Isabella
The Warrior Queen
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Isabella
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Narrated by:
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Kimberly Farr
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By:
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Kirstin Downey
About this listen
An engrossing and revolutionary biography of Isabella of Castile, the controversial Queen of Spain who sponsored Christopher Columbus's journey to the New World, established the Spanish Inquisition, and became one of the most influential female rulers in history
Born at a time when Christianity was dying out and the Ottoman Empire was aggressively expanding, Isabella was inspired in her youth by tales of Joan of Arc, a devout young woman who unified her people and led them to victory against foreign invaders. In 1474, when most women were almost powerless, twenty-three-year-old Isabella defied a hostile brother and a mercurial husband to seize control of Castile and León. Her subsequent feats were legendary. She ended a twenty-four-generation struggle between Muslims and Christians, forcing North African invaders back over the Mediterranean Sea. She laid the foundation for a unified Spain. She sponsored Columbus's trip to the Indies and negotiated Spanish control over much of the New World with the help of Rodrigo Borgia, the infamous Pope Alexander VI. She also annihilated all who stood against her by establishing a bloody religious Inquisition that would darken Spain's reputation for centuries. Whether saintly or satanic, no female leader has done more to shape our modern world, in which millions of people in two hemispheres speak Spanish and practice Catholicism. Yet history has all but forgotten Isabella's influence, due to hundreds of years of misreporting that often attributed her accomplishments to Ferdinand, the bold and philandering husband she adored.
Using new scholarship, Downey's luminous biography tells the story of this brilliant, fervent, forgotten woman, the faith that propelled her through life, and the land of ancient conflicts and intrigue she brought under her command.
©2014 Kirsten Downey (P)2014 Random House AudioCritic Reviews
A finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize!
Longlisted for the 2015 PEN/Jacqueline Bograd Weld Award for Biography!
A Kirkus Best Biography of 2014!
"A tale of feminist ambition that reads like a pulpy novel. (Don't be a snob—that's a good thing.)" —TIME
"[An] immensely provocative figure... [who] successfully maneuvered in an almost exclusively male world of politics." —Kathryn Harrison, The New York Times Book Review
"In a fascinating revisionist portrait, Downey sketches a monarch both adored and demonised, and makes the case that Isabella laid the foundation for the first global superpower." —BBC
What listeners say about Isabella
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
- Rob C
- 12-05-2019
Very enjoyable
It took me a little while to get used to the voice of the American narrator but once I did I thoroughly enjoyed both the story and the narration/production. I was particularly intrigued by the connections to so many different notables of that era. European history is such a fascinating interwoven puzzle.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Veronica Germann
- 24-01-2018
awonderful way to learn more history
Would you consider the audio edition of Isabella: The Warrior Queen to be better than the print version?
Loved the audio edition of Isabella. It is was enlightening and very interesting to learn about all of the Royal families.
What did you like best about this story?
Learning about the ancestors of most modern Royals.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Liine
- 09-10-2019
could be better
obviously the author loves their subject, Isabella. perhaps then it is hard to take a step back but I would have liked a more objective approach. especially on the Inquisition, blaming it more on Ferdinand and the excesses of the church while at the same time trying to prove how Isabella controlled everything in her country. there are more examples. and still after this thorough and admittedly very well researched book Isabella remains a distant and unknowable figure.
good book, interesting and we'll researched with a fresh angle but something is still missing.
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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
- 22-02-2018
wonderfu.l
spellbinding historical account of spanish couple isabella and ferdinamd
and their involvement in rhe spanish inquisition
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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
- Shmeccles Shwifty
- 31-03-2018
excellent
loved this book! have listened to it at least 4 times. Will definetly come back to it another 4 times
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