The Novice's Tale
Oxford Medieval Mysteries, Book 2
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Buy for $19.95
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Philip Battley
-
By:
-
Ann Swinfen
About this listen
When the novice Emma Thorgold goes missing from Godstow Abbey in the summer of 1353, the hunt is on throughout the Oxfordshire countryside. Bookseller Nicholas Elyot and scholar Jordain Brinkylsworth are anxious to help the girl, but her stepfather has other intentions. Why is he so determined to shut her away for life? Or worse? And will she be found unharmed?
©2016 Ann Swinfen (P)2017 Ann SwinfenListeners also enjoyed...
-
The Bookseller's Tale
- Oxford Medieval Mysteries, Book 1
- By: Ann Swinfen
- Narrated by: Philip Battley
- Length: 9 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Oxford, Spring 1353. When young bookseller Nicholas Elyot discovers the body of student William Farringdon floating in the river Cherwell, it looks like a drowning. Soon, however, Nicholas finds evidence of murder. Who could have wanted to kill this promising student? As Nicholas and his scholar friend Jordain try to unravel what lies behind William's death, they learn that he was innocently caught up in a criminal plot.
-
-
Held my interest, excellent historical background
- By Marcheta on 04-07-17
By: Ann Swinfen
-
The Secret World of Christoval Alvarez
- The Chronicles of Christoval Alvarez, Volume 1
- By: Ann Swinfen
- Narrated by: Jan Cramer
- Length: 10 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It is the year 1586. England is awash with traitors, plotting to assassinate the Queen and bring about a foreign invasion. The young physician Christoval Alvarez, a refugee from the horrors of the Portuguese Inquisition, is coerced into becoming a code-breaker and agent in Sir Francis Walsingham's secret service. In the race to thwart the plot, who will triumph - the ruthless conspirators or the equally ruthless State?
-
-
Good Story, Somewhat Distracting Narration
- By Wren on 06-17-17
By: Ann Swinfen
-
Cathedral of Bones
- Ela of Salisbury Medieval Mysteries, Book 1
- By: J. G. Lewis
- Narrated by: Madeleine Brolly
- Length: 8 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Salisbury, 1226. A young pregnant woman is found tangled in reeds in the river Avon, her identity a mystery. Grieving widow Ela Longespée is determined to succeed her husband as sheriff of Salisbury, and quickly takes charge of the investigation. She soon finds herself in the thick of a neighborhood scandal and a struggle to maintain her authority. With multiple suspects, can she identify the true killer?
-
-
eh, okay
- By Jeffrey J. on 12-20-20
By: J. G. Lewis
-
This Rough Ocean
- By: Ann Swinfen
- Narrated by: Philip Battley
- Length: 23 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It is December, 1648, and England faces one of the greatest crises in its history. Bands of renegade soldiers and broken men roam the countryside, looting, burning, and raping. In Parliament, former allies are torn apart after six years of bloody conflict. John Swynfen, a rising young MP and one of the leaders of the moderate party, is working for peace, but only if safeguards can be established to protect Parliament and control the powers of the king. Ranged against him and his friends are Oliver Cromwell and his son-in-law Henry Ireton, intent on seizing power by the sword.
-
-
Epic Love Story. Beautifully written & narrated.
- By Cate F. on 01-27-18
By: Ann Swinfen
-
The Unquiet Bones
- By: Mel Starr
- Narrated by: Steven Crossley
- Length: 8 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hugh of Singleton, fourth son of a minor knight, has been educated as a clerk, usually a prelude to taking holy orders. However, feeling no certain calling despite a lively faith, he turns to the profession of surgeon, training in Paris and then hanging out his sign in Oxford. A local lord asks him to track the killer of a young woman whose bones have been found in the castle cesspit. She is identified as the impetuous missing daughter of a local blacksmith, and her young man, whom she had provoked very publicly, is in due course arrested and sentenced at the Oxford assizes.
-
-
Wonderful!!!
- By AKowalczyk on 01-05-20
By: Mel Starr
-
The Novice’s Tale
- A Dame Frevisse Mystery, Book 1
- By: Margaret Frazer
- Narrated by: Susan Duerden
- Length: 7 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the fair autumn of Our Lord's grace 1431, the nuns of England's St. Frideswide's prepare for the simply ceremonies in which the saintly novice Thomasine will take her holy vows. But their quiet lives of beauty and prayer are thrown into chaos by the merciless arrival of Lady Ermentrude Fenner and her retinue of lusty men, sinful women, and baying hounds. The hard-drinking dowager even keeps a pet monkey for her amusement. She demands wine, a feast.... And her niece, the angelic Thomasine.
