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Plantagenets: The Warrior Kings and Queens Who Made England
Plantagenets: The Warrior Kings and Queens Who Made England | Dan Jones
The "New York Times "bestseller that tells the story of Britain s greatest and worst dynasty a real-life "Game of Thrones" ("The Wall Street Journal") From the author of "Magna Carta: The Birth of Liberty" The first Plantagenet kings inherited a blood-soaked realm from the Normans and transformed it into an empire that stretched at its peak from Scotland to Jerusalem. In this epic narrative history of courage, treachery, ambition, and deception, Dan Jones resurrects the unruly royal dynasty that preceded the Tudors.They produced England s best and worst kings: Henry II and his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine, twice a queen and the most famous woman in Christendom; their son Richard the Lionheart, who fought Saladin in the Third Crusade; and his conniving brother King John, who was forced to grant his people new rights under the Magna Carta, the basis for our own bill of rights.Combining the latest academic research with a gift for storytelling, Jones vividly recreates the great battles of Bannockburn, Crecy, and Sluys and reveals how the maligned kings Edward II and Richard II met their downfalls. This is the era of chivalry and the Black Death, the Knights Templar, the founding of parliament, and the Hundred Years War, when England s national identity was forged by the sword."
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Cuilin
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#MayMontage #Queen Great book about Kings and Queens of England before the Tudors.

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks 🤴 👑 📚 2y
TrishB Great read 👍🏻 I prefer to say the Tudors came after the Plantagenets 😁 (edited) 2y
Eggs Perfect 👑 🖤 👸🏼 2y
Cuilin @TrishB 😆 2y
57 likes4 comments
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Twainy
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Pickpick

🎧 Some good history & now I know where some horror authors get their ideas …. I was in the mood for some history & this hot the spot. Great audiobook! A lot of interesting history! If you‘re looking for some nonfiction, this is a good one,

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

31 likes1 stack add
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dylanisreading
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Breakfast reading. I started this last night, and it is excellent so far. I'm trying to catch up with the Tides of History podcast, and the host recommended one of this author's other books in an episode about summer reading.

RosePressedPages This has been sitting in my tbr for a while! I‘ll have to give it a go and try that podcast 😄 3y
dylanisreading @MadelineMcCrae I recommend the podcast! Especially the episode on the fall of Constantinople and Vlad the Impaler. The host has a PhD (so I trust he does his research), and the sound design is really good. 3y
RosePressedPages @Bianca oooohhh, that sounds so interesting!! I definitely will!! 3y
62 likes1 stack add3 comments
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Rachel52
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Pickpick

I've been watching several of Dan Jones's history documentaries recently, which are very good so I thought I'd check out the first of his books. Great book, I didn't know much about the time period before so it was really interesting and I'm looking forward to reading the followup book, The Hollow Crown.

TrishB These are good reads 👍🏻 4y
10 likes1 comment
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Mandigolightly
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So I‘m reading this, and there‘s this but about how King John (a la Robin Hood fame) imprisoned his young nephew, Prince Arthur, and I looked up more about it. This paining has really stayed with me. It‘s Prince Arthur with Hubert de Burgh, who guarded the young prince during his imprisonment.

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Mandigolightly
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King Phillip II of France and Prince Geoffrey, Henry II‘s son were DEFINITELY gay

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Mandigolightly
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I‘ve been a bad Litten during the pandemic, but I‘m back!

I‘m soaking this behemoth in through my ears

PathfinderNicole I read this earlier this year for the book review I had to do for the western Civ class I took and I really enjoyed it! 5y
Mandigolightly @PathfinderNicole I‘m really into it! I watched a production of Richard II earlier this year and I‘m obsessed 5y
67 likes2 comments
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Mandigolightly
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#weeklyforecast for me!
I‘m going to continue on with Better Nate than Ever (at bedtime w/ my son!), Vampires in the Lemon Grove (3 out of 8 stories down), and The Plantagenets, and hopefully reread The Great Gatsby, and read Who Will Run the Frog Hospital, as well as the two plays The Pillowman, and Present Laughter (which I am seeing Saturday!)

