Catherine de Medici

Renaissance Queen of France

By: Leonie Frieda

Narrated by: Sarah Le Fevre

Poisoner, despot, necromancer - the dark legend of Catherine de Medici is centuries old. In this critically hailed biography, Leonie Frieda reclaims the story of this unjustly maligned queen to reveal a skilled ruler battling extraordinary political and personal odds - from a troubled childhood in Florence to her marriage to Henry, son of King Francis I of France; from her transformation of French culture to her fight to protect her throne and her sons' birthright. Based on thousands of private letters, it is a remarkable account of one of the most influential women ever to wear a crown.

©2018 Leonie Frieda (P)2018 Orion Publishing Group

Exceptional

Excellently written and the narrator is soothing yet not boring. I loved this book and listened to it twice in two weeks.

Better than TV series

Nothing like the STARs TV series. It is much better if you actually want the facts.

Fascinating woman

I did not know much about Catherine de Medici and I learned a lot. The story is very well told, including both her life and the times that she lived in. I did have some issues with the narration and specifically the treatment of proper nouns. French names are pronounced in a way that is neither French nor English, but some sort of mixture. For example, in “Charles,” the Ch is soft in the French way, but the es is not silent as it should be for a French pronunciation. Almost every other name received a similar treatment, like some sort of parody of Maurice Chevalier. I found this distracting and after a while, quite annoying.

I wish MY mother had read this book!!

Other than the monotone narration, I would however stay for the conclusion of a revelatory testament of one of histories most intriguing sovereigns, Catherine DeMedici.

A good listen

I liked it. It was informative and detailed but not to the point of being too wordy. This is the first book about Catherine de Medici that I’ve listened to, so I can’t say for sure, but I felt it gave a balanced look into her life.
The narrator was pleasant, her speed and pronunciation clear and easy to listen to.

Catherine is a badass

Great details; Catherine is one of the most under rated historical figures. Henry was a idiot for choosing Diane. Boo Henry boo!

Informative but less engaging personal account

Good narrator and informative account of a political nature. However, less engaging personal account. Worth the time. I'll pursue other biographies about Catherine de Medici for a more well rounded picture of her.

What a history!

Incredible story however, hard to keep up with who’s who since there are so many names and so many changes in names.

Wonderful Narration

Very informative read. Narration is extremely pleasant and easy listening. French pronunciation is stellar. I highly recommend this book.

Utterly Engrossing and Unflinching.

It is hard to imagine how any work of fiction could rival the true, astonishing drama of Catherine de Medici's life and times. The author unfurls the story with just the right amount of admiration to maintain the reader's engagement with the Queen, tempered with sufficiently unflinching frankness about her chilling flaws to render her narrative credible.