-
Queens of a Fallen World
- The Lost Women of Augustine's Confessions
- Narrated by: Georgina Sutton
- Length: 7 hrs and 22 mins
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Prime members: New to Audible?Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Queens of a Fallen World
Buy for $19.49
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
Emperor of Rome
- Ruling the Ancient World
- By: Mary Beard
- Narrated by: Mary Beard
- Length: 14 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 187
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 168
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 168
In her international bestseller SPQR, Mary Beard told the thousand-year story of ancient Rome. Now she shines her spotlight on the emperors who ruled the Roman empire, from Julius Caesar (assassinated 44 BCE) to Alexander Severus (assassinated 235 CE). Emperor of Rome is not your usual chronological account of Roman rulers, one after another: the mad Caligula, the monster Nero, the philosopher Marcus Aurelius.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Wasn't sure but won me over
- By John S. on 01-26-24
By: Mary Beard
-
The Iliad & The Odyssey
- By: Homer
- Narrated by: John Lescault
- Length: 28 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 911
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 530
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 531
Little is known about the Ancient Greek oral poet Homer, the supposed 8th century BC author of the world-read Iliad and his later masterpiece, The Odyssey. These classic epics provided the basis for Greek education and culture throughout the classical age and formed the backbone of humane education through the birth of the Roman Empire and the spread of Christianity.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Worth the price, worth the time
- By Sam on 12-31-04
By: Homer
-
Hunting the Falcon
- Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn, and the Marriage That Shook Europe
- By: John Guy, Julia Fox
- Narrated by: Stephanie Racine
- Length: 17 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 53
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 51
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 51
Hunting the Falcon is the story of how Henry VIII’s obsessive desire for Anne Boleyn changed him and his country forever. John Guy and Julia Fox, two of the most acclaimed and distinguished historians of this period, have joined forces to present Anne and Henry in startlingly new ways.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Superb book and superb narration!
- By Buffy Martin Tarbox on 11-01-23
By: John Guy, and others
-
Weavers, Scribes, and Kings
- A New History of the Ancient Near East
- By: Amanda H. Podany
- Narrated by: Amanda H. Podany
- Length: 18 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 64
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 55
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 55
In this sweeping history of the ancient Near East, Amanda Podany takes listeners on a gripping journey from the creation of the world's first cities to the conquests of Alexander the Great. The book is built around the life stories of many ancient men and women, from kings, priestesses, and merchants to brickmakers, musicians, and weavers. Their habits of daily life, beliefs, triumphs, and crises, and the changes that people faced over time are explored through their own written words and the buildings, cities, and empires in which they lived.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
word of advice
- By Jim Davis on 08-04-23
By: Amanda H. Podany
-
Vergil
- The Poets Life
- By: Sarah Ruden
- Narrated by: Suzanne Toren
- Length: 7 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 1
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 1
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 1
The Aeneid stands as a towering work of Classical Roman literature and a gripping dramatization of the best and worst of human nature. In the process of creating this epic poem, Vergil (70–19 BCE) became the world’s first media celebrity, a living legend. But the real Vergil is a shadowy figure. Sarah Ruden, widely praised for her translation of the Aeneid, uses evidence from Roman life and history alongside Vergil’s own writings to make careful deductions to reconstruct the life of Rome’s greatest poet.
By: Sarah Ruden
-
The Art Thief
- A True Story of Love, Crime, and a Dangerous Obsession
- By: Michael Finkel
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini, Michael Finkel
- Length: 5 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 564
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 479
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 479
For centuries, works of art have been stolen in countless ways from all over the world, but no one has been quite as successful at it as the master thief Stéphane Breitwieser. Carrying out more than two hundred heists over nearly eight years—in museums and cathedrals all over Europe—Breitwieser, along with his girlfriend who worked as his lookout, stole more than three hundred objects, until it all fell apart in spectacular fashion.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
A book that's steals your attention!
