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Wolf Hall

A Novel

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About this listen

England in the 1520s is a heartbeat from disaster. If the king dies without a male heir, the country could be destroyed by civil war. Henry VIII wants to annul his marriage of twenty years, and marry Anne Boleyn. The pope and most of Europe oppose him. The quest for the king’s freedom destroys his adviser, the brilliant Cardinal Wolsey, and leaves a power vacuum and a deadlock.

Into this impasse steps Thomas Cromwell. The son of a brutal blacksmith, a political genius, a briber, a bully and a charmer, Cromwell has broken all the rules of a rigid society in his rise to power, and is preparing to break some more. Rising from personal disaster – the loss of his young family and of Wolsey, his beloved patron – he picks his way deftly through a court where -man is wolf to man.’ Pitting himself against parliament, the political establishment and the papacy, he is prepared to reshape England to his own and Henry’s desires.

In inimitable style, Hilary Mantel presents a picture of a half-made society on the cusp of change, where individuals fight or embrace their fate with passion and courage. With a vast array of characters, overflowing with incident, Wolf Hall re-creates an era when the personal and political are separated by a hairbreadth, where success brings unlimited power but a single failure means death.

Biographical Fiction Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Renaissance England Inspiring Biography Heartfelt Middle Ages War

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great narrator, sublime writing, interesting plot... what more could you want? definitely deserves the Booker.

excellent

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I read Wolf Hall when it first came out and loved it and rereading it in audio format was a real treat. The writing is poetic, not a single word is superfluous, and the narrator takes his time allowing one to savour each phrase. His accents are also very good and distinct for each character so you know exactly who is speaking. I usually don’t like to use my audible credits on books I have already read but in the case of Bring up the Bodies I think I will have to.

Excellent reading of an excellent book

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Why a 10 year wait for an audio version? Narrator is Simon Slater, NOT SIMON VANCE. Slater is excellent.

At Last

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Struggled with this, started reading it but too many characters to keep track of (which normally isn't a problem). Audio version was easier but I don't feel inclined to read books 2 and 3.

Wolf Hall struggles

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I had high hopes for this audiobook and I typically enjoy any novel set in Tudor England; however, I just found this a little too hard to follow. Timeline and characters all seemed to blend together. Perhaps this would be a novel better read than listened to.

Didn't Hate, Didn't Love

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