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PathfinderNicole
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Hi everyone! I‘ve been MIA all month since I had to read this book then write a critical review of it for the class I‘m taking at my local community college! But now it‘s all done and handed in so I can finally read for fun again and it‘s so good to be back on Litsy! 🥰🥰

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batsy
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For some context on the Richard ll #ShakespeareReadAlong this month, I watched this excellent 2014 documentary series on the Plantagenets, hosted by Dan Jones. Available on YouTube; the fourth & last episode is about Richard ll https://bit.ly/2M4yql6 @GingerAntics

Jones is an engaging storyteller. Now I want to read the tagged book! But it hasn't helped made me get over my fear of the regnal names of British monarchs 😂 #justoneHenryafteranother

TrishB He‘s a good story teller 👍🏻 There are also 8 Edwards 😁 I find it helps to have a little story or fact about each of them to try and out them in place. Or watch Horrible Histories 😂 6y
GingerAntics @TrishB lol horrible histories is oddly helpful. lol 6y
GingerAntics I almost always keep a “family tree” as it were handy to keep track of everyone. This one from my blog covers all four plays in this Tetralogy (Richard II, 1 & 2 Henry IV, Henry V). At least you can keep all the bloody cousins straight. https://hammaclet.tumblr.com/post/176492290294/edwards-seven-sons-from-the-digit... 6y
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Andrew65 I agree Dan Jones does a great job. 6y
Jess_Read_This Thanks for sharing the links- I definitely need a refresher and education to keep all the players straight! 6y
Lcsmcat Thanks for the link! I‘ll have to check that out. And keeping a family tree handy is an excellent idea! 6y
toofondofbooks I think The Tudors get too much attention. For me The Plantagenets were so much more interesting. 6y
GingerAntics My library doesn‘t have this book, but has two others by this author. So frustrating. Oh well, I love a good documentary. 6y
GingerAntics @toofondofbooks I agree with that. I think it‘s a fascination with a king that started his own church so he could divorce a few wives instead of chopping all of their heads off. I get that the whole “my new church” thing totally redirected the history of England, but that dude was a freak. The Plantagenets are far more fun because they don‘t get nearly as much attention. 6y
booksandsympathy I'm directly descended from the Platagenets. I've been fascinated with them since I read a book about them years and years ago. So when my aunt discovered the family connection, I was ecstatic. I'll have to check this series out. 6y
GingerAntics Holy crap!!! I never knew Richard and Henry (Bolingbrook) where the same age and so close as young boys/men. That just makes the Banishment worse. Jesus, Richard really is a twat. 6y
batsy @TrishB Hahaha, I've heard of Horrible Histories; it might be just the thing for me 😂 6y
batsy @GingerAntics Thank you for that family tree, it's very helpful! And thanks to Trish I'm inspired to keep my own Horrible Things That Kings Did notebook to help me keep them straight... 😂 6y
batsy @Andrew65 Understated wit and great sense of delivery—history teachers should teach like this 😁 6y
batsy @Jess_Read_This @Lcsmcat You're welcome! The 4th episode is great for our readalong & is only about Richard ll, if you're short of time 🙂 6y
batsy @toofondofbooks @GingerAntics Yes, I agree. Also there is a lot of fascination with Anne Boleyn that drives that, I think. But I am also finding the Plantagenets much more fascinating... It could be that I'm all Tudored out 😁 6y
batsy @booksandsympathy Oh wow, that's cool! The series only focuses on four kings, but I heard that Dan Jones' book is quite in-depth and good. 6y
batsy @GingerAntics I wasn't aware of the closeness in age, as well! Bonkers, isn't it. 6y
