Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

  • Mary Queen of Scots

  • Film Tie-In
  • By: John Guy
  • Narrated by: Jan Cramer
  • Length: 22 hrs and 55 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (90 ratings)
Offer ends May 1st, 2024 11:59PM GMT. Terms and conditions apply.
£7.99/month after 3 months. Renews automatically.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Mary Queen of Scots cover art

Mary Queen of Scots

By: John Guy
Narrated by: Jan Cramer
Get this deal Try for £0.00

Pay £99p/month. After 3 months pay £7.99/month. Renews automatically. See terms for eligibility.

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £16.99

Buy Now for £16.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Listeners also enjoyed...

The Children of Henry VIII cover art
The Six Wives of Henry VIII cover art
A Litter of Bones: A Scottish Crime Thriller cover art
The Right to Rule cover art
Castles cover art
Mary Boleyn cover art
The Lady in the Tower cover art
Elizabeth I cover art
Bloody Mary cover art
Elizabeth I and Her Circle cover art
Heretics and Believers cover art
Killers of the King cover art
Great and Horrible News cover art
Shakespeare: The Histories cover art

Summary

Now a major film, this is a dramatic reinterpretation of the life of Mary Queen of Scots by one of the leading historians of this period.

Who was the real Mary Queen of Scots? The most enigmatic ruler of England lived a life of incredible drama and turmoil: crowned Queen of Scotland at nine months old, and Queen of France at 16 years, she grew up in the crosshairs of Europe's political battles to become Queen Elizabeth's archrival.

This audiobook tells the story of the fraught and dangerous relationship between these two women of incredible charisma and power - a relationship that began with both seeking a political settlement but which led them down a path of danger, from which only one could emerge victorious.

Previously published as My Heart Is My Own.

©2019 John Guy (P)2019 HarperCollins Publishers

Critic reviews

"A biography that reads as thrillingly as a detective story." (Miranda Seymour, Sunday Times)

"A masterpiece, full of fire and tragedy." (Amanda Foreman)

"Rarely have first-class scholarship and first-class storytelling been so effectively combined." (John Adamson, Daily Telegraph)

What listeners say about Mary Queen of Scots

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    57
  • 4 Stars
    21
  • 3 Stars
    5
  • 2 Stars
    5
  • 1 Stars
    2
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    46
  • 4 Stars
    15
  • 3 Stars
    10
  • 2 Stars
    5
  • 1 Stars
    2
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    54
  • 4 Stars
    15
  • 3 Stars
    4
  • 2 Stars
    3
  • 1 Stars
    2

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Absolutely brilliant book.

This is a well written and fascinating biography of a Queen who fought for what she believed in and ultimately paid the price. I am not sure if I want to see the film now in case it spoils the book ! Jan Kramer is also excellent as the narrator, her intonation is perfect and she really does the book credit.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

5 people found this helpful

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

A Poor Performance

I am struggling to finish this book. Nothing wrong with the writing but the history is spoiled by a reader who appears to think she’s reading a trashy rom-com. I feel cheated. I have wasted a credit I could have to much better purpose.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

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

wonderfully accurate

incredibly engaging telling tale of Mary and her life. every detail has such high accuracy. I really loved this book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

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

Interesting View 🌟🌟🌟

An interesting view of the life of Mary Queen of Scots that gives us a real insight in to the life and times of the most famous Catholic Queen in British History.

The performance unfortunately is not the most entertaining and at times very monotone - if you battle through then it is worth listening to but the narrator leaves a lot to be desired

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

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

Narrator made it difficult to enjoy

Maybe this is down to personal preference, but the narrator ruined this audiobook for me. The exploration of the history was detailed, in depth, used primary sources... all the good stuff. But the narrator read EVERYTHING like she was telling a salacious story of saucy gossip. Wore thin very quickly. I suggest listening to the download sample and deciding if you can cope with 20 hours of same, fixed tone of voice.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

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

very well read and kept interested and enthralled

really enjoyed this , made me look at the queen of Scott's as a victim of circumstance trying to control her own life .

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

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

Rubbish

Loved the film the book is like having a very dusty old school teacher read from a text book 🙁

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

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

The narrator was amazing!

Loved everything about this! The narrator is amazing. The history on point…John guy is excellent….fabulous piece of British/scottish history

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

Mary, Queen of Scots by John Guy. Reviewer, Jane Starfield

It is wonderful to have access to the work of the acclaimed historian, John Guy. His research is impressive. Very different from the fictional accounts by the many aficionados of A Queen who may have been beautiful, but was also ruthless.
Jan Kramer’s performance is engaging; however, some Scots and French names require more practice.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

Mispronunciation of Scottish names and place names

John Guy is very kind to Mary. It’s a very biased view, but as a film tour in it reflects the view shown there .
Scottish place names constantly mispronounced. It’s Moray pronounced Murray. Kirkintilloch gets mangled too. I found myself growling at the reader. But it does give an overview of the story.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!