- By samy on 07-23-23
By: Michael Finkel
-
Emperor of Rome
- Ruling the Ancient World
- By: Mary Beard
- Narrated by: Mary Beard
- Length: 14 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 187
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 168
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 168
In her international bestseller SPQR, Mary Beard told the thousand-year story of ancient Rome. Now she shines her spotlight on the emperors who ruled the Roman empire, from Julius Caesar (assassinated 44 BCE) to Alexander Severus (assassinated 235 CE). Emperor of Rome is not your usual chronological account of Roman rulers, one after another: the mad Caligula, the monster Nero, the philosopher Marcus Aurelius.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Wasn't sure but won me over
- By John S. on 01-26-24
By: Mary Beard
-
The Iliad & The Odyssey
- By: Homer
- Narrated by: John Lescault
- Length: 28 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 911
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 530
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 531
Little is known about the Ancient Greek oral poet Homer, the supposed 8th century BC author of the world-read Iliad and his later masterpiece, The Odyssey. These classic epics provided the basis for Greek education and culture throughout the classical age and formed the backbone of humane education through the birth of the Roman Empire and the spread of Christianity.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Worth the price, worth the time
- By Sam on 12-31-04
By: Homer
-
Hunting the Falcon
- Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn, and the Marriage That Shook Europe
- By: John Guy, Julia Fox
- Narrated by: Stephanie Racine
- Length: 17 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 53
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 51
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 51
Hunting the Falcon is the story of how Henry VIII’s obsessive desire for Anne Boleyn changed him and his country forever. John Guy and Julia Fox, two of the most acclaimed and distinguished historians of this period, have joined forces to present Anne and Henry in startlingly new ways.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Superb book and superb narration!
- By Buffy Martin Tarbox on 11-01-23
By: John Guy, and others
-
Weavers, Scribes, and Kings
- A New History of the Ancient Near East
- By: Amanda H. Podany
- Narrated by: Amanda H. Podany
- Length: 18 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 64
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 55
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 55
In this sweeping history of the ancient Near East, Amanda Podany takes listeners on a gripping journey from the creation of the world's first cities to the conquests of Alexander the Great. The book is built around the life stories of many ancient men and women, from kings, priestesses, and merchants to brickmakers, musicians, and weavers. Their habits of daily life, beliefs, triumphs, and crises, and the changes that people faced over time are explored through their own written words and the buildings, cities, and empires in which they lived.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
word of advice
- By Jim Davis on 08-04-23
By: Amanda H. Podany
-
Vergil
- The Poets Life
- By: Sarah Ruden
- Narrated by: Suzanne Toren
- Length: 7 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 1
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 1
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 1
The Aeneid stands as a towering work of Classical Roman literature and a gripping dramatization of the best and worst of human nature. In the process of creating this epic poem, Vergil (70–19 BCE) became the world’s first media celebrity, a living legend. But the real Vergil is a shadowy figure. Sarah Ruden, widely praised for her translation of the Aeneid, uses evidence from Roman life and history alongside Vergil’s own writings to make careful deductions to reconstruct the life of Rome’s greatest poet.
By: Sarah Ruden
-
The Art Thief
- A True Story of Love, Crime, and a Dangerous Obsession
- By: Michael Finkel
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini, Michael Finkel
- Length: 5 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 564
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 479
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 479
For centuries, works of art have been stolen in countless ways from all over the world, but no one has been quite as successful at it as the master thief Stéphane Breitwieser. Carrying out more than two hundred heists over nearly eight years—in museums and cathedrals all over Europe—Breitwieser, along with his girlfriend who worked as his lookout, stole more than three hundred objects, until it all fell apart in spectacular fashion.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
A book that's steals your attention!
