
The Siege Winter
A Novel
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Narrated by:
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Kate Reading
About this listen
A powerful historical novel by the late Ariana Franklin and her daughter Samantha Norman, The Siege Winter is a tour de force mystery and murder, adventure and intrigue, a battle for a crown, told by two courageous young women whose fates are intertwined in 12th century England's devastating civil war.
1141. England is engulfed in war as King Stephen and his cousin, the Empress Matilda, vie for the crown. In this dangerous world, not even Emma, an 11-year-old peasant, is safe. A depraved monk obsessed with redheads kidnaps the ginger-haired girl from her village and leaves her for dead. When an archer for hire named Gwyl finds her, she has no memory of her previous life. Unable to abandon her, Gwyl takes the girl with him, dressing her as a boy, giving her a new name - Penda - and teaching her to use a bow. But Gwyn knows that the man who hurt Penda roams free, and that a scrap of evidence she possesses could be very valuable.
Gwyl and Penda make their way to Kenilworth, a small but strategically important fortress that belongs to 15-year-old Maud. Newly wedded to a boorish and much older husband after her father's death, the fierce and determined young chatelaine tempts fate and Stephen's murderous wrath when she gives shelter to the empress.
Aided by a garrison of mercenaries, including Gwyl and his odd red-headed apprentice, Maud will stave off Stephen's siege for a long, brutal winter that will bring a host of visitors to Kenilworth - kings, soldiers... and a sinister monk with deadly business to finish.
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As Cady struggles under the enormous pressure at Harvard, she investigates her brother’s final year, armed only with a blue notebook of Eric’s cryptic scribblings. She knew he had been struggling with paranoia, delusions, and illusory enemies - but what tipped him over the edge? Voices fill her head, seemingly belonging to three ghosts who passed through the university in life, or death, and whose voices, dreams, and terrors still echo the halls. Among them is a person whose name has been buried for centuries, and another whose name mankind will never forget.
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narration is perfect
- By Barbara S on 06-06-20
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The Murder of Mr. Ma
- By: John Shen Yen Nee, SJ Rozan
- Narrated by: Daniel York Loh
- Length: 8 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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Dee has come to London to investigate the murder of a man he’d known during World War I when serving with the Chinese Labour Corps. No sooner has Dee interviewed the grieving widow than another dead body turns up. Then another. All stabbed to death with a butterfly sword. Will Dee and Lao be able to connect the threads of the murders—or are they next in line as victims?
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Outstanding narration!
- By DAS on 07-12-24
By: John Shen Yen Nee, and others
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A Deadly Endeavor
- A Deadly Twenties Mystery, Book 1
- By: Jenny Adams
- Narrated by: Nancy Peterson
- Length: 10 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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Philadelphia, 1921. When Edie Shippen returns home after spending years in California recovering from Influenza, she's shocked to discover that her childhood sweetheart is engaged to her twin sister. Heartbroken and adrift, Edie vows to begin living her life as a modern woman—and to hell with anyone who gets in her way. But as young women start to disappear from the city, her newfound independence begins to feel dangerous.
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For Lovers of Phryne Fisher looking for something fresh
- By B. Clark on 04-18-24
By: Jenny Adams
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Velvet Was the Night
- By: Silvia Moreno-Garcia
- Narrated by: Gisela Chípe
- Length: 9 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Mexico in the 1970s is a dangerous country, even for Maite, a secretary who spends her life seeking the romance found in cheap comic books and ignoring the activists protesting around the city. When her next-door neighbor, the beautiful art student Leonora, disappears under suspicious circumstances, Maite finds herself searching for the missing woman—and journeying deeper into Leonora’s secret life of student radicals and dissidents.
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Amazing, entertaining, and insightful
- By Mogopolis on 09-07-21
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The Briar Book of the Dead
- By: A.G. Slatter
- Narrated by: Jess Nesling
- Length: 12 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
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Ellie Briar is the first non-witch to be born into her family for generations. The Briar family of witches run the town of Silverton, caring for its inhabitants with their skills and magic. In the usual scheme of things, they would be burnt for their sorcery, but the church has given them dispensation in return for their protection of the borders of the Darklands, where the much-feared Leech Lords hold sway.
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Great standalone read
- By Ally on 09-10-24
By: A.G. Slatter
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The Heiress of Linn Hagh
- The Detective Lavender Mysteries, Book 1
- By: Karen Charlton
- Narrated by: Michael Page
- Length: 9 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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Northumberland, 1809: A beautiful young heiress disappears from her locked bedchamber at Linn Hagh. The local constables are baffled and the townsfolk cry "witchcraft". The heiress' uncle summons help from Detective Lavender and his assistant, Constable Woods, who face one of their most challenging cases.
