Avid Historian

Outright BS

Reviewed: 11-29-24

I’ve read numerous books about JFK, Jr, Carolyn Bessette, and their air crash, written by close friends and associates who knew them well. These guys are perpetrating sensationalized rubbish. This “Ugly George” guy is especially offensive. ANYBODY who actually knew JFK Jr, would NEVER refer to him as “John-John”. JFK, Jr. absolutely despised that name, and no one in his family ever called him that—-it was a media generated fallacy.
The speculation that he was about to enter politics was also untrue, and everything said about Carolyn was untrue——the implication that she was a gold digger and not a nice person——all utter BS.

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Fabulous story —-horrid performance

Reviewed: 03-03-24

I own the hard copy of this book, which I’ve read many times. It is a FABULOUS story. Their love for one another was so tender, so precious. The story of their partnership, which began when they were 11 and 15, in the severe USSR regime, is amazing.

Firstly, abridged books are a tragedy. But the quality of this performance is the real tragedy. It sounds like it was recorded on someone’s cell phone, with popping and static, and the narrator’s enunciation makes it very hard to understand. Do not waste your money on this mess.

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Tragic tale…

Reviewed: 10-01-23

…..about an intelligent, passionate, ambitious, young woman who started out with starry-eyed naïveté, but who learned the hard way that there is no honorable way to serve a dishonorable man. She is but one of many who twisted themselves into pretzels trying to justify and explain away things they KNEW weren’t right. I give her credit for having a conscience at the end, and pity her for having tainted her career by wading into the cesspool that was the Trump administration, where everyone comes to the sad but inevitable realization that they went way out on a limb for a man who is loyal only to himself.

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2 people found this helpful

Appalling narrator

Reviewed: 07-04-23

The narrator makes this very hard to get through, with a tortured cadence and rampant mispronunciations, including the author’s name, which is inexcusable.

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Riveting

Reviewed: 06-29-23

Always interesting to see the wide variety of opinions about a book. Hard to understand how people bash such a riveting narrative. This book is full of details, well researched, and so interesting. You realize how oft-repeated public narratives become accepted as fact, and how the vast majority of folks who aren’t curious, never read, and lack critical thinking skill just swallow what they are told. I’m not one of those people. The government spends vast amounts of money and manpower controlling what information is disseminated, using the media. Be curious, don’t believe the “popular” opinions, and think for yourself. I thought this book was fabulous.

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In depth and well researched, but…..

Reviewed: 04-16-23

This is not a balanced narrative, by any means. The author is an unabashed royalist who is NO FAN of Meghan. She never accords her the benefit of the doubt in any situation, and attributes her every motive to self interest and self promotion. Understanding that, it is not without merit. The monarchy is always going to protect itself, and like Diana, Meghan challenged its traditions and norms, so her path forward in that family was always going to be difficult. As a reader with a lifelong interest in British royalty, I found it interesting. When you understand that the royal family’s story is no fairytale, but just a saga of very normal and mostly average people who live a life that’s anything but, it’s just a window into their story, which is entertaining to observe.

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Nailed it

Reviewed: 03-26-23

Anyone not completely deluded by Trump will recognize truth in every word. Interesting, informative, and terrifying. Trump must never, ever be given the reins of leadership again.

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Extremely interesting “other side of the story”.

Reviewed: 07-31-22

I really enjoyed this book, and felt it was based on credible information. Most of us will never experience the intensity of war, and I found it entirely plausible that their relationship would have become deeply dependent and emotional. One can only imagine the stress Eisenhower endured during those years. No doubt that once the war ended, the outside pressures on Eisenhower made him realize his hope of a more permanent relationship with Kay was futile and anathema to his political ambitions.
I also enjoyed the narrator, and the story is very engrossing.

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Unexpectedly interesting

Reviewed: 05-09-22

Chester A. Arthur is certainly one of the more obscure Presidents. That does not mean he was not interesting. His life story is well researched and quite intriguing. His behavior, before and after assuming the Presidency, is very compelling. I thoroughly enjoyed learning his story.

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Inside story with lots of detail

Reviewed: 04-16-22

The book content is great, the narration, not so much. Most annoying was O’Reilly repeatedly pronouncing “cal-vary” when the word is “cav-alry”. Hard to believe the editors didn’t pick up on that.

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