- By samy on 07-23-23
By: Michael Finkel
-
The Visionaries
- Arendt, Beauvoir, Rand, Weil, and the Power of Philosophy in Dark Times
- By: Wolfram Eilenberger, Shaun Whiteside
- Narrated by: Hannah Curtis
- Length: 12 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 17
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 15
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 15
The period from 1933 to 1943 was one of the darkest and most chaotic in human history, as the Second World War unfolded with unthinkable cruelty. It was also a crucial decade in the dramatic, intersecting lives of some of history’s greatest philosophers. There were four women, in particular, whose parallel ideas would come to dominate the twentieth century—at once in necessary dialogue and in striking contrast with one another.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Very pleased at the treatment of these 4 women
- By Amazon Customer on 10-04-23
By: Wolfram Eilenberger, and others
-
The Middle Kingdoms
- A New History of Central Europe
- By: Martyn Rady
- Narrated by: John Curless
- Length: 22 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 37
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 32
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 32
Central Europe has long been infamous as a region beset by war, a place where empires clashed and world wars began. In The Middle Kingdoms, Martyn Rady offers the definitive history of the region, demonstrating that Central Europe has always been more than merely the fault line between West and East. Even as Central European powers warred with their neighbors, the region developed its own cohesive identity and produced tremendous accomplishments in politics, society, and culture.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Marred by the errors in the modern section
- By Paul Boothroyd on 10-20-23
By: Martyn Rady
-
Angle of Repose
- By: Wallace Stegner
- Narrated by: Mark Bramhall
- Length: 22 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 2,421
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 2,035
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 2,033
Wallace Stegner's uniquely American classic centers on Lyman Ward, a noted historian who relates a fictionalized biography of his pioneer grandparents at a time when he has become estranged from his own family. Through a combination of research, memory, and exaggeration, Ward voices ideas concerning the relationship between history and the present, art and life, parents and children, and husbands and wives.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The Quest for Balance
- By Mel on 01-24-13
By: Wallace Stegner
-
Messalina
- A Story of Empire, Slander and Adultery
- By: Honor Cargill-Martin
- Narrated by: Antonia Beamish
- Length: 12 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 13
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 12
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 12
The scandalous image of the Empress Messalina as a ruthless and sexually insatiable schemer, derived from the work of Roman historians such as Tacitus and Suetonius, has taken deep root in the Western imagination. The stories they told about her included nightly visits to a brothel and a twenty-four-hour sex competition with a prostitute. Tales like these have defined the empress's legacy, but her real story is much more complex. In her new life of Messalina, the classicist Honor Cargill-Martin reappraises one of the most slandered and underestimated female figures of ancient history.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Stunning, direct history
- By Amazon Customer on 03-02-24
-
Catherine de Medici
- Renaissance Queen of France
- By: Leonie Frieda
- Narrated by: Sarah Le Fevre
- Length: 21 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 454
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 387
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 384
Poisoner, despot, necromancer - the dark legend of Catherine de Medici is centuries old. In this critically hailed biography, Leonie Frieda reclaims the story of this unjustly maligned queen to reveal a skilled ruler battling extraordinary political and personal odds - from a troubled childhood in Florence to her marriage to Henry, son of King Francis I of France; from her transformation of French culture to her fight to protect her throne and her sons' birthright. Based on thousands of private letters, it is a remarkable account of one of the most influential women to wear a crown.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Narrator didn't get one name right
- By Georgina García- Menocal on 09-15-19
By: Leonie Frieda
-
Daughters of Chivalry
- The Forgotten Princesses of King Edward Longshanks
- By: Kelcey Wilson-Lee
- Narrated by: Christine Rendel
- Length: 12 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 37
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 33
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 33
Virginal, chaste, humble, patiently waiting for rescue by brave knights and handsome princes: this idealized—and largely mythical—notion of the medieval noblewoman still lingers. Yet the reality was very different, as Kelcey Wilson-Lee shows in this vibrant account of the five daughters of Edward I, often known as Longshanks. The lives of these sisters—Eleanora, Joanna, Margaret, Mary, and Elizabeth—ran the gamut of experiences open to royal women in the Middle Ages.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
fascinating!
- By Anne Keys on 02-11-23
-
Early Greek Philosophy
- The Pre-Socratics
- By: John Burnet
- Narrated by: Jonathan Booth
- Length: 9 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 10
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 10
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 10
Although it was originally published in 1892, Early Greek Philosophy by John Burnet remains unquestionably one of the most respected and admired surveys of the pre-Socratics. It is an illuminating springboard into classical Greek philosophy.
By: John Burnet
-
Two Houses, Two Kingdoms
- A History of France and England, 1100-1300
- By: Catherine Hanley
- Narrated by: Jennifer M. Dixon
- Length: 15 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 27
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 25
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 25
The twelfth and thirteenth centuries were a time of personal monarchy, when the close friendship or petty feuding between kings and queens could determine the course of history. The Capetians of France and the Angevins of England waged war, made peace, and intermarried. In this lively history, Catherine Hanley traces the great clashes, and occasional friendships, of the two dynasties. Along the way, she emphasizes the fascinating and influential women of the houses—including Eleanor of Aquitaine—and shows how personalities and familial bonds shaped the fate of two countries.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Great book with a bit of slant
- By Ky on 12-20-22
By: Catherine Hanley
-
The Revolutionary: Samuel Adams
- By: Stacy Schiff
- Narrated by: Jason Culp
- Length: 14 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 455
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 398
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 397
Thomas Jefferson once asserted that "for depth of purpose, zeal, and sagacity, no man in Congress exceeded, if any equaled, Sam Adams." John Adams called him "the most elegant writer, the most sagacious politician, and celebrated patriot perhaps of all." But in spite of his celebrated status among America's founding fathers as a revolutionary leader, Samuel Adams' life and achievements have been largely overshadowed in the history books. Now, in The Revolutionary Samuel Adams, Stacy Schiff brings her masterful skill as historian and storyteller to the life of Samuel Adams.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The revolutionary
- By Charles on 11-02-22
By: Stacy Schiff
-
The End of Woman
- How Smashing the Patriarchy Has Destroyed Us
- By: Carrie Gress
- Narrated by: Monroe Jillian
- Length: 7 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 56
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 54
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 54
Fellow at Ethic & Public Policy Center, scholar at The Institute for Human Ecology at CUA and the nationally best-selling author of the Theology of Home series, Carrie Gress argues that fifty years of radical feminism have had the opposite of the intended effect and have granted primacy of place to the traditionally male sphere of life, while simultaneously devaluing the typical attributes, virtues, and strengths of women.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
A dark look into the religious right’s hatred of women
- By Shevaun Bastarache on 10-30-23
By: Carrie Gress
-
Super-Infinite
- The Transformations of John Donne
- By: Katherine Rundell
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 7 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 72
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 66
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 65
Sometime religious outsider and social disaster, sometime celebrity preacher and establishment darling, John Donne was incapable of being just one thing. In his myriad lives he was a scholar of law, a sea adventurer, a priest, an MP—and perhaps the greatest love poet in the history of the English language. Along the way he converted from Catholicism to Protestantism, was imprisoned for marrying a sixteen-year old girl without her father’s consent, struggled to feed a family of ten children, and was often ill and in pain.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Oh but the narration…
- By David Trainer on 01-01-23
-
Lives of the Stoics
- The Art of Living from Zeno to Marcus Aurelius
- By: Ryan Holiday, Stephen Hanselman
- Narrated by: Ryan Holiday
- Length: 10 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 715
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 601
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 598
From the best-selling authors of The Daily Stoic comes an inspiring guide to the lives of the Stoics, and what the ancients can teach us about happiness, success, resilience, and virtue. In Lives of the Stoics, Holiday and Hanselman present the fascinating lives of the men and women who strove to live by the timeless Stoic virtues of Courage. Justice. Temperance. Wisdom. Organized in digestible, mini-biographies of all the well-known - and not so well-known - Stoics, this book vividly brings home what Stoicism was like for the people who loved it and lived it.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Awful narration
- By Jordan Bailey on 10-03-20
By: Ryan Holiday, and others
Publisher's summary
The vibrant and surprising lives of the women in Augustine's Confessions
While many know of Saint Augustine and his Confessions, few are aware of how his life and thought were influenced by women.
Queens of a Fallen World tells a story of betrayal, love, and ambition in the ancient world as seen through a woman's eyes. Historian Kate Cooper introduces us to four women whose hopes and plans collided in Augustine's early adulthood: his mother, Monnica of Thagaste; his lover; his fiancée; and Justina, the troubled empress of ancient Rome. Drawing upon their depictions in the Confessions, Cooper skilfully reconstructs their lives against the backdrop of their fourth-century society. Though they came from different walks of life, each found her own way of prevailing in a world ruled by men.
A refreshingly complex and compelling portrait of Augustine, Queens of a Fallen World is the riveting story of four remarkable women who set him on course to change history.
Critic reviews
"A masterpiece of the historian’s art. With a rare balance of state-of-the-art erudition and felicitous hypotheses, Kate Cooper has brought the hidden women in Augustine’s early life into the light. Governed throughout by a humane sense of the texture of a distant late Roman society, she captures women’s voices which we would not otherwise have heard."—Peter Brown, author of Augustine of Hippo: A Biography
“An enchanting tour de force of sensitive and probing historical writing. Queens of a Fallen World reveals the traces of forgotten female voices in Augustine’s loves, losses, regrets, and consolations. Cooper’s enquiry into the influence of women on Augustine—whether empress, mother, lover, saint, or slave—enriches his legacy.”—Adrienne Mayor, author of The Amazons: Lives and Legends of Warrior Women across the Ancient World
More from the same
Related to this topic
-
Popes and Feminists
- How the Reformation Frees Women from Feminism
- By: Elise Crapuchettes
- Narrated by: Elise Crapuchettes
- Length: 4 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 37
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 28
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 27
Before the Reformation, in the eyes of the Roman Catholic Church, being a wife or mother was not a holy vocation. The only “spiritual” calling for women was to be found in a convent. The Reformers confronted the bad theology which led to this (and other worse abuses, like priest-patronized brothels) and returned to the Bible to develop a theology of vocation that began to free Christians to be "holy" no matter their occupation. But today, modern feminist claims about vocation have more in common with the pre-Reformation popes than anything else....
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
EXCELLENT BOOK.
- By Diana Jenkins on 01-09-21
-
Anne Boleyn
- 500 Years of Lies
- By: Hayley Nolan
- Narrated by: Hayley Nolan
- Length: 11 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 411
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 366
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 359
History has lied. Anne Boleyn has been sold to us as a dark figure, a scheming seductress who bewitched Henry VIII into divorcing his queen and his church in an unprecedented display of passion. Quite the tragic love story, right? Wrong. In this electrifying exposé, Hayley Nolan explores for the first time the full, uncensored evidence of Anne Boleyn’s life and relationship with Henry VIII, revealing the shocking suppression of a powerful woman.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Very annoying narrator!
- By momo chan on 12-02-19
By: Hayley Nolan
-
Dying Every Day
- Seneca at the Court of Nero
- By: James S. Romm
- Narrated by: Paul Woodson
- Length: 8 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 40
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 33
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 33
James Romm seamlessly weaves together the life and written words, the moral struggles, political intrigue, and bloody vengeance that enmeshed Seneca the Younger in the twisted imperial family and the perverse, paranoid regime of Emperor Nero, despot and madman.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Outstanding
- By michael bobadilla on 05-04-23
By: James S. Romm
-
"Most Blessed of the Patriarchs"
- Thomas Jefferson and the Empire of the Imagination
- By: Annette Gordon-Reed, Peter S. Onuf
- Narrated by: Karen Chilton
- Length: 14 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 87
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 75
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 73
Thomas Jefferson is still presented today as a hopelessly enigmatic figure despite being written about more than any other Founding Father. Lauded as the most articulate voice of American freedom even as he held people in bondage, Jefferson is variably described by current-day observers as a hypocrite, an atheist, and a simple-minded proponent of limited government.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Disappointing
- By Steve on 06-09-16
By: Annette Gordon-Reed, and others
-
Domina
- The Women Who Made Imperial Rome
- By: Guy de la Bédoyère
- Narrated by: Julian Elfer
- Length: 12 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 46
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 38
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 38
Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, and Nero - these are the names history associates with the early Roman Empire. Yet, not a single one of these emperors was the blood son of his predecessor. In this captivating history, a prominent scholar of the era documents the Julio-Claudian women whose bloodline, ambition, and ruthlessness made it possible for the emperors' line to continue. Eminent scholar Guy de la Bedoyere, author of Praetorian, asserts that the women behind the scenes - including Livia, Octavia, and the elder and younger Agrippina - were the true backbone of the dynasty.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fills a Large Gap in Roman History!
- By John Allred on 12-01-19
-
Malestrom
- Manhood Swept into the Currents of a Changing World
- By: Carolyn Custis James
- Narrated by: Diana Batrseh
- Length: 6 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 26
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 22
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 22
Malestrom builds on and expands previous books by Carolyn Custis James to explore the idea of manhood, a growing issue both in the wider culture and in the church. Until now the entire discussion has been largely reduced to Western conceptions. Instead James here shows how our culture's narrow definitions of manhood are upended when we consider the examples of men in the Bible and Jesus' gospel.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Food for thought
- By Brittany Noz on 06-14-22
-
Popes and Feminists
- How the Reformation Frees Women from Feminism
- By: Elise Crapuchettes
- Narrated by: Elise Crapuchettes
- Length: 4 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 37
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 28
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 27
Before the Reformation, in the eyes of the Roman Catholic Church, being a wife or mother was not a holy vocation. The only “spiritual” calling for women was to be found in a convent. The Reformers confronted the bad theology which led to this (and other worse abuses, like priest-patronized brothels) and returned to the Bible to develop a theology of vocation that began to free Christians to be "holy" no matter their occupation. But today, modern feminist claims about vocation have more in common with the pre-Reformation popes than anything else....
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
EXCELLENT BOOK.
- By Diana Jenkins on 01-09-21
-
Anne Boleyn
- 500 Years of Lies
- By: Hayley Nolan
- Narrated by: Hayley Nolan
- Length: 11 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 411
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 366
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 359
History has lied. Anne Boleyn has been sold to us as a dark figure, a scheming seductress who bewitched Henry VIII into divorcing his queen and his church in an unprecedented display of passion. Quite the tragic love story, right? Wrong. In this electrifying exposé, Hayley Nolan explores for the first time the full, uncensored evidence of Anne Boleyn’s life and relationship with Henry VIII, revealing the shocking suppression of a powerful woman.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Very annoying narrator!
- By momo chan on 12-02-19
By: Hayley Nolan
-
Dying Every Day
- Seneca at the Court of Nero
- By: James S. Romm
- Narrated by: Paul Woodson
- Length: 8 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 40
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 33
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 33
James Romm seamlessly weaves together the life and written words, the moral struggles, political intrigue, and bloody vengeance that enmeshed Seneca the Younger in the twisted imperial family and the perverse, paranoid regime of Emperor Nero, despot and madman.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Outstanding
- By michael bobadilla on 05-04-23
By: James S. Romm
-
"Most Blessed of the Patriarchs"
- Thomas Jefferson and the Empire of the Imagination
- By: Annette Gordon-Reed, Peter S. Onuf
- Narrated by: Karen Chilton
- Length: 14 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 87
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 75
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 73
Thomas Jefferson is still presented today as a hopelessly enigmatic figure despite being written about more than any other Founding Father. Lauded as the most articulate voice of American freedom even as he held people in bondage, Jefferson is variably described by current-day observers as a hypocrite, an atheist, and a simple-minded proponent of limited government.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Disappointing
- By Steve on 06-09-16
By: Annette Gordon-Reed, and others
-
Domina
- The Women Who Made Imperial Rome
- By: Guy de la Bédoyère
- Narrated by: Julian Elfer
- Length: 12 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 46
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 38
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 38
Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, and Nero - these are the names history associates with the early Roman Empire. Yet, not a single one of these emperors was the blood son of his predecessor. In this captivating history, a prominent scholar of the era documents the Julio-Claudian women whose bloodline, ambition, and ruthlessness made it possible for the emperors' line to continue. Eminent scholar Guy de la Bedoyere, author of Praetorian, asserts that the women behind the scenes - including Livia, Octavia, and the elder and younger Agrippina - were the true backbone of the dynasty.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fills a Large Gap in Roman History!
- By John Allred on 12-01-19
-
Malestrom
- Manhood Swept into the Currents of a Changing World
- By: Carolyn Custis James
- Narrated by: Diana Batrseh
- Length: 6 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 26
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 22
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 22
Malestrom builds on and expands previous books by Carolyn Custis James to explore the idea of manhood, a growing issue both in the wider culture and in the church. Until now the entire discussion has been largely reduced to Western conceptions. Instead James here shows how our culture's narrow definitions of manhood are upended when we consider the examples of men in the Bible and Jesus' gospel.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Food for thought
- By Brittany Noz on 06-14-22
-
God Believes in Love
- Straight Talk About Gay Marriage
- By: Gene Robinson
- Narrated by: Gene Robinson
- Length: 5 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 47
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 41
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 41
From Gene Robinson, the Bishop of the Diocese of New Hampshire in the Episcopal Church, the first openly gay person elected (in 2003) to the historic episcopate and the world's leading religious spokesperson for gay rights and gay marriage, comes a groundbreaking book that lovingly and persuasively makes the case for same-sex marriage. It establishes a commonsense, reasoned, religious argument, made by someone who holds the religious text of the Bible to be holy and sacred.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
He nailed it!
- By Jamie on 12-27-12
By: Gene Robinson
-
The Ugly Renaissance
- Sex, Greed, Violence, and Depravity in an Age of Beauty
- By: Alexander Lee
- Narrated by: Arthur Morey
- Length: 15 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 119
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 100
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 99
Renowned as a period of cultural rebirth and artistic innovation, the Renaissance is cloaked in a unique aura of beauty and brilliance. Its very name conjures up awe-inspiring images of an age of lofty ideals in which life imitated the fantastic artworks for which it has become famous. But behind the vast explosion of new art and culture lurked a seamy, vicious world of power politics, perversity, and corruption that has more in common with the present day than anyone dares to admit.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Author falls into the pit he digs for others
- By Sean on 01-23-16
By: Alexander Lee
-
Prince Albert
- The Man Who Saved the Monarchy
- By: A. N. Wilson
- Narrated by: Gareth Armstrong
- Length: 13 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 33
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 32
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 31
Drawn from the Royal archives, including Prince Albert’s voluminous correspondence, this brilliant and ambitious book offers fascinating never-before-known details about the man and his time. A superb match of biographer and subject, Prince Albert, at last, gives this important historical figure the reverence and recognition that is long overdue.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Well Worth Reading
- By Mark Harrington on 06-01-22
By: A. N. Wilson
-
Agrippina
- The Most Extraordinary Woman of the Roman World
- By: Emma Southon
- Narrated by: Teri Schnaubelt
- Length: 9 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 130
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 110
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 109
The story of Agrippina, at the center of imperial power for three generations, is the story of the Julio-Claudia dynasty - and of Rome itself, at its bloody, extravagant, chaotic, ruthless, and political zenith. In her own time, she was recognized as a woman of unparalleled power.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fun!
- By Curatina on 02-27-20
By: Emma Southon
-
Nero
- Matricide, Music, and Murder in Imperial Rome
- By: Anthony Everitt, Roddy Ashworth
- Narrated by: Greg Patmore
- Length: 13 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 56
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 50
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 50
The Roman emperor Nero’s name has long been a byword for cruelty, decadence, and despotism. As the stories go, he set fire to Rome and thrummed his lyre as it burned. He then cleared the charred ruins and built a vast palace. He committed incest with his mother, who had schemed and killed to place him on the throne, and later murdered her. But these stories, left behind by contemporary historians who hated him, are hardly the full picture, and in this nuanced biography, celebrated historian Anthony Everitt and investigative journalist Roddy Ashworth reveal the contradictions inherent in Nero
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
An amazing 360 degree portrait
- By Cooper A Day on 01-01-23
By: Anthony Everitt, and others
-
A Short Life of Jonathan Edwards
- By: George M. Marsden
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 5 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 140
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 118
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 116
Jonathan Edwards is one of the most extraordinary figures in American history. Arguably the most brilliant theologian ever born on American soil, Edwards (1703 - 1758) was also a pastor, a renowned preacher, a missionary to the Native Americans, a biographer, a college president, a philosopher, a loving husband, and the father of 11 children.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Terrific book and well narrated
- By SBT on 01-22-11
-
Love and Louis XIV
- The Women in the Life of the Sun King
- By: Antonia Fraser
- Narrated by: Rosalyn Landor
- Length: 13 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 318
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 222
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 222
The self-proclaimed Sun King, Louis XIV, ruled over the most glorious and extravagant court in 17th-century Europe. Now, Antonia Fraser goes behind the well-known tales of Louis' accomplishments and follies, exploring in riveting detail his intimate relationships with women.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Excellent!
