Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Ruled Britannia
    Ruled Britannia
    Ruled Britannia
    Audiobook21 hours

    Ruled Britannia

    Written by Harry Turtledove

    Narrated by Nigel Patterson

    3.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    In this novel of alternative history from bestselling author Harry Turtledove, the Spanish Armada has conquered England, King Phillip holds the English throne, and Elizabeth I languishes as a prisoner in the Tower of London. Meanwhile, in London, a mysterious stranger approaches young playwright William Shakespeare with an offer that could change the course of history.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateApr 16, 2019
    ISBN9781977332585
    Ruled Britannia
    Author

    Harry Turtledove

    Harry Turtledove is an American novelist of science fiction, historical fiction, and fantasy. Publishers Weekly has called him the “master of alternate history,” and he is best known for his work in that genre. Some of his most popular titles include The Guns of the South, the novels of the Worldwar series, and the books in the Great War trilogy. In addition to many other honors and nominations, Turtledove has received the Hugo Award, the Sidewise Award for Alternate History, and the Prometheus Award. He attended the University of California, Los Angeles, earning a PhD in Byzantine history. Turtledove is married to mystery writer Laura Frankos, and together they have three daughters. The family lives in Southern California.

    More audiobooks from Harry Turtledove

    Related to Ruled Britannia

    Related audiobooks

    General Fiction For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      I’ve Seen The Light

      Aug 10, 2018

      I’ve Seen The Light
      9 min read

    • Article

      The Old Un’s Notes

      Jul 27, 2022

      The Old Un’s Notes
      4 min read

    • Article

      La Otra Historia

      Jun 30, 2022

      La Otra Historia
      14 min read

    • Article

      Be Hard-headed To Get What You Want

      Aug 18, 2022

      MIRACULIS-blinking-mirabile, my run of auction failure has finally ended, although, perhaps inevitably, I had to ‘go high’ to bring home my trophy. As regular readers now know, specialist arms and armour auctions (my passion) mainly happen but twice

      6 min read

    • Article

      Away From The Mills

      Apr 27, 2022

      Away From The Mills
      4 min read

    • Article

      The Road To Damascus

      Sep 14, 2023

      The Road To Damascus
      6 min read

    • Article

      The Price Of Boredom

      Oct 13, 2022

      The Price Of Boredom
      6 min read

    • Article

      It’s My Obsession

      Feb 13, 2020

      It’s My Obsession
      6 min read

    • Article

      “The Old Ones Are The Best…”

      Dec 1, 2022

      When the festive season rolls round and Slade vocalist Noddy Holder for the umpteenth time barks “Does your granny always tell ya, that the old songs are the best” from his band’s 1973 hit Merry Xmas Everybody, I like to paraphrase such lyrics and ap

      6 min read

    • Article

      A Muse Of Fire

      Oct 11, 2022

      A Muse Of Fire
      2 min read

    • Article

      A Pre-loved Treasure House

      Oct 14, 2019

      A Pre-loved Treasure House
      9 min read

    • Article

      Michael Kohlhaas

      Jan 28, 2019

      Michael Kohlhaas
      10 min read

    • Article

      Right Royal Blunders

      Apr 5, 2023

      Right Royal Blunders
      4 min read

    • Article

      Vaguely Clever

      Jun 29, 2022

      It was quite a coup for our little church in the Sussex village of Ticehurst. Edith Vogel, a renowned pianist, had generously come down from London to give a recital in aid of the restoration of the roof. She was well into a Beethoven sonata which wa

      3 min read

    • Article

      1942: Cage Birds at 40

      Jan 19, 2022

      Sir, I have been a regular reader of Cage Birds for three years. Many thanks to your boys who put it to press, and to our heroic seamen whose lives are risked delivering it. My mother sends your journal to me every week, and although it has decreased

      4 min read

    • Article

      Readers’ Letters

      Sep 20, 2023

      SIR: My mother, for one, was delighted that Gareth Neame chose Highclere Castle as the location for Downton Abbey (September issue). She was a teacher during the war, and her entire school was evacuated to Highclere. The awestruck reaction of a bunch

      6 min read

    • Article

      England, Our England

      Jun 8, 2018

      England, Our England
      9 min read

    • Article

      Grey Pride

      Jun 21, 2017

      Grey Pride
      16 min read

    • Article

      Readers’ Letters

      Dec 13, 2023

      SIR: I found Dunphy's cartoon about incompatible typefaces (November issue) most amusing, not least because it reminded me of a verse I wrote during a few moments of boredom in a meeting at which typefaces suitable for exhibition posters were being d

      3 min read

    • Article

      Hans Hedgehog A GERMAN FOLK TALE

      Jan 1, 2019

      Hans Hedgehog A GERMAN FOLK TALE
      6 min read

    • Article

      Bowled Over By A Bargain

      Mar 17, 2022

      WHEN the then Editor asked me whether I would like to write this Under the Hammer column, he gave me a steely, old-fashioned look. The previous chief scribe, he explained, had developed a penchant for writing about ancient Chinese and Japanese plates

      6 min read

    • Article

      Your Letters

      Aug 11, 2023

      Your article in the July issue [Vol 91 Issue 3] on the plays of William Shakespeare captured well the astonishing breadth the Bard’s impact on so many cultures over the last four centuries. Surely one of the most unusual productions of any Shakespear