GingerAntics @batsy oh a “horrible things that kings did” notebook. Interesting concept. I may have to look into this. I have started a Plantagenet Kings list but not everything on there is bad things they‘ve done. Some of it is bad things done to them. lol 6y
GingerAntics @batsy you definitely don‘t get any sort of hint that they were the same age, or grew up together like that from the play. I‘m beginning to think Richard in the play is a bit different from the Richard of history. 6y
batsy @GingerAntics That, too! 😂😭 6y
batsy @GingerAntics Yes, I'm getting that sense too. I'm very intrigued by Shakespeare's Richard, and definitely need to read more commentary or articles on how historians feel about Shakespeare's depiction vs historical Richard. 6y
GingerAntics One author I read said he was very faithful. Jones was quite the opposite. I‘ve read other historians that are somewhere in the middle. So I‘m going to say if we reject the extremes and take the average, he‘s taken a bit of creative liberty while trying to maintain the overall feel of Richard...perhaps. lol I guess we‘ll have to see as the play progresses. 6y
batsy @GingerAntics So true, and that's good advice. This seems like the kind of thing that will never be resolved and is no doubt the fuel for many feisty debates between historians at academic conferences 😂 6y
Faibka How cool! Thanks for sharing that link. I‘ve been absent from Litsy for a while and had no idea there‘s a Shakespeare read along going on. Reading all his plays is on my bucket list! 6y
batsy @Faibka Yes, it's on mine too 😊 @readinginthedark and @Jess_Read_This came up with the excellent idea for the Shakespeare buddy reads, and recently other people have hosted discussions. I've tagged you for the Richard ll schedule, but if you want to give that a miss and learn about the upcoming schedules for other plays I'll tag you once we've figured out our next read 👍🏽 6y
Faibka @batsy thank you so much! I would love that, yes please tag me :) 6y
TrishB There are some total inaccuracies in Shakespeare‘s plays - have to read alongside the real history. He is also very biased - obviously from the time he was writing. They are good dramas but not necessarily truthful 😁 Plantagenets are awesome!! 6y
Cathythoughts This sounds great 👍🏻 stacked 6y
batsy @Faibka For sure 👍🏽😊 6y
batsy @TrishB Well said, Trish. He's so revered in the canon that sometimes for me it's easy to forget that he was crafting entertainment, and his history plays are also constructed and not straight up history. I want to dive into Plantagenets by Jones but I'll probably have to wait a bit until I finish some buddy reads 😆 6y
TrishB It‘s one of my bucket lists to see them all performed 😁 been lucky enough to go to the Globe and Stratford. I‘m very annoying to watch the history plays with - hubby has to tell me to be quiet!! 6y
batsy @TrishB Hahaha 😆 That's amazing, I would love to be able to see a performance at the Globe or Stratford one day 😍🙌🏽 6y
readinginthedark @Faibka @batsy We're reading Macbeth after Richard II! Not sure who's hosting it yet. 6y
readinginthedark This sounds so good! Thanks for sharing! 6y
Faibka @readinginthedark awesome! Thank you :) 6y
batsy @readinginthedark Nice! Thank you 6y
rubyslippersreads This is on my TBR list too. 😊👑 6y
andrew61 The book is huge but very readable, he has a great ability to make fact read like fiction. I have his war of the roses book waiting to read as well. 6y
batsy @andrew61 I'm glad to hear that! I've heard only good things about his books :) 6y
88 likes2 stack adds40 comments
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Lauram
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Took some inspiration from Litsy and did a #sibswap with @Kathleenkelly . Thanks! I look forward to reading these this summer.

21 likes1 stack add
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Jwal49
Pickpick

A long but worthwhile account of a lesser-known era in history. As a teacher, I found many of the stories and accounts helpful as I briefly covered this time period in English history. Each chapter is brief and reads fairly easy. Can be digested in tiny bites.

