The House of Dudley

Author Joanne Paul
Narrator Kristin Atherton
Publisher Penguin Books Ltd
Run Time 17 hours and 13 minutes
Format Audio
Genre Biography and non-fiction prose, Biography: historical, political and military, Biography: royalty, History, History: specific events and topics.

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What to expect

Brought to you by Penguin.

Told for the very first time is the true story of the secret royal family.

Each Tudor monarch made their name with a Dudley by their side - or by crushing one beneath their feet. The Dudleys thrived at the court of Henry VII, but were sacrificed to the popularity of Henry VIII. Rising to prominence in the reign of Edward VI, the Dudleys lost it all by advancing Jane Grey to the throne over Mary I. Under Elizabeth I, the family were once again at the centre of power, and would do anything to remain there . . .

With three generations of felled favourites, what was it that caused this family to keep rising so high and falling so low? Here, for the first time, is the story of England's Borgias, a noble house competing for proximity to the throne through cunning, adultery and sheer audacity, revealing some of the period's most talented, intelligent and cunning individuals.

© Joanne Paul 2022 (P) Penguin Audio 2022

Critics Review

A tour-de-force of Tudor history, as seen through the eyes of a family with a front-row view of almost every major political event in sixteenth-century England. Remarkable
Dan Jones, Sunday Times bestselling author of Powers and Thrones
Exciting and immersive. An immensely entertaining history, capturing in full Tudor brilliance the cut-throat glamour of the English throne and the most audacious family to play its game
Sunday Times
House of Dudley is a full-blooded affair, as good on the horrors of war as it is on the soft power of the Dudley women, and written in a lively, episodic style that presents each Dudley as a foil to the monarch they served
Jessie Childs
Breathes new life into an old and familiar Tudor story. [She] negotiates the labyrinth of Tudor politics with skill, producing a book much more comprehensible and illuminating than others I’ve read . . . It’s delightful, a joy to read
The Times, BOOK OF THE WEEK
I am hugely impressed by The House of Dudley and by the depths of research.
This is a pacy narrative, vividly written, that makes you want to read on and on.
Joanne Paul is a major new talent in the field and I eagerly await her next book
Alison Weir
This is riveting stuff: death, desire, power and scandal. Paul has made the most of it, producing a well written and historically grounded page-turner . . . Game of Thrones looks tame compared with the real-life machinations of the Dudleys and the Tudors
Spectator
A twist on the Tudors . . . Enormously entertaining – a sheer joy to read
The Times, '25 BEST HISTORY BOOKS OF 2022'
A hugely entertaining history of three generations of the Dudley family, who dominated the Tudor court
The Times
A thrilling and deeply researched study of power and conspiracy: the rise and fall of the other Tudor dynasty. The House of Dudley illuminates the fascinating men and women who almost became kings and queens in their own right
Simon Sebag-Montefiore
Vivid, innovative and authoritative. I could not recommend The House of Dudley more highly. It’s a real lesson in how to revitalise the writing of Tudor history
Sarah Gristwood
Joanne Paul’s account of this family is rich and compelling. She manages to hit that sweet spot where scholarly history overlaps with dramatic storytelling; she conjures up the look and feel of Tudor life, down to the clothes, the medicines and the furniture, while also being a skilful filler-in of political background . . . Whether or not you have ever succumbed to Mantelmania, you will find yourself drawn in, fascinated, and richly informed
Telegraph
An enthralling read told by Paul with great verve and an eye for the telling detail . . . The family’s complex history is concisely and compellingly related
Literary Review
Visceral and illuminating. The extraordinary House of Dudley is the Tudor Game of Thrones. Paul has produced a painstakingly detailed first book with spirit and verve
The Wall Street Journal
Captivating and thought-provoking . . . Sheds immense light onto this often-overlooked family
Royal Studies Journal
The crowning jewel in its genre . . . I can’t recommend this book enough. Unputdownable
Lindsey Fitzharris
When reading Joanne Paul’s lively history of the house of Dudley, it is impossible not to be reminded of Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall trilogy . . . Paul uses the experiences of the Dudleys to light up odd corners and backroom spaces of Tudor palace life
Mail on Sunday
Joanne Paul chronicles the meteoric rise and deadly fall of the Dudleys
BBC History Magazine
Joanne Paul reveals how the might of the Tudor dynasty was built on the blood and sweat of three generations of another family – the Dudleys
BBC History Magazine
Hugely entertaining
The Times, Best Books of Summer 2022
Fascinating
History Today
Praise for Joanne Paul’s monograph on Thomas More
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Brilliant and lucid. This is an original and illuminating work that should be compulsory
Suzannah Lipscomb
Fascinating. Paul shows an impressive mastery
Spiked

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