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Better in print
- By Sheryl on 09-17-15
By: Karen Charlton
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The Lady of the Rivers
- By: Philippa Gregory
- Narrated by: Bianca Amato
- Length: 19 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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Jacquetta always has had the gift of second sight. As a child visiting her uncle, she met his prisoner, Joan of Arc, and saw her own power reflected in the young woman accused of witchcraft. They share the mystery of the tarot card of the wheel of fortune before Joan is taken to a horrific death. Jacquetta understands the danger for a woman who dares to dream. Jacquetta is married to the Duke of Bedford, English regent of France, and he introduces her to a mysterious world of learning and alchemy.
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Philippa back on track
- By Bonnie-Ann on 11-26-11
By: Philippa Gregory
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When the Stars Go Dark
- A Novel
- By: Paula McLain
- Narrated by: Marin Ireland
- Length: 11 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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Anna Hart is a seasoned missing persons detective in San Francisco with far too much knowledge of the darkest side of human nature. When tragedy strikes her personal life, Anna, desperate and numb, flees to the Northern California village of Mendocino to grieve. She lived there as a child with her beloved foster parents, and now she believes it might be the only place left for her. Yet the day she arrives, she learns that a local teenage girl has gone missing.
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Its all about the writing
- By J. Molnar on 04-17-21
By: Paula McLain
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Murder at Aldwych Station
- By: Jim Eldridge
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 8 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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December 1940. With the Luftwaffe pounding the city nightly, Londoners seek refuge in underground stations. Aldwych has been taken out of service to provide shelter for the British Museum's priceless Elgin Marbles, as well as civilians escaping the bombing. When the body of a young man is discovered on the tracks, wearing evening dress but barefoot, Detective Chief Inspector Coburg and Sergeant Lampson are on the case. Before long, more bodies are discovered, and Coburg's wife Rosa becomes a target for the brutal killer.
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Mystery Maven
- By Mystery Maven on 09-01-23
By: Jim Eldridge
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Pink Moon
- Hex Support Mystery, Book 1
- By: Annabel Chase, Tana Grey
- Narrated by: Carly Robins
- Length: 5 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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Katherine Fairfield isn’t a typical woman—or a typical witch. Once upon a time, she worked as an agent for Hex Support, a secret division within the Federal Bureau of Magic. Following the tragic death of her husband, she quit to focus on raising their twins. Now the kids are in college, and Kit spends her days at the enchanted family estate known as Dark Hollow along with her two younger sisters and a sanctuary of forgotten familiars. But then duty calls.
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Unique Spin on Witch Mystery
- By Princess Consuela on 04-23-23
By: Annabel Chase, and others
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The Self-Made Widow
- By: Fabian Nicieza
- Narrated by: Emily Woo Zeller
- Length: 11 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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After mother of five and former FBI profiler Andie Stern solved a murder—and unraveled a decades-old conspiracy—in her New Jersey town, both her husband and the West Windsor police hoped that she would set aside crime-fighting and go back to carpools, changing diapers, and lunches with her group of mom-friends, who she secretly calls The Cellulitists. Even so, Andie can’t help but get involved when the husband of Queen Bee Molly Goode is found dead. Though all signs point to natural causes, Andie begins to dig into the case and soon risks more than just the clique’s wrath.
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Even better than the first!
- By Kindle Customer on 01-17-23
By: Fabian Nicieza
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The Girl in Red
- By: Christina Henry
- Narrated by: January LaVoy
- Length: 8 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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It's not safe for anyone alone in the woods. There are predators that come out at night: critters and coyotes, snakes and wolves. But the woman in the red jacket has no choice. Not since the Crisis came, decimated the population, and sent those who survived fleeing into quarantine camps that serve as breeding grounds for death, destruction, and disease. She is just a woman trying not to get killed in a world that doesn't look anything like the one she grew up in, the one that was perfectly sane and normal and boring until three months ago.
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this seems like an unfinished 1st or 2nd draft
- By Kryptonite451 on 11-25-19
By: Christina Henry
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Damsel
- By: Evelyn Skye
- Narrated by: Imani Jade Powers
- Length: 9 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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Elodie never dreamed of a lavish palace or a handsome prince. Growing up in the famine-stricken realm of Inophe, her deepest wish was to help her people survive each winter. So when a representative from a rich, reclusive kingdom offers her family enough wealth to save Inophe in exchange for Elodie’s hand in marriage, she accepts without hesitation. Swept away to the glistening kingdom of Aurea, Elodie is quickly taken in by the beauty of the realm—and of her betrothed, Prince Henry.