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TrishB
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#royalty #riotgrams
Some Plantagenet books 😁

DGRachel I have The Plantagenets and The Templars. I really need to see if I like his writing style because The Hollow Crown looks like something I NEED in my life. 🤔 7y
TrishB @DGRachel it definitely is 😁 he has a very easy to read style - like his presenting! 7y
DGRachel Dang it @TrishB 💸💸💸💸😘 7y
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TrishB @DGRachel we should just start saying they‘re all rubbish 😁 and save money!! 7y
DGRachel @TrishB 😂😂😂 The problem is I know the odds are that if you own it, I will love it. 7y
TrishB @DGRachel same 👍🏻😁 7y
Melissa_J I haven‘t read any of Jones books yet, but do have a few on my shelves 👍🏻 7y
LeahBergen Love this! ❤️ 7y
SandyW Have you read Katherine, by Anya Seton? Its the story of the relationship between Katherine Swynford and John of Gaun, the Duke of Lancaster. Great historical fiction. This is one of the few physical books I still own. 7y
PirateJenny I love him so much. Summer of Blood was finally released in the US this year but only in paperback. Also he is totally worth following on Facebook. Not that I fangirl over him much or anything. (I have kept it together when I‘ve met him at least.) 7y
TrishB @SandyW Katherine is a particular love of mine 💕 one of the first adult historical fiction books I ever read! 7y
TrishB @PirateJenny I follow him on Fb too 😁 I only stay on there for various authors! So cool you got to meet him 👍🏻 7y
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My_novel_obsession
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Pickpick

Just drove from Houston to Casper Wyoming to bring my mom back home. The two day drive was the perfect length to start and finish this book. I needed a book that we could both listen to and this one was awesome. It seems that narcissistic tyrants have been around a lot longer than I thought... now I have to make the reverse trip alone and need to find something else that listen to.

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Garyrej
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Pickpick

Makes GOT's look tame!

8 likes1 stack add
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AmyAgentBor
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Pickpick

Well written and interesting history of the Plantagenet dynasty. Henry I, Eleanor of Aquatain, Richard the Lionheart. Plus their interesting and at times bloodthirsty descendants.

Yeah_I_Read Sharon Kay Penman writes amazing historical fiction about the Plantagenets. (edited) 7y
AmyAgentBor I‘ve read two of her books. The next in line is lionheart. Eleanor is a personal hero of mine. 7y
6 likes1 stack add2 comments
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mdemanatee
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This is the longest audiobook I have listened to so far (usually live in the 8-13 hour range). Halfway there!

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melissanorr
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Pickpick

This was a fascinating look at a period of English history and the beginning of a dynasty. It's a pretty long book and dense with detail so it takes some commitment to read but it is well worth the effort and time.

DGRachel This has been on my TBR for ages. Thanks for the review-I may have to move it up the "to buy" list. ? 7y
7 likes1 stack add1 comment
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melissanorr
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I had hoped to join the #slaythatseriesreadathon this weekend but I didn't make enough progress on my current book, which disappears from my Overdrive on Monday like Cinderella's carriage.

BibliophileMomma Did you know if you turn your tablet on airplane mode it won't disappear until you turn airplane mode off so if you need more time to finish your book that helps 7y
Bklover @Tiffy_Reads That is an awesome tip! I didn't know that- Thanks! 7y
13 likes2 comments
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Mrsschofield741
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I am OBSESSED with this royal dynasty! 🏰👸🏻 #Plantagenet #monarchy #history

DebinHawaii Welcome to Litsy! 🎉📚👍😀Hope you enjoy it here! 7y
2 likes1 comment
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melissanorr
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All my Overdrive holds came in at the same time (of course!) so I am starting with the longest one and hoping I can get them all read.

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tracy.anne8
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This only looks like a #chunkster because it's hardback but still a large book this family. #splashintosummerreads

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TrishB
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#ruletheworld #JuneTunz
@Cinfhen
This lot definitely wanted to rule the world 😀

PirateJenny My most favorite royal dynasty. I adore all of Dan Jones's books. And he's quite fhe fun storyteller in person. 8y
Andrew65 At times they did quite a good job of it too, if only they could have controlled that Plantagenet temper! 8y
Cinfhen What's up with your royals??? EVERY ONE of them wanted to #RuleTheWorld 8y
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TrishB @PirateJenny I like him a lot 😀 does a good job! 8y
TrishB @Andrew65 exactly 😀 8y
TrishB @Cinfhen they certainly did 😀 8y
Andrew65 @TrishB @Cinfhen Think it went with the territory. 8y
Andrew65 @PirateJenny Not tried this author, by the sound of it will have to give him a try as love books set during Plantagenet period. 8y
TrishB @Andrew65 his are non-fiction, but really good 😀 8y
Andrew65 @TrishB Will have to explore, thanks for the information. 8y
PirateJenny And his newest, The Templars, is out September 19. I work for his US publisher and have been able to read it already and it's everything you could hope for. 8y
90 likes4 stack adds11 comments
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JacintaMCarter
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I have read this book, but I figured it was appropriate for this prompt since the British did their best to #RuleTheWorld. #JuneTunz

TrishB Great minds! I just posted this too 😀 8y
Cinfhen Those royal Brits....so greedy 😬🙄 8y
42 likes2 comments
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Aluciddreamstate
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Pickpick

4/5⭐️. Good historical read for anyone interested in the family that was usurped by the Tutors.
Picture of the author

8little_paws Wow that is quite the author pic 😍😍 8y
DiruVamp @8little_paws I second that LOL 😜😍 8y
Aluciddreamstate @8little_paws @DiruVamp look at his other pics. He is nice author eye candy 🤤 8y
22 likes3 comments
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UsagiDreams
Pickpick

I thoroughly enjoyed the writing style and the work as a whole.

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Elle91
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This book is so completely DOPE😎 on Age of Glory (almost done) history at its finest ❤️loving it!

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tracy.anne8
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Some of my #doorstoppers for #riotgrams. Anyone who has read the Outlander series knows how much these books fit this category 😁

19 likes1 stack add
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catiewithac
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Pickpick

After many months of perseverance, I finished Dan Jones' excellent history of medieval tyrant kings. I wonder what I could read next that would have similar themes.... The news?

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kammartinez
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Pickpick

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ of 5 ⭐️s.

The Plantagenet dynasty featured some of England's most famous kings (Richard the Lionheart), some of her most infamous (Edward II), and even a few great queens (Eleanor of Aquitaine). In this book, Jones shows how their legacy helped shape England into the country it is today in readable fashion, though the book does get kind of dry in some places.

32 likes1 stack add
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kammartinez
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Happy New Year, everybody! Here are my bookish stats for December. Obviously much lower than the numbers from previous months, but that's to be expected because of the holidays; kind of hard to keep up with both reading AND social media when there's family around ^^;. Anyway I'll be doing a much larger stat post for my 2016 reading once I'm done crunching the numbers on my Excel file, condensed down to extra-tasty pie charts ;D.

Marchpane Ooh, pie charts! 8y
kammartinez @Marchpane I love great visual representation of data - even if I tend to be rather terrible at making it XD. 8y
24 likes2 comments
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kammartinez
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I was already three-fourths of the way through this hefty thing when I realized that I hadn't mentioned anything about it online. Oops! Then again, holiday season can make one forget things - especially when my sister is home and she hands me an entire box of Middle-Eastern pastries all for myself XD.

25 likes1 stack add
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Jerdencon
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Listening to this while waiting until 7:10 when I can leave work and parent teacher confernences... tick Tock with English royalty.

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Jerdencon

Found out that through Amazon prime can access some free audiobooks through audible.com. Not a huge selection but a few good ones and some serial channels too... Giving this one a shot to feed my English royalty obsession but finding it hard to concentrate on it at work :( but free is good and will try again in the car.

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catiewithac
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Listening to this on #audible. There's still 19+ hours to go but it's such a good story! 🗡🛡👑

BarbaraTheBibliophage Been looking at this one myself, since it's on the free Prime channel. 8y
catiewithac I'm not sure if audiobooks are actually faster to read, but at least this one is free! 8y
10 likes1 stack add2 comments
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meichner87
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"Rather than wait for her husband's knights, she placed her faith in her own resourcefulness."

