Absolutely fantastic!

An intelligent historical thriller, a pleasure to listen to. I could not recommend it more!

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6 people found this helpful

A good listen...

Having read a couple of others in this series I went into this pretty much knowing what to expect and was not disappointed. A rollocking good story told at a pace that keeps you into the story. The narration is excellent as well so all in all well worth the mustard!

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3 people found this helpful

What a treat!

I came to this book with some uncertainty as it had very mixed reviews, however once started it is in every sense a page turner. Henry Gresham is wonderfully crafted hero the plot moves at a fast pace and submerges you in the grimy streets and murky world of Jacobean London. As the book progresses it unravels the web of deceit and plotting surrounding the Guy Fawkes story, it reminds us that this was a very real attempt to overthrow the King and Parliament and not the joke which it has become on the 5th of November. Yes there are some inaccuracies but they did not spoil my enjoyment of the book.

The narrator is excellent he very much brings the characters to life, a wonderfully enjoyable Listen.

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5 people found this helpful

The Desperate Remedy

A well read book that was sufficiently gripping for me to listen to the end. I was a little put off by odd factual inaccuracies (e.g. Alnwick Castle - the seat of the Percy family - is twice referred to as being on the coast. It is 5 miles from the coast). Trivial but easily checked and, if this is wrong, what about the rest of the historical framework for there is a substantial amount of contemporary detail thrown in. The other offputting device was that it regularly resorted to the hero's reflections which, perhaps naturally in his circumstances, became repetitive to the point of rumination. Having said that, I always wanted to know what happened next even though I thought I knew the overall historical context fairly well.

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6 people found this helpful

fascinating despite shortcomings

Yes, there are [at times fairly obvