The Queen's Head Audiobook By Edward Marston cover art

The Queen's Head

Nicholas Bracewell, Book 1

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The Queen's Head

By: Edward Marston
Narrated by: Gordon Griffin
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His name was Will Fowler, an actor in the esteemed theatrical company called Lord Westfield’s Men, a vibrant young man flushed from the success of a recent performance at the Queen’s Head theatre. So exuberant was he that he persuaded the resourceful manager of the company, Nicholas Bracewell, to quaff a pint or two at a nearby pub.

Alas, it was to be Will’s last taste of beer. A tavern brawl left him dead–but not before he gasped for Nicholas to find his fast-fleeting, red-bearded murderer and administer a just revenge. Yet finding Will’s murderer in London’s dark, crowded streets was a seemingly impossible task–not to mention the fact that Lord Westfield’s Men were just commanded to appear at the court of Elizabeth I–an honour one dare not refuse....

©2012 Edward Marston (P)2012 Soundings Crime Fiction Historical Mystery Fiction Crime Theater

Critic reviews

"Edward Marston is a master of his craft." (Daily Mail)

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I read this book back when it came out in the 80s, and I surprised myself by liking it. Some of the characters such as Firethorn and Gill struck me as stock characters that you find in a mediocre play. But Nick Bracewell had a charm that kept me turning the pages. The mystery did not seem particularly mysterious, but I kept reading to see how Marston manipulated the plot to arrive at the ending. The revelation of the villain came from an unusual set of circumstances which softened the small disappointmnet of guessing who would be the bad guy.
So not the deepest plot nor characterization as many characters were one-dimensionally predictable, but I kept reading, or in this case listening, to the end. And enjoying it.

a bit of a guilty pleasure

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I can only guess that Marston is using this first book of the series to create the Elizabethan world and introduce the players, because there really is no murder mystery. The murder happens early on; our intrepid hero vows to find the killer, and then seems to forget all about it. He only takes up his charge again some 6 hours later in the recording. Then the solution to the mystery is handed to us with a big red bow attached. There isn't any way for a reader/listener to try to figure it out. Nonetheless, the world of the players is lively and interesting, full of envy and revenge (mostly having nothing to do with the murder), and Nicholas is a charming hero.

What mystery?

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I usually listen to 1800,s to early 1900 historical mystery’s but I really enjoyed this one. Took me a bit to get into the characters but an interesting cast! Narration great and looking forward to more!

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