Katharine, the Virgin Widow

Katharine of Aragon is wedded to Arthur, the eldest son of King Henry VII of England. An important alliance between Spain and England is accomplished, but the teenaged couple is deemed too young to consummate the marriage. When the sickly prince dies, Katharine's status becomes precarious, and she's treated like a pawn in a deadly political game. Narrator Anne Flosnik invigorates Jean Plaidy's novel about Katharine's prolonged struggle to regain security amid political intrigue and the whims of all-powerful royalty. Flosnik portrays young Katharine with both dignity and fear as she vacillates between regal splendor and near poverty. Katherine's only hope is her late husband's younger brother, Henry VIII, but his demanding ego and questions about her virginity threaten to interfere. N.M.C. (c) AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine