Hunting the Falcon

Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn, and the Marriage That Shook Europe

By: John Guy, Julia Fox

Narrated by: Stephanie Racine

“A fierce, scholarly tour-de-force. . . . Hunting the Falcon brilliantly shows how time, circumstance and politics combined to accelerate Anne’s triumph and tragedy."" —Tina Brown, New York Times Book Review

“A sumptuous drama of lust, intrigue, and betrayal, underpinned by the harsh reality of politics.”—Amanda Foreman, author of Georgiana: Duchess of Devonshire

A groundbreaking, freshly-researched examination of one of the most dramatic and consequential marriages in history: Henry VIII’s long courtship, short union, and brutal execution of Anne Boleyn.

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. By closely examining the most recent archival discoveries, and peeling back layers of historical myth and misinterpretation and distortion, Guy and Fox are able to set Anne and Henry’s tragic relationship against the major international events of the time, and integrate and reinterpret sources hidden in plain sight or simply misunderstood. Among other things, they dispel lingering and latently misogynistic assumptions about Anne which anachronistically presumed that a sixteenth-century woman, even a queen, could exert little to no influence on the politics and beliefs of a patriarchal society. They reveal how, in fact, Anne was a shrewd, if ruthless, politician in her own right, a woman who steered Henry and his policies, often against the advice he received from his male advisers—and whom Henry seriously contemplated making joint sovereign.

Hunting the Falcon sets the facts–and some completely new finds–into a far wider frame, providing an appreciation of this misunderstood and underestimated woman. It explores how Anne organized her “side” of the royal court on novel and (in male eyes) subversive lines compared to her queenly predecessors, adopting instead French protocol by which the sexes mingled freely in her private chambers. Men could share in the women’s often sexually charged courtly “pastimes” and had liberal access to Anne, and she to them—encounters from which she gained much of her political intelligence and extended her authority, and which also sowed the seeds of her own downfall.

An exhilarating feat of historical research and analysis, Hunting the Falcon is also a thrilling and tragic story of a marriage that has proved of enduring fascination over the centuries. But in the hands of John Guy and Julia Fox, even the most knowledgeable reader will encounter this story as if for the first time.

A Fabulous Book!

With an excellent narrator who brings the account to life, this book is the best I have seen or heard on the story of Anne Boleyn’s rise and fall and the contemporary foreign policy context of Henry VIII’s “Great Matter.” Altogether richly-researched and well-written, it should appeal to anyone with a professional or well-informed amateur interest in Tudor England.

Loved it!

I am obsessed with Tudor history and this is by far the most thorough and well researched biography of the relationship between Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn.

Uncommon Depth

This is a phenomenal book-- like many, I've been fascinated by Henry VIII and his series of wives, specifically Anne Boleyn, so I've read several books that cover this period of English history. But this book provides a scholarly examination of previously unavailable or overlooked materials while weaving them into the more familiar terrain. And, making my inquisitive heart happy, citing that material within the body of the book in a way which is engaging and instructive --this is not easily done within an audiobook, but John Guy and Julia Fox do a brilliant job. The narration by Stephanie Racine is also excellent. I highly recommend this book to folks who enjoy history and are intrigued by this volatile time.

Loved it!!!

I truly loved it. I loved the narrator, I appreciated that, even though nothing new was really covered in this book her narration made it new and exciting. If you are a lover of Ann Boleyn or Tudor history  then this is a fun listen.

Excellent book!

I’m very interested in Tudor history—especially Anne Boleyn. This is a well researched history about her life.