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This is my 10th time listening to this audiobook.
- By KiJea on 08-15-24
By: Evelyn Skye
What listeners say about The Siege Winter
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- Laurel
- 11-11-15
A Personal Sory
I read a lot of "historical" fiction. Most in Britain or Scotland, and often in the same time period, 12th Century. The wars between Kung Steven and Empress Matilda are frequently aback drop of Hesse books. This is different because the story is being recorded as it is told by a dying Abbott. He doesn't tell the story from his view but from that if a young girl he had known.
I enjoyed learning more about the ole of cross bows and archers.I also enjoyed the inside look at a feudal castle and a siege. Very enjoyable. I wish it were a series.
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4 people found this helpful
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- MxH
- 04-04-15
Pleasant Listen, Above Average Writing
Above average writing especially considering Norman finished Franklin's work after Franklin died. Historical relevance, character development, and plot are nicely balanced. Kate Reading delivers the story and characters with a clear, strong voice. The subject might not appeal to everyone, but the book should be on the list of any reader who enjoys historical fiction set in the Middle Ages.
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16 people found this helpful
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- Cheap and Lazy
- 01-28-19
Great Period Piece
Beautiful writing. Not fast-paced, but doesn’t drag, either. Engaging. Narrator is good with the variety of voices and accents, but does make Gyll sp? sound kind of lame. Interesting setting, deeply-described without going overboard. The buildup to the central conflict with a truly awful villain is excruciating to the point I almost stopped reading because I couldn’t take what was coming. Glad I kept on. The ending was perfectly balanced with the rest of the book (not too short, not too long). I have that wonderful feeling of satisfaction one gets after completely a really good read.
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- Avid reader and shopper
- 03-26-15
True Ariana Franklin
I thought I'd read all of A F books & grieved to have lost such talent. I don't know how much her daughter contributed to this book, but as soon as I finish writing this review, I'm going to do a search to find out if she has written any other books!
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10 people found this helpful
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- NL
- 04-17-19
good start...lacking ending
I love the twists and turns. Good story but I felt the last quarter of the story lacked something the rest of the story had a lot of. The final win was a bit lusterless. No fight for your life ending to the chase; it was just over...done, we won somewhat...
All in all a good story. Will listen again.
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- Gabriel Pedraza
- 04-04-22
Worth a read, story stayed with me
Well developed characters as well as period setting. Amazing that although set in 1300’s, good or bad, then life still relatable. Ending was great, did not see it coming. Great listen, will not disappoint, story will stay with me a very long time.
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- Gail Jester
- 04-26-15
This is a very absorbing story and well written.
i hope we see more historical novels from this talented author.. I really love the character's and the back story is gripping. not to mention the. interesting historical. period backdrop.
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4 people found this helpful
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- Maria A. Cosenza
- 03-21-15
Good But Different
Great story though slow going. If you followed her other books, Grave Goods among them, you know she favors strong women, and this is no exception. But the writing is vastly different. I recommend this book to anyone who loves historical novels with strong female characters.
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4 people found this helpful
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- Amazon Customer
- 06-29-17
I (nearly) love everything from Ariana Franklin
If you could sum up The Siege Winter in three words, what would they be?
Literate, medieval, feminist.
Have you listened to any of Kate Reading’s other performances before? How does this one compare?
Narrator was good.
Any additional comments?
Wow, you can really tell where Ariana Franklin left off (due to her death) and where her daughter took over the writing. Book became rather stilted at the end. The fight scenes were particularly badly done. I wish, in general with Ariana Franklin's (aka Diana Norman's) books that she didn't have quite such a grisly imagination. She seemed to really enjoy writing about perverted child molesters. Everything else is wonderful. The settings, the mystery, the pacing, the other (non-murderous) characters.
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- Suze
- 02-12-18
Better than expected historical fiction
I enjoyed The Siege Winter. I purchased it as a sale item and was pleasantly surprised. If you are interested in historical fiction (especially British history), I'd recommend this. This is not a mystery, but a slice of time in the lives of two women and their struggles. I think it is a realistic portrayal of a time in which women faced brutality when unprotected and had little control of their futures. Liked the structure of the book-the main story of the book being told by a dying monk.
Narration was good overall-found the tone of narrator's voice grating at times.
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