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lilycobalt
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Pickpick

Catching up on reviews. I found this to be both informative and entertaining, showing both the personalities of the royal family and how the monarchy developed as an institution. I enjoyed hearing both about the better kings whom we've heard of and the worse kings whom...there were reasons why I didn't know much about them. Clive Chafer's narration, calm with a wry touch, is well-suited to the book.

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lilycobalt
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I've also reread 8 books this year. I'm close to my totals from last year--25 new books and 7 rereads. I know this isn't a lot for many Litsy denizens, but these totals reflect some positive life changes that I made this year, so I'm quite pleased.

LauraBeth I always think it should be quality over quantity anyway 😀 8y
annahenke Good for you! 8y
queerbookreader Right on 👊🏽👊🏽👊🏽 8y
See All 7 Comments
CaitlinSiem I'm always bummed goodreads doesn't acknowledge rereads. I've reread so many books that I wish counted to my goodreads challenge (even though I've already surpassed it haha) 8y
lilycobalt @LauraBeth Agreed--one good book beats a lot that you don't love 8y
lilycobalt @CaitlinSiem Me too. Even beyond the challenge, I want to be able to record rereads and how they change my perceptions of the books. 8y
16 likes7 comments
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lilycobalt

As my go-to audiobook, I've mostly been reading this one the most while out and about today. Currently amused by the fact that Henry III naming his first son Edward was considered an archaic deviation from the acceptable names for Plantagenet heirs: Henry, William, Richard, John, or maybe Geoffrey.

Of course, now England is in civil war again, so there are bigger problems than what he named the kid.

MrBook Sounds good! 8y
5 likes1 stack add1 comment
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lilycobalt
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#24in48 It is teatime. Meanwhile, Henry III surrounds himself with all the wrong people.

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lilycobalt

"Later, another legend of the Lionheart sprung up, to the effect that the king spent his final days on earth having sex with local youths. It is unlikely that this was true, for Richard was dying of gangrene." ?

Jessicav Dan Jones is a gem. 8y
lilycobalt @Jessicav He is! As is Clive Chafer, who narrates the audiobook. 8y
MrBook 😂👍🏻 8y
9 likes2 stack adds3 comments
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lilycobalt

In Henry II's time, punishments for all crimes were mutilation, exile, and death. People were tried by water, in the same way we associate with witch trials.

On first reading, I was glad that we had moved past those forms of punishment.

But we haven't. Not at all. 😢

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lilycobalt

You know your mind is on the Raven Cycle when you keep waiting for Glendower to come up in this book. It's possible. But the lives of these monarchs are plenty interesting all the same. I'm up to Eleanor of Aquitaine and enjoying her badassery.

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ValerieAndBooks
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I got these two books by Dan Jones recently -- a local bookstore is going out of business (don't you hate when that happens 😢😩) --and so now they're part of my royal history section. Thinking I may read The Wars of the Roses first, even though that era is after the Plantagenets. Hmmm...

LitHousewife I hated it when my last indie bookstore closed. Thank God for Barnes and Noble, but I so wish we could support an indie here. 8y
ValerieAndBooks @LitHousewife yes, other than a couple (pretty good though) used bookstores, all we'll have here is B and N, too! 8y
Gezemice We lost our local book store a long time ago, then the Borders, we only have Barnes & Noble left. 😟 8y
ValerieAndBooks @Gezemice that's an all too familiar story playing almost everywhere 😢 8y
Donna_sBookMinute I like looking at other peoples' bookcases. 8y
15 likes1 stack add5 comments
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PennyNotSoDreadful
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Pickpick

If you love anything Game of Thrones, you will love this book. The narration reads like historical fiction - interesting, exciting, never dry. Basically history if it were candy.

Sue This one is so good. I'm working my way through his Wars of the Roses at the moment, which is also great :) 9y
11 likes8 stack adds1 comment