A Dangerous Inheritance

By: Alison Weir

Narrated by: Maggie Mash

Length: 25 hrs and 41 mins

Publisher's summary

Historian and New York Times best-selling author Alison Weir is acclaimed for her absorbing works about the infamous House of York and House of Tudor lines. In A Dangerous Inheritance, Weir uses her wealth of knowledge to craft a compelling novel about two women, living 70 years apart, who are linked through the mysterious disappearance of King Richard III's nephews, Edward V and Richard of Shrewsbury - also known as the Princes in the Tower.

©2012 Alison Weir (P)2012 Recorded Books

Listen to the narrator first.

Is there anything you would change about this book?

Only the narrator

What other book might you compare A Dangerous Inheritance to and why?

This time in history is my bread and butter. This book is the only one that I might not finish. Among my favorites are The Autobiography of Henry VIII. The Lady Elizabeth, the King's Fool, and so on. In all of these recordings the narrator makes the book.

How could the performance have been better?

My only complaint is the narrator. She is like fingernails on a blackboard. I am not sure I can finish it.

Could you see A Dangerous Inheritance being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

These involved historical novels never make good movies. Cate Blanchett as Queen Elizabeth was just terrible. Johnathan Meyers was no more Henry VIII than I am, That series was not worth watching. The only way to portray the people and the era is by way of a good historian and a pleasing narrator and a story that has not been hacked to bits.

Historical romance

This work deals with two lesser known characters, Richard III's illegitimate daughter and Lady Jane Grey's younger sister. I found it confusing that one was named Katherine and the other named Kate...especially confusing in audible version, maybe less so in a printed version. Interesting retelling of the mystery of the Princes in the Tower. The voices of the female protagonists were done well, but too many of the male voices sounded angry which I found annoying. If you enjoy Philippa Gregory's historical fiction, you will like this.

Rivoting

Very exciting book. Great insight to the royals marriage game, and how they are all related.

Interesting

Any additional comments?

Flip flopping back and forth between the two main women in this book can become confusing. The book, however, was very well written and once you got the knack of the shifting back and forth it was very enjoyable.

Very good- kind of confusing as an audiobook

I LOVED the story but it became confusing as both of the main characters had the same name and it was easy to get lost. Once you’re able to get used to it, it’s amazing!

Confusing

I always love hearing Ms weir’s stories but I was so confused. Too many names the same and going back and forth for me so confused.

More of a mystery story.

I don't think this book is bad as others have said. It's told from two different perspectives in two different timelines. But both have similar storylines. The one thing that I don't like or understand is the crossover between the two. Why do they continue to "see" each other. It makes kinda sense for Katherine. But not for Kate. But I enjoyed listening and reading this book. Especially since I did not know how these two ladies story ended. I also would like to have heard more about Katherine's sister Mary. Heard very little about her.

Parallel of two Pawns

The story jumps back and forth in time focusing on the lives of Katherine Plantagenet and Lady Catherine Grey. Whenever the perspective changed it took a few minutes to get back up to speed on what was going on. I did enjoy the story despite the constant jumping back and forth because the switch in perspective drew a parallel between the lives of both women. They both were naive pawns of others who sought power, prestige, and the throne.
The one thing I did not like was the narrator. She does not do male voices well, except for young male children. Most of the male voices sounded like hoarse, bored, old women. The female voices were only a little better. I had to speed it up a little because she talked so slowly and stretched out words too much which was a bit distracting.

Royal blood isn't always a good thing

I enjoyed the way the story tied two historical characters together who seemingly wouldn't have much in common. Both share a closeness to the thrown (although only one of these women would have had a claim to the thrown) and their lives were tightly controlled because of this tie. Katherine Grey saw her sister killed because her her royal blood, Katherine, too, feels threatened...it is indeed a dangerous inheritance. Both Katherines also share a common need to know what exactly happened to the missing Princess in the Tower.
Because the story jumps back and forth between the two Katherines, I often had to pause and remind myself which one was talking and what I knew about her, before I could continue listening. This going back and forth really hindered my being able to enjoy the story as much...maybe if the voices had been more distinct or something.

Alison Weir at her best!

I am a huge fan of Ms Weir, and this was a splendid fictional diversion from her usual historical writings! Fabulous story, presented so vividly, with all the historical embellishment a researcher of Ms Weir's caliber can bring to bear. The frosting on this delicious cake was Maggie Mash, whose narration was riveting! If I had been reading this book, I would have been up all night turning pages because it was really just that good! As it was, I felt like time not spent listening was time wasted, and I truly savored every word.