The Summer Queen
Eleanor of Aquitaine Trilogy, Book 1
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The Summer Queen
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Narrated by:
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Katie Scarfe
About this listen
Eleanor of Aquitaine.
A loving mother. A betrayed wife. A queen beyond compare.
Eleanor of Aquitaine's story is legendary. She is an icon who has fascinated readers for over 800 years. But the real Eleanor remains elusive - until now. Based on the most up-to-date research, best-selling novelist Elizabeth Chadwick brings Eleanor's magnificent story to life, as never before.
Young, vibrant, privileged, Eleanor's future is golden as the heiress to wealthy Aquitaine. But when her beloved father dies suddenly in the summer of 1137, her childhood ends abruptly. Forced to marry the young prince Louis of France, Eleanor is still struggling to adjust to her new role when Louis' father dies and they become King and Queen of France. Leaving everything behind, the vivacious Eleanor must face the complex and faction-riddled French court. She is only 13.
Overflowing with scandal, politics, sex, triumphs and tragedies, The Summer Queen is the first novel in a stunning trilogy from award-winning and much-loved author Elizabeth Chadwick
©2013 Elizabeth Chadwick (P)2013 Hachette AudioListeners also enjoyed...
Critic reviews
"An author who makes history come gloriously alive." (The Times)
"Meticulous research and strong storytelling." (Woman & Home)
"A sumptuous ride." (Toby Clements, Daily Telegraph)
What listeners say about The Summer Queen
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Chyryl
- 02-10-18
great story
I found it to be a slow burn, but once you get into it, hard to put down. thoroughly enjoyed.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Julia
- 15-07-20
Romanticized version
This novel is clearly well researched with tons of detail to build up the story. The author does embellish with her romance and sex scenes which can weaken the feeling of realism and depth in the story telling.
The narrator mis pronounces certain words and obviously doesn't know how to pronounce some of the French place names. Her reading is a bit light and girlish for such a strong character. However she does read pleasantly and at first I enjoyed her narration.
This is an enjoyable world to delve into and I'll listen to the next two in the series.
Why don't editors pick up on pronunciation and why choose a narrator who doesn't know French to narrate a novel set in France?
On the whole I think both narrator and author make this novel lighter than it could be. It moves towards chick lit with the emphasis on romance and the slight bodice ripping quality to it.
However it is enjoyable if flawed and the author really has done a lot of research and created a mainly believable world.
The narrator has a nice voice and does characterise well. I just wish she'd been told how to pronounce some English words and some french place names.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mr G A Wicks
- 17-01-15
So real I felt the perilousness of the age
Beautiful narration of a evocative and tumultuous period in history. Aleanor and any woman of the age needed resilience and fortitude. I pictured everything from the dress to the horses to emotion and felt involved by subtle weaving of details. Bodes well for The Winter Crown'. It showed that wealth and position were no guarantee of a long life, and the greatest enemy was likely to share your bed!
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Manchester Mama
- 01-12-18
Eeanor of Aquitaine's early life in vivid focus
I thought this book was brilliant. Eluzabeth Chadwick has obviously done a lot of research So many little details that made the story jump into life. I particularly valued descriptions of the journey to the Holy Lands showing us the depredations and hardships of such a journey.
At first I worried that the narrator (Katie Scarfe) was too soft a voice but the further into the book we went the more I began to realise that actually she was the perfect voice for the young queen. All other character voices were distinct and separate and didn't distract me in any way. My only critical point is that very often there was no pause between scenes and that did irritate me a little but feel it's more a fault of the production and not the narrator. I very much look forward to the next book.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- E. Morse
- 27-09-20
Time travel
Simply....... the story and the use of language made me feel as if there. Excellent time travel.....thanks.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Elizabeth Stinchcombe
- 01-06-17
Powerful historical fiction.
An excellent historical novel, really well written, with some great characters. I didn't really care for the narration, I found it a little weak for such a strong character as Eleanor, but still really enjoyed the book overall.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 29-08-23
This book has been most enjoyable.
Fantastic loved every second of this story, from one of my favourite authors.A must listen..
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- TheFluffyViking
- 21-01-15
Intriguing!
Fantastic story, eminently likeable heroine, plenty of passion, some pain and frustration, but lavishly beautiful. The narrator's voice came across as a little girly, but enhanced the image of young and innocent Alienor.
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Nia
- 09-05-19
Very interesting way to understand more about an amazing historical figure
Although stated as fiction, the author has researched the main characters at length, so much of the content is based on actual events and genuine relationships, making the book all the more interesting
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- mrs drudge
- 04-01-18
it says optional heading, then makes you put one!
Bit of a bodice ripper, so best listen with headphones!
Well read and interesting story.
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