. I much prefer when she receives news from others, i.e. Jasper, in order to fill in the blanks.

Really enjoyed the ending.

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2 people found this helpful

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

Red Queen

Fantastic book brilliant writing and narrations the addition of music a nice touch. Awesome battle scene at the end.

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1 person found this helpful

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

It all begins to slot together

This was an enjoyable story, which for me starts to bring together the whole of Tudor history. Having, never studied history at school this is an eye opener for me as I begin to see who is who, who's related to who, and how are Regency was formed. This was a good listen well narrated and informative.

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1 person found this helpful

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

Tudor history brought to life

This is a well written story but does not make you like or sympathise with any of the characters although this may be an accurate historical depiction of the people involved

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Jo
  • 16-07-11

True Philippa Gregory style

The mirror story to the White Queen this book gives another perspective to the same events. However, this book can also stand alone with its interesting characters whose plots and scheming leaving you wondering who is supporting who. Personally I found the main character a little naive which simply adds to the self centred nature of the character. Written very much in Philippa Gregory's style and if you liked her other books you will certainly enjoy this one.

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1 person found this helpful

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

powerful and vivid

The characters and action come fully to life. The writing drops away and you can see and live the life described. Philippa Gregory's novels never fail to impress. Beautifully written and researched.

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

A gripping story

A really enjoyable book centred on a pretty unlikable character. Despite Margaret’s mean nature, I was really gripped by this story and couldn’t stop listening. The voice actor also did a great job, especially with all the Welsh accents!

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