-
-
Pleasant medieval mystery
- By Tropical Gal on 02-08-20
By: Margaret Frazer
-
The Bookseller's Tale
- Oxford Medieval Mysteries, Book 1
- By: Ann Swinfen
- Narrated by: Philip Battley
- Length: 9 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Oxford, Spring 1353. When young bookseller Nicholas Elyot discovers the body of student William Farringdon floating in the river Cherwell, it looks like a drowning. Soon, however, Nicholas finds evidence of murder. Who could have wanted to kill this promising student? As Nicholas and his scholar friend Jordain try to unravel what lies behind William's death, they learn that he was innocently caught up in a criminal plot.
-
-
Held my interest, excellent historical background
- By Marcheta on 04-07-17
By: Ann Swinfen
-
The Secret World of Christoval Alvarez
- The Chronicles of Christoval Alvarez, Volume 1
- By: Ann Swinfen
- Narrated by: Jan Cramer
- Length: 10 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It is the year 1586. England is awash with traitors, plotting to assassinate the Queen and bring about a foreign invasion. The young physician Christoval Alvarez, a refugee from the horrors of the Portuguese Inquisition, is coerced into becoming a code-breaker and agent in Sir Francis Walsingham's secret service. In the race to thwart the plot, who will triumph - the ruthless conspirators or the equally ruthless State?
-
-
Good Story, Somewhat Distracting Narration
- By Wren on 06-17-17
By: Ann Swinfen
-
Cathedral of Bones
- Ela of Salisbury Medieval Mysteries, Book 1
- By: J. G. Lewis
- Narrated by: Madeleine Brolly
- Length: 8 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Salisbury, 1226. A young pregnant woman is found tangled in reeds in the river Avon, her identity a mystery. Grieving widow Ela Longespée is determined to succeed her husband as sheriff of Salisbury, and quickly takes charge of the investigation. She soon finds herself in the thick of a neighborhood scandal and a struggle to maintain her authority. With multiple suspects, can she identify the true killer?
-
-
eh, okay
- By Jeffrey J. on 12-20-20
By: J. G. Lewis
-
This Rough Ocean
- By: Ann Swinfen
- Narrated by: Philip Battley
- Length: 23 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It is December, 1648, and England faces one of the greatest crises in its history. Bands of renegade soldiers and broken men roam the countryside, looting, burning, and raping. In Parliament, former allies are torn apart after six years of bloody conflict. John Swynfen, a rising young MP and one of the leaders of the moderate party, is working for peace, but only if safeguards can be established to protect Parliament and control the powers of the king. Ranged against him and his friends are Oliver Cromwell and his son-in-law Henry Ireton, intent on seizing power by the sword.
-
-
Epic Love Story. Beautifully written & narrated.
- By Cate F. on 01-27-18
By: Ann Swinfen
-
The Unquiet Bones
- By: Mel Starr
- Narrated by: Steven Crossley
- Length: 8 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hugh of Singleton, fourth son of a minor knight, has been educated as a clerk, usually a prelude to taking holy orders. However, feeling no certain calling despite a lively faith, he turns to the profession of surgeon, training in Paris and then hanging out his sign in Oxford. A local lord asks him to track the killer of a young woman whose bones have been found in the castle cesspit. She is identified as the impetuous missing daughter of a local blacksmith, and her young man, whom she had provoked very publicly, is in due course arrested and sentenced at the Oxford assizes.
-
-
Wonderful!!!
- By AKowalczyk on 01-05-20
By: Mel Starr
-
The Novice’s Tale
- A Dame Frevisse Mystery, Book 1
- By: Margaret Frazer
- Narrated by: Susan Duerden
- Length: 7 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the fair autumn of Our Lord's grace 1431, the nuns of England's St. Frideswide's prepare for the simply ceremonies in which the saintly novice Thomasine will take her holy vows. But their quiet lives of beauty and prayer are thrown into chaos by the merciless arrival of Lady Ermentrude Fenner and her retinue of lusty men, sinful women, and baying hounds. The hard-drinking dowager even keeps a pet monkey for her amusement. She demands wine, a feast.... And her niece, the angelic Thomasine.
-
-
Pleasant medieval mystery
- By Tropical Gal on 02-08-20
By: Margaret Frazer
-
A Plague on Both Your Houses
- The First Chronicle of Matthew Bartholomew
- By: Susanna Gregory
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 13 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Matthew Bartholomew, unorthodox but effective physician to Michaelhouse college in medieval Cambridge, is as worried as anyone about the pestilence that is ravaging Europe and seems to be approaching England. But he is distracted by the sudden and inexplicable death of the Master of Michaelhouse - a death the University authorities do not want investigated.
-
-
I should have loved this book.
- By J. Miller on 09-11-19
By: Susanna Gregory
-
Mistress of the Art of Death
- A Novel
- By: Ariana Franklin
- Narrated by: Rosalyn Landor
- Length: 13 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In medieval England, four children have been murdered, and the townsfolk blame their Jewish neighbors. The doctor chosen to investigate is a woman, Adelia. As she examines the victims and retraces their last steps, she must conceal her true identity in order to avoid accusations of witchcraft. Along the way, she's assisted by Sir Rowley Picot, a man with a personal stake in the investigation. A former Crusader knight, Rowley may be a needed friend - or the fiend for whom they are searching.
-
-
History-Mystery of the Year & its only March
- By Irenehope on 03-02-07
By: Ariana Franklin
-
The Rose Code
- A Novel
- By: Kate Quinn
- Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld
- Length: 16 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As England prepares to fight the Nazis, three very different women answer the call to mysterious country estate Bletchley Park, where the best minds in Britain train to break German military codes. Vivacious debutante Osla is the girl who has everything - beauty, wealth, and the dashing Prince Philip of Greece sending her roses - but she burns to prove herself as more than a society girl, and puts her fluent German to use as a translator of decoded enemy secrets.
-
-
My Favorite Book!!!
- By Jan M on 03-09-21
By: Kate Quinn
-
The Ashes of London
- By: Andrew Taylor
- Narrated by: Leighton Pugh
- Length: 12 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
London, September 1666. The Great Fire rages through the city, consuming everything in its path. Even the impregnable cathedral of St. Paul's is engulfed in flames and reduced to ruins. Among the crowds watching its destruction is James Marwood, son of a disgraced printer and reluctant government informer. In the aftermath of the fire, a semi-mummified body is discovered in the ashes of St. Paul's, in a tomb that should have been empty. The man's body has been mutilated, and his thumbs have been tied behind his back.
-
-
Entertaining Historical Fiction
- By Simone on 05-01-17
By: Andrew Taylor
-
Heathcliff Lennox - France 1918
- By: Karen Baugh Menuhin
- Narrated by: Sam Dewhurst -Phillips
- Length: 1 hr
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Spring, 1918. The Great War is at a crucial stage, the Germans are making one last push into France, and the Allies are struggling to hold them back. Battle lines are shifting, and men, and their machines, are being sent up and down the front to shore up defenses. Major Heathcliff Lennox, and his batman Greggs, are told to report to their new HQ. They set off on a sunlit day to fly the distance, but the enemy is never far away, and disaster strikes. They're sent crashing to the ground behind enemy lines, where life, death, and love await.
-
-
Another great Heathcliff Lennox
- By Katydid65 on 06-04-21
-
The King's Justice
- A Stanton and Barling Mystery, Book 1
- By: E. M. Powell
- Narrated by: James Langton
- Length: 8 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
England, 1176. Aelred Barling, esteemed clerk to the justices of King Henry II, is dispatched from the royal court with his young assistant, Hugo Stanton, to investigate a brutal murder in a village outside York. The case appears straightforward. A suspect is under lock and key in the local prison, and the angry villagers are demanding swift justice. But when more bodies are discovered, certainty turns to doubt - and amid the chaos it becomes clear that nobody is above suspicion.
-
-
Ok. But hard to invest in.
- By Amazon Customer on 06-05-19
By: E. M. Powell
-
Servant of Death
- Bradecote and Catchpoll
- By: Sarah Hawkswood
- Narrated by: Matt Addis
- Length: 8 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The much-feared and hated Eudo - the Lord Bishop of Winchester's clerk - is bludgeoned to death in Pershore Abbey and laid before the altar in the attitude of a penitent. Everyone who had contact with him had reason to dislike him, but who had reason to kill him? The Sheriff of Worcestershire's thief taker, wily Serjeant Catchpoll, and his new and unwanted superior, Undersheriff Hugh Bradecote, have to find the answer. And as the walls of the abbey close in on the suspects, the killer strikes again....
-
-
Medieval armchair mystery
- By Marie on 08-12-17
By: Sarah Hawkswood
-
Death and the Maiden
- Mistress of the Art of Death
- By: Samantha Norman, Ariana Franklin
- Narrated by: Kate Reading
- Length: 11 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
England. 1191. After the death of her friend and patron, King Henry II, Adelia Aguilar, England's vaunted Mistress of the Art of Death, is living comfortably in retirement and training her daughter, Allie, to carry on her craft—sharing the practical knowledge of anatomy, forensics, and sleuthing that catches murderers. Allie is already a skilled healer, with a particular gift for treating animals. But the young woman is nearly twenty, and her father, Rowley, Bishop of Saint Albans, and his patron, the Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine, have plans to marry Allie to an influential husband.
-
-
Wanted to love it
- By Jeffrey J. on 02-15-21
By: Samantha Norman, and others
-
The Adventures of Brother Cadfael
- A Collection of Chronicles
- By: Ellis Peters
- Narrated by: Sir Derek Jacobi
- Length: 17 hrs and 48 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This collection of recordings about Brother Cadfael—a Benedictine monk and amateur sleuth in the 12th century—are performed here by the ideal actor. Sir Derek Jacobi, who portrayed Cadfael in several television adaptations, captivates listeners with his renderings of Monk's Hood, Saint Peter's Fair, The Heretic's Apprentice, The Potter's Field, The Summer of the Danes, and Brother Cadfael's Penance.
-
-
A Marvelous Reading br Sir Derek Jacoby
- By Ray RN on 07-19-22
By: Ellis Peters
-
Some Danger Involved
- Barker & Llewelyn Series, Book 1
- By: Will Thomas
- Narrated by: Antony Ferguson
- Length: 9 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An atmospheric debut novel set on the gritty streets of Victorian London, Some Danger Involved introduces detective Cyrus Barker and his assistant, Thomas Llewelyn, as they work to solve the gruesome murder of a young scholar in London's Jewish ghetto. When the eccentric and enigmatic Barker takes the case, he must hire an assistant, and out of all who answer an ad for a position with "some danger involved", he chooses downtrodden Llewelyn, a gutsy young man with a murky past.
-
-
Clever writing!
- By Kathi on 01-13-17
By: Will Thomas
-
The Harper's Quine
- Gil Cunningham Mysteries
- By: Pat McIntosh
- Narrated by: Andrew Watson
- Length: 8 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
At the May Day dancing at Glasgow Cross, Gil Cunningham sees not only the woman who is going to be murdered, but her murderer as well. Gil is a recently qualified lawyer whose family still expect him to enter the priesthood. When he finds the body of a young woman in the new building at Glasgow Cathedral he is asked to investigate, and identifies the corpse as the runaway wife of cruel, unpleasant nobleman John Semphill. With the help of Maistre Pierre, the French master-mason, Gil must ask questions and seek a murderer in the heart of the city.
-
-
I really enjoyed this book!
- By Yvette on 05-11-13
By: Pat McIntosh
-
Murder on Black Swan Lane
- By: Andrea Penrose
- Narrated by: James Cameron Stewart
- Length: 11 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Earl of Wrexford possesses a brilliant scientific mind, but boredom and pride lead him to reckless behavior. He does not suffer fools gladly. So when pompous, pious Reverend Josiah Holworthy publicly condemns him for debauchery, Wrexford unsheathes his rapier-sharp wit and strikes back. As their war of words escalates, London's most popular satirical cartoonist, A. J. Quill, skewers them both.
-
-
Tedious
- By Kathi on 10-02-17
By: Andrea Penrose
Related to this topic
-
The Rough Collier
- Gil Cunningham Mysteries
- By: Pat McIntosh
- Narrated by: Andrew Watson
- Length: 8 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When the peat-cutters came to report the dead man, Gil Cunningham was up in the roof-space of his mother's house, teaching his new young wife swordplay. They believe the corpse to be that of a local missing man. His wife and the widow who runs the local coalmine are sure the body belongs to someone else, but then they find themselves accused of having killed him by witchcraft. And if the corpse is not the missing man, who is it? Gil and Alys try to get to the heart of the matter.