- By Louise on 04-27-08
By: Antonia Fraser
-
Sailing the Wine-Dark Sea
- Why the Greeks Matter
- By: Thomas Cahill
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 7 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 335
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 152
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 152
Best selling history writer Thomas Cahill continues his series on the roots of Western civilization with this volume about the contributions of ancient Greece to the development of contemporary culture. Tracing the origin of Greek culture in the migrations of armed Indo-European horsemen into Attica and the Peloponnesian peninsula, he follows their progress into the creation of the Greek city-states, the refinement of their machinery of war, and the flowering of intellectual and artistic culture.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Super super
- By Richard on 12-28-03
By: Thomas Cahill
-
The Hemingses of Monticello
- An American Family
- By: Annette Gordon-Reed
- Narrated by: Karen White
- Length: 30 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 825
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 612
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 607
This epic work tells the story of the Hemingses, whose close blood ties to our third president had been systematically expunged from American history until very recently. Now, historian and legal scholar Annette Gordon-Reed traces the Hemings family from its origins in Virginia in the 1700s to the family's dispersal after Jefferson's death in 1826. It brings to life not only Sally Hemings and Thomas Jefferson but also their children and Hemings's siblings, who shared a father with Jefferson's wife, Martha.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Worried at first
- By Phillip Goodson on 12-13-08
-
Diderot and the Art of Thinking Freely
- By: Andrew S. Curran
- Narrated by: Paul Boehmer
- Length: 13 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 44
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 36
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 36
Denis Diderot is often associated with the decades-long battle to bring the world's first comprehensive Encyclopedie into existence. But his most daring writing took place in the shadows. Thrown into prison for his atheism in 1749, Diderot decided to reserve his best books for posterity - for us, in fact. In the astonishing cache of unpublished writings left behind after his death, Diderot challenged virtually all of his century's accepted truths, from the sanctity of monarchy, to the racial justification of the slave trade, to the norms of human sexuality.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
lifelong coverage of his life.
- By Michael Daly on 03-22-21
By: Andrew S. Curran
-
Charity and Sylvia
- By: Rachel Hope Cleves
- Narrated by: Kristin Kalbli
- Length: 10 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 304
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 265
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 265
Conventional wisdom holds that same-sex marriage is a purely modern innovation, a concept born of an overtly modern lifestyle that was unheard of in 19th-century America. But as Rachel Hope Cleves demonstrates in this eye-opening book, same-sex marriage is hardly new. Born in 1777, Charity Bryant was raised in Massachusetts. A brilliant and strong-willed woman with a clear attraction for her own sex, Charity found herself banished from her family home at age 20.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fascinating story!
- By Chloe Northrop on 06-13-17
-
Heiresses
- The Lives of the Million Dollar Babies
- By: Laura Thompson
- Narrated by: Laura Thompson
- Length: 13 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 72
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 61
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 62
Heiresses: Surely they are among the luckiest women on earth. Are they not to be envied, with their private jets and Chanel wardrobes and endless funds? Yet all too often those gilded lives have been beset with trauma and despair. Before the 20th century a wife’s inheritance was the property of her husband, making her vulnerable to kidnap, forced marriages, even confinement in an asylum. And in modern times, heiresses fell victim to fortune-hunters who squandered their millions.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Too much fluff
- By JESSICA BAUER on 09-02-22
By: Laura Thompson
What listeners say about Queens of a Fallen World
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- William McConville
- 12-02-23
Superb
I know a fair amount about Augustine. I found this a graceful and insightful addition to the literature. It is wonderfully written and read.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- J. Colville-Hanson
- 10-23-23
New look at Augustine
Interesting look at some women in Augustine’s life and times - his mother, his mistress and Empress Justine (none of whom were queens but okay..,)
This was a new look at Augustine and shows him with a more positive opinion of women and marriage than he usually gets credit for.
Also a less positive view of Ambrose who was more of a political player (and sometime asshole) than he is usually portrayed.
The audiobook is free on Audible
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!