Victoria

A Novel

By: Daisy Goodwin

Narrated by: Anna Wilson-Jones

This program includes an interview with the author, Daisy Goodwin, who is the writer and creator of Victoria, the Masterpiece presentation on PBS. Anna Wilson-Jones, who plays Lady Portman on the show, narrates.

"The research is impeccable, the attention to details - from protocol to petticoats - perfect, and it brings the formidable figure of Victoria to sparkling life." (Sunday Mirror)

"Victoria is an absolutely captivating novel of youth, love, and the often painful transition from immaturity to adulthood. Daisy Goodwin breathes new life into Victoria's story, and does so with sensitivity, verve, and wit." (Amanda Foreman, New York Times best-selling author of Georgiana: Duchess of Devonshire and A World on Fire, and 2016 chair of the Man Booker Prize)

Early one morning, less than a month after her 18th birthday, Alexandrina Victoria is roused from bed with the news that her uncle William IV has died, and she is now queen of England. The men who run the country have doubts about whether this sheltered young woman, who stands less than five feet tall, can rule the greatest nation in the world. Surely she must rely on her mother and her venal advisor, Sir John Conroy, or her uncle, the Duke of Cumberland, who are all too eager to relieve her of the burdens of power.

The young queen is no puppet, however. She has very definite ideas about the kind of queen she wants to be, and the first thing is to choose her name.

Everyone keeps saying she is destined to marry her first cousin, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, but Victoria found him dull and priggish when they met three years ago. She is quite happy being queen with the help of her prime minister, Lord Melbourne, who may be old enough to be her father but is the first person to take her seriously.

Drawing on Victoria's diaries, which she first started reading when she was a student at Cambridge University, as well as her own brilliant gifts for history and drama, Daisy Goodwin, author of the best-selling novels The American Heiress and The Fortune Hunter as well as creator and writer of the new PBS/Masterpiece drama Victoria, brings the young queen richly to life in this magnificent audiobook.

©2016 Daisy Goodwin (P)2016 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

"Narrator Anna Wilson-Jones and author Daisy Goodwin work magic in this captivating historical novel about the tiny queen with a huge personality.... Wilson-Jones, whose clear and inviting narrative voice trips along at a perfect pace and sounds perfect for a book about royalty, serves the author beautifully. She has a wide range of accents and skill with both female and male voices. And her ability to perform believable conversational dialogue adds much to the novel's many pleasures." (AudioFile)

GREAT story and narration!

Loved the book; held my attention and makes we want to watch the
PBS series. Highly recommend!

Very enjoyable!

delightful story and really enjoyed this novel describing an intriguing piece of history of how Victoria and Albert fell in love.

Couldn't put it down!

I absolutely love everything about Queen Victoria and this was such a great point of view to tell the story from. The narrator was great. I would definitely recommend this book

An admirable young woman

What a wonderful story. I felt as though I had an all access pass to her world. I want more of Victoria’s story. The narrator was wonderful. I was completely wrapped up in the characters and never once thought about her. She was pivotal in bringing the authors words to life.

Excellent Story and Well Narated

Where does Victoria rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

New to Audio but give Victoria a 9 out of 10.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Victoria?

The ending. Have tissues at ready

Have you listened to any of Anna Wilson-Jones’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Well narated.

Who was the most memorable character of Victoria and why?

Albert because of his steadfastness and way he overcame obstacles.

Any additional comments?

If you fan of tv series Victoria then you will enjoy this.