-
-
Enjoyable Historical Mystery
- By Marie on 06-15-13
By: Pat McIntosh
-
The Stolen Voice
- Gil Cunningham Mysteries
- By: Pat McIntosh
- Narrated by: Andrew Watson
- Length: 9 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
“And you are telling me,” said Gil Cunningham, “that David Drummond vanished away forty years ago and is now returned, seemingly not a day older?” “That’s about the sum of it,” agreed Sir William Stewart. In Sir William’s remote part of Scotland it seems almost possible that a young boy could have been stolen away by the fairies and returned forty years later, no older – and if he isn’t Davie Drummond, who is he? And then he suffers a succession of near-fatal ‘accidents’.
-
-
Disregard those treacly, earnest covers.
- By Paul Sullivan on 07-02-17
By: Pat McIntosh
-
A Wayside Tavern
- By: Norah Lofts
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 15 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A Wayside Tavern tells the story of a Suffolk drinking place from the end of the Roman occupation of Britain, until the present day. The Roman veteran, crippled and left behind, worshipped Mithras, so the place became known as the One Bull and down through the centuries it became a clearing house for contraband, a miniature Hell Fire Club, a fashionable hotel, a mere pub. Across the yard, was the church of St Cerdic, king and martyr, who fought the Danes and was famous for the miracles performed at his shrine.
-
-
An enjoyable tale
- By Gordon on 10-07-11
By: Norah Lofts
-
The Town House
- By: Norah Lofts
- Narrated by: Juliet Prague, Martyn Read
- Length: 17 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
"It was in the first week of October in the year 1391 that I first came face to face with the man who owned me… the man whose lightest word was to us, his villeins, weightier than the King’s law or the edicts of our Holy Father…” So began the story of Martin Reed - a serf whose resentment of the automatic rule of his feudal lord finally flared into open defiance.
-
-
Another winner by Norah Lofts
- By Bird Lady 147 on 10-03-17
By: Norah Lofts
-
All the Murmuring Bones
- By: A.G. Slatter
- Narrated by: Aoife McMahon
- Length: 10 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Orphaned as a young child, Mirin O'Malley has been brought up by her grandparents on their isolated, rambling estate Hob's Hallow. Long ago her family prospered due to a deal struck with the mer, the terrifying creatures who live in the depths of the sea: safety for their merchant ships in return for a child of each generation. But for many years the family have been unable to keep their side of the bargain and their fortunes have suffered as a result. When Mirin's grandfather dies, her grandmother puts in train a plan to restore their glory - but at the price of Mirin's freedom.
-
-
Drags on and on.
- By Amanda Turner on 04-10-21
By: A.G. Slatter
-
My Name Is Resolute
- By: Nancy E. Turner
- Narrated by: Mhairi Morrison
- Length: 25 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The year is 1729, and Resolute Talbot and her siblings are captured by pirates, taken from their family in Jamaica and brought to the New World. Resolute and her sister are sold into slavery in colonial New England and taught the trade of spinning and weaving. When Resolute finds herself alone in Lexington, Massachusetts, she struggles to find her way in a society that is quick to judge a young woman without a family. As the seeds of rebellion against England grow, Resolute is torn between following the rules and breaking free.
-
-
A life well lived!
- By Anonymous User on 06-20-23
By: Nancy E. Turner
-
The Rough Collier
- Gil Cunningham Mysteries
- By: Pat McIntosh
- Narrated by: Andrew Watson
- Length: 8 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When the peat-cutters came to report the dead man, Gil Cunningham was up in the roof-space of his mother's house, teaching his new young wife swordplay. They believe the corpse to be that of a local missing man. His wife and the widow who runs the local coalmine are sure the body belongs to someone else, but then they find themselves accused of having killed him by witchcraft. And if the corpse is not the missing man, who is it? Gil and Alys try to get to the heart of the matter.
