The Waiting Game

The Untold Story of the Women Who Served the Tudor Queens

By: Nicola Clark

Narrated by: Nicola Clark, Karen Cass

Every Tudor Queen had ladies-in-waiting. They were her confidantes and her chaperones. Only the Queen's ladies had the right to enter her most private chambers, spending hours helping her to get dressed and undressed, caring for her clothes and jewels, listening to her secrets. But they also held a unique power. A quiet word behind the scenes, an appropriately timed gift, a well-negotiated marriage alliance were all forms of political agency wielded expertly by women.

The Waiting Game explores the daily lives of ladies-in-waiting, revealing the secrets of recruitment, costume, what they ate, where (and with whom) they slept. We meet María de Salinas, who traveled to England with Catherine of Aragon when just a teenager and spied for her during the divorce from Henry VIII. Anne Boleyn's lady-in-waiting Jane Parker was instrumental in the execution of not one, but two queens. And maid-of-honor Anne Basset kept her place through the last four consorts, negotiating the conflicting loyalties of her birth family, her mistress the Queen, and even the desires of the King himself.

As Henry changed wives—and changed the very fabric of the country's structure besides—these women had to make choices about loyalty that simply didn't exist before. The Waiting Game is the first time their vital story has been told.

©2025 Nicola Clark (P)2023 The Orion Publishing Group, Limited

Interesting

Liked the story-telling nature of the work. Very good historical book to listen to.

Loved this book!

I listened to this over a period of three days. so intriguing to hear all the details about characters that usually are only seen in the shadows.

Well researched and detailed without bias.

Excellent, fascinating and relevant to all ages of history! It was easy to follow the various characters and titles due to her perceptive and necessary reminders, given the frequency of names such as Catherine, Anne or Henry.

One of the best!

I read and listen to a lot of Tudor history. Much of it is factual but can be so very dry. Not this work!I never had to back up the audiobook because I had drifted to something more interesting,like is that picture straight. Flawless narration and well documented facts that were often new to me and the skill in crafting an historical work that flows like fiction,made this an informative and enjoyable listen.

Fascinating listen

It got a bit hard at times to keep all the Katherine’s and Elizabeth’s straight but it was worth it