      2 min read

    • Article

      Snaffle A Bargain

      Mar 11, 2021

      Snaffle A Bargain
      6 min read

    • Article

      Albania Plus

      Mar 2, 2022

      Albania Plus
      6 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Ruled Britannia

    3.5/5

    145 ratings7 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 3/5
      The armada Worked, Lope de Vega has a job in London, so does Shakespeare. The work is rather humourless, considering the cast, and rather poor prose, considering Shakespeare.
    • 5/5
      For those who have ever thought about reading at least one alternate history novel, Harry Turtledove's Ruled Britannia is the one you should try. The premise of the novel is the successful invasion of England via the famed Spanish Armada by the Duke of Parma's army that places Queen Elizabeth in captive within the Tower of London and places Philip II's daughter Isabella on the throne along side her husband-cousin Albert. Almost 10 years later, celebrated English playwright Williams Shakespeare is brought into a conspiracy to write and stage a play that will insight London to rise up upon learning of the death of Philip, but then Shakespeare must contend with the occupying Spaniards wanting him to write a play in tribute of Philip to by staged upon news of this death.The novel is seen from only two point-of-view characters: Shakespeare and Lope de Vega, an officer in the occupying Spanish army fluent in English and an unpublished playwright. Through their eyes the setting of Spanish-occupied late 16th-century London comes alive as well as the individuals the two encounter without throughout the novel, including those they both interact with. Obviously it allows the reader to view both sides of Spanish-controlled Catholic England politically speaking, but also religiously. Although both men are friendly with one another, especially as Shakespeare doesn't want to upset an officer of the occupying army, there is an unspoken barrier between the two the reader readily recognizes that is present throughout the novel that adds to the story.The use of late 16th-century English speech patterns by Turtledove brought an authentic feel to the story, though it does take a little time to get use nonetheless by the end of the book its very easy to follow. Though the story does seem to tread water around the 60-70% mark, in retrospect the events that happen therein really pay off throughout the climax of the story. With all of this said, if you've ever wanted to read an alternate history novel this standalone work by Harry Turtledove is the one you should try.
    • 4/5
      What if the Spanish Armada had won, and what if England had fallen under Spanish rule? These are the questions Harry Turtledove tries to answer in this novel, which is truly a piece of art.In this novel, England has been under Spanish rule for almost a decade, and life for the British is one of constant fear: fear of treason, fear of the Inquisition, fear of the dons. For in this alternate history, being Protestant could mean burning at the stake, and only murmuring against the conqueror is considered treason. And punishment for treason, well, is death. So every single British citizen publicly praises the Spanish and is Catholic, but in private...not so much, except for the rare exception.William Shakespeare is the pivotal character in this novel. When he commissioned by Lord Burghley, aka Sir William Cecil, to write a play that will certainly cause a revolt against the Spanish, Shakespeare's life, which is already difficult, will take a sharp turn. Only mentioning the play would be considered treason, and all must be kept in secrecy, for pain of death.The pressure increases significantly when the Spanish hire him to write a play praising King Philip II, to be presented upon his imminent death. From now on, he must produce two plays, one that may bring on his doom if Lord Burghley's plot fails, and another that may deem him a hero. Only one of them will be put forth on stage: which one?Harry Turtledove artfully gives us insight into the Elizabethan world, using idioms and terms of speech of that time. However, while the British used all the "thee"s and "thou"s, the Spanish were cursed in using modern English, which seemed annoying at times. Granted, when it was used, it was as if Spanish were translated into English, as many Spaniards never took the effort to learn the least bit of English, but it would have added flavor if the same dialect were used for all characters, British and Spanish alike. Shakespeare quotes, and that of his contemporaries, such as Christopher Marlowe, are often and skilfully used to create humour amidst the tragedy and the plotting.The characters in themselves are quite developed and many are based on real historical figures. Soldier and Spanish playwright Lope de Vega is an example, and also a strong supporting character. While he is in love with Shakespeare's work, it is his duty to root out suspected treason, a job he somewhat reluctant to do. A few British nobles are portrayed in this novel as well, such as William Cecil, and, in a very minor role, Francis Bacon.All in all, this was a very entertaining alternate history, which responds well to all the "what ifs", as extensive research of the era was obviously made. The story isn't just an alternate history, it's also a story of political intrigue, and of a people struggling to regain their freedom from an oppressive regime.
    • 4/5
      I was suprised that I liked this book. It could use some editing but overall the story was fun. And I really enjoyed the development of thecharacters
    • 5/5
      A great read, one of my favourite alternate historical novels. The language is wonderful, and there is a galaxy of marvellous colourful characters. The depiction of late 16th century London under Spanish control is quite realistic and grim. My only criticism would be that the eventual uprising takes place with what seems to be improbable swiftness and completeness once the play Boudicca finishes. But it makes for stirring and exciting reading.
    • 4/5
      Elizabethan England without Elizabeth, and with the Inquisition starring Shakespeare.
    • 3/5
      Readable, but difficult to get into, story about england in the time of shakespeare where the Spanish managed to invade.