-
-
Enjoyable Historical Mystery
- By Marie on 06-15-13
By: Pat McIntosh
-
The Stolen Voice
- Gil Cunningham Mysteries
- By: Pat McIntosh
- Narrated by: Andrew Watson
- Length: 9 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
“And you are telling me,” said Gil Cunningham, “that David Drummond vanished away forty years ago and is now returned, seemingly not a day older?” “That’s about the sum of it,” agreed Sir William Stewart. In Sir William’s remote part of Scotland it seems almost possible that a young boy could have been stolen away by the fairies and returned forty years later, no older – and if he isn’t Davie Drummond, who is he? And then he suffers a succession of near-fatal ‘accidents’.
-
-
Disregard those treacly, earnest covers.
- By Paul Sullivan on 07-02-17
By: Pat McIntosh
-
A Wayside Tavern
- By: Norah Lofts
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 15 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A Wayside Tavern tells the story of a Suffolk drinking place from the end of the Roman occupation of Britain, until the present day. The Roman veteran, crippled and left behind, worshipped Mithras, so the place became known as the One Bull and down through the centuries it became a clearing house for contraband, a miniature Hell Fire Club, a fashionable hotel, a mere pub. Across the yard, was the church of St Cerdic, king and martyr, who fought the Danes and was famous for the miracles performed at his shrine.
-
-
An enjoyable tale
- By Gordon on 10-07-11
By: Norah Lofts
-
The Town House
- By: Norah Lofts
- Narrated by: Juliet Prague, Martyn Read
- Length: 17 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
"It was in the first week of October in the year 1391 that I first came face to face with the man who owned me… the man whose lightest word was to us, his villeins, weightier than the King’s law or the edicts of our Holy Father…” So began the story of Martin Reed - a serf whose resentment of the automatic rule of his feudal lord finally flared into open defiance.
-
-
Another winner by Norah Lofts
- By Bird Lady 147 on 10-03-17
By: Norah Lofts
-
All the Murmuring Bones
- By: A.G. Slatter
- Narrated by: Aoife McMahon
- Length: 10 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Orphaned as a young child, Mirin O'Malley has been brought up by her grandparents on their isolated, rambling estate Hob's Hallow. Long ago her family prospered due to a deal struck with the mer, the terrifying creatures who live in the depths of the sea: safety for their merchant ships in return for a child of each generation. But for many years the family have been unable to keep their side of the bargain and their fortunes have suffered as a result. When Mirin's grandfather dies, her grandmother puts in train a plan to restore their glory - but at the price of Mirin's freedom.
-
-
Drags on and on.
- By Amanda Turner on 04-10-21
By: A.G. Slatter
-
My Name Is Resolute
- By: Nancy E. Turner
- Narrated by: Mhairi Morrison
- Length: 25 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The year is 1729, and Resolute Talbot and her siblings are captured by pirates, taken from their family in Jamaica and brought to the New World. Resolute and her sister are sold into slavery in colonial New England and taught the trade of spinning and weaving. When Resolute finds herself alone in Lexington, Massachusetts, she struggles to find her way in a society that is quick to judge a young woman without a family. As the seeds of rebellion against England grow, Resolute is torn between following the rules and breaking free.
-
-
A life well lived!
- By Anonymous User on 06-20-23
By: Nancy E. Turner
-
The Hero and the Crown
- By: Robin McKinley
- Narrated by: Roslyn Alexander
- Length: 10 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Uncertain of the past, Aerin-sol, daughter of King Arlbeth, decides to forge her own future by challenging the lashing tongues of the dragon’s fire. Aerin’s proficiency as "the Dragon-slayer" sets her on a quest for the stolen Crown of Damar, believed to be in the hands of rebellious northerners who threaten to destroy the Damarian people and their home forever.
-
-
Second only to Blue Sword
- By mkc on 01-18-13
By: Robin McKinley
-
Silent in the Grave
- By: Deanna Raybourn
- Narrated by: Ellen Archer
- Length: 12 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Let the wicked be ashamed, and let them be silent in the grave. These ominous words, slashed from the pages of a book of Psalms, are the last threat that the darling of London society, Sir Edward Grey, receives from his killer. Before he can show them to Nicholas Brisbane, the private inquiry agent he has retained for his protection, Sir Edward collapses and dies at his London home, in the presence of his wife, Julia, and a roomful of dinner guests.
