The Secret Bride

In the Court of Henry VIII, Book 1

By: Diane Haeger

Narrated by: Polly Lee

For fans of The Tudors comes a captivating drama about the only woman who could defy Henry VIII—and keep her life.

Mary Tudor, the headstrong younger sister of the ruthless King Henry VII, has always been her brother's favorite—but now she is also an important political bargaining chip. When she is promised to the elderly, ailing King Louis of France, a heartbroken Mary accepts her fate, but not before extracting a promise from her brother: When the old king dies, her next marriage shall be solely of her choosing. For Mary has a forbidden passion, and is determined, through her own cunning, courage, and boldness, to forge her own destiny.

The Secret Bride is the triumphant tale of one extraordinary woman who meant to stay true to her heart and live her life just as her royal brother did—by her own rules . . .

Contains mature themes.

©2008 Diane Haeger (P)2022 Tantor

very good atory

great storyline and for ones another view on the Tudor time. Mary story is great

Excellent

I never knew the story of King Henry the eighth sister . this was excellent written and full of historical details. Narration was very good as well. If you’re looking for a good historical romance book, this is an excellent read.

Really Enjoyable!! Loved it

This was a great listen. I would recommend it to any fan of Tudor fiction works.

It was okay

I love a good historical novel- even if they don’t get all the facts right. On that front, it wasn’t very accurate but also not absurd like some others I’ve seen. I found it a little boring however, since I think they could have done much more with the characters. I was also expecting some spicy scenes but it really didn’t deliver on that front either.

Good story overall

Voice cadence got annoying at times, but very nicely written. I enjoyed the point of views very much.

Childish

The story is a childish retelling of Mary Tudor. The narrator makes her sound insipid. There are much better stories about MT out there. Go in search of one of those.

Graphic adult content

If you like your historical fiction laced with sporadic but graphic (my opinion) descriptions of adult situations and kissy lips, you may love this one. I find that stuff revolting (I don't really want to know where everyone's lips have been, or the details regarding a character's state of "arousal") and disappointing.

This is a sadly dull listen

This was just a very long and dull story. It was almost a DNF but I was hoping it would have a decent ending. Sadly, it just dragged along.

Way too long

I didn’t like the way the narrator did Katherine of Aragon’s accent. It didn’t sound Spanish at all.