-
-
Happily surprised
- By 9S on 07-04-09
By: Deanna Raybourn
-
To Shield the Queen
- By: Fiona Buckley
- Narrated by: Nadia May
- Length: 9 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Rumor has linked Queen Elizabeth I to her master of the horse, Robin Dudley. As gossip would have it, only his ailing wife, Amy, prevents marriage between Dudley and the Queen. To quell the idle tongues at court, the Queen dispatches Ursula Blanchard to tend to the sick woman's needs. But not even Ursula can prevent the "accident" that takes Amy's life. Did she fall or was she pushed? Was Ursula a pawn of Dudley and the Queen?
-
-
Fun and engrossing
- By SophieG on 05-31-10
By: Fiona Buckley
-
A Vision of Light
- A Margaret of Ashbury Novel, Book 1
- By: Judith Merkle Riley
- Narrated by: Anne Flosnik
- Length: 15 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Margaret of Ashbury wants to write her life story. However, like most women in 14th-century England, she is illiterate. Three clerics contemptuously decline to be Margaret’s scribe, and only the threat of starvation persuades Brother Gregory, a Carthusian friar with a mysterious past, to take on the task. As she narrates her life, we discover a woman of startling resourcefulness.
-
-
Old fashioned heroine
- By Margaret on 06-22-13
-
The Fire Rose
- By: Mercedes Lackey
- Narrated by: Kate Black-Regan
- Length: 13 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Accepting employment as a governess after hard times hit her family, medieval scholar Rosalind Hawkins is surprised when she learns that her mysterious employer has no children and only wants her to read to him through a speaking tube.
-
-
Great story, poorly presented
- By Che on 02-26-10
By: Mercedes Lackey
-
The Black Rose
- By: Thomas B. Costain
- Narrated by: David Case
- Length: 17 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Walter of Gurnie, bastard son of an English peer, is forced to flee from Oxford for his part in the university riots of 1273. Inspired by Friar Bacon, he determines to travel to China. With his friend Tristam, he fights his way to the heart of the fabulous Mongol Empire and returns famous, to find that he must choose between the first love he thought lost and the exotic flower that he found in the East.
-
-
Great Book
- By Jean on 03-09-13
-
Wessex Tales
- By: Thomas Hardy
- Narrated by: Neville Jason
- Length: 10 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Wessex Tales, a collection of short stories including "The Three Strangers", "The Withered Arm", and "The Distracted Preacher", deals with a number of timeless themes seen so often in Hardy’s work: marriage, class, revenge, and disappointed love. Many of the tales have a supernatural tinge, and all are set around Hardy’s much loved homeland.
-
-
A Sampler
- By Tad Davis on 06-08-14
By: Thomas Hardy
-
The Outlaws of Sherwood
- By: Robin McKinley
- Narrated by: Justine Eyre
- Length: 10 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Young Robin Longbow, subapprentice forester in the King's Forest of Nottingham, must contend with the dislike of the Chief Forester, who bullies Robin in memory of his popular father. But Robin does not want to leave Nottingham or lose the title to his father's small tenancy, because he is in love with a young lady named Marian - and keeps remembering that his mother too was gentry and married a common forester. Robin has been granted a rare holiday to go to the Nottingham Fair, where he will spend the day with his friends Much and Marian.
-
-
A great story paired with the wrong narrator
- By Gail N. on 11-01-19
By: Robin McKinley
-
The Innocent
- By: Bertrice Small
- Narrated by: Susan Duerden
- Length: 14 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Deceptively fragile-looking, Eleanore of Ashlin had promised her life to God...until fate intervened. With her brother's untimely death, Eleanore - known as Elf to those who love her - becomes the heiress of an estate vital to England's defenses. She is ordered by royal command to wed one of the king's knights rather than take her final vows. With resistant heart, but ever obedient to King Stephen's will, she complies.
-
-
Well written!
- By CHW on 03-06-21
By: Bertrice Small
-
Cathedral
- By: Ben Hopkins
- Narrated by: Malk Williams, Sophie Roberts
- Length: 19 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A sweeping story about obsession, mysticism, art and earthly desire. At the centre of this story is the Cathedral. Its design and construction in the 13th and 14th centuries in the fictional town of Hagenburg unites a vast array of unforgettable characters whose fortunes are inseparable from the shifting political factions and economic interests vying for supremacy. From the bishop to his treasurer, from local merchants to lowly stonecutters, the fate of everyone, both Gentile and Jew, is affected by the slow rise of Hagenburg’s cathedral.
-
-
Interesting description of life in the Middle Ages
- By leongork on 06-30-21
By: Ben Hopkins
-
The Dead Travel Fast
- By: Deanna Raybourn
- Narrated by: Charlotte Parry
- Length: 10 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With a modest inheritance and the three gowns that comprise her entire wardrobe, Theodora leaves Edinburgh—and a disappointed suitor—far behind. She is bound for Romania, where tales of vampires are still whispered, to visit an old friend and write the book that will bring her true independence. She arrives at a magnificent, decaying castle in the Carpathians, replete with eccentric inhabitants, including the castle’s master, Count Andrei Dragulescu.
-
-
Process vs getting their
- By Aryn on 04-29-11
By: Deanna Raybourn
-
Novice Dragoneer
- Dragoneer Academy, Book 1
- By: E. E. Knight
- Narrated by: Nicole Poole
- Length: 16 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Fourteen-year-old Ileth grew up in an orphanage, and thanks to her stutter was never thought to be destined for much beyond kitchen work and cleaning. But she's dreamed of serving with the dragons ever since a childhood meeting with a glittering silver dragon and its female dragoneer. For years she waits, and as soon as she is old enough to join, Ileth runs away to become a novice dragoneer at the ancient human-dragon fortress of the Serpentine.
-
-
She’s 14yrs old
- By Alex D. on 10-23-21
By: E. E. Knight
What listeners say about The Novice's Tale
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Marcia
- 08-21-17
A Medieval Cozy
This second book in the series is interesting more for its historical detail than for its plot or characterisation. There is no mystery to solve as in The Bookseller's Tale; however, details of medieval monastic customs and the legal status of women carry the novel. Narration is excellent. This is a gentle book.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- AKowalczyk
- 01-28-19
Wonderful story!!
While there is no tale of murder, this tale is very well done!! I love just how much of daily Medieval life I have learned listening to both the first volume— The Booksellers Tale and this one. The Novice’s Tale is full of suspense, and I found myself saying, “Just one more chapter!” The narration is wonderful! I thoroughly enjoyed this audiobook!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- MCubed
- 06-07-19
Loved this book, can't wait for #3
love the story, love the characters, love the fact that there's nothing i have to worry about censoring. no bad language, no gore or extreme violence... good story, kept my interest, can't wait to get to book 3 and find out what happens next.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Gvido
- 08-30-18
Entertainment continues
I really enjoyed book 1, and book 2 was no disappointment. Its a lively and fun tale that gives an authentic feeling of medieval life arround Oxford. The mystery is subtly interwoven in the larger story and is not built as the story in book 1.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- E.M.
- 02-08-24
So good!
The narration was just fantastic and the story compelling without being too violent or gory. A very sweet installment in the series, making the era vivid in the reader’s imagination. Loved it!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- C. Sykes
- 03-23-21
Great fun for Medieval enthusiasts
A very enjoyable tale, but I missed the first one in the series. Worth listening to the rest of the series with fine narration.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Holly
- 05-08-22
You'll Fall Straight into Medieval Oxford
It is so hard to resist falling straight into the pages of this lovely, realistic story that seems so very authentic--and that means you fall straight into Medieval Oxford as the plague has waned. I love the fact the mystery involves terrible fraud and deceit, rather than bloody murder (though that was a possibility). The main character is completely compelling and believable. The main female character--the same. The plight of the medieval woman is presented compellingly, and an integral part of the story. Perfectly read by Philip Battley. Highly recommended.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- M.S. Green
- 06-06-17
Simply Lovely
A beautifully told tale with great historic accuracy that brings to life the lives of the characters with quiet certainty
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
6 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Florence
- 12-29-17
Read Book One First!
This is a well written medieval mystery, with a wonderfully described sense of place , and character development very well done.
This tale is more of a story rather than a mystery per se (although the motives behind the story are a mystery) .
It's important to have read book one first ...the Book Seller's Tale; otherwise you will spend far too much time trying to work out who's who.
And it ends on a bit of a cliffhanger, so now I simply must listen to book Three, which won't be a hardness. Well narrated. Great listen
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- bigdjunta
- 06-22-22
Loving this series!
Great series. I love the plot lines, the characters, the narrator....it's just an enjoyable read.
I can't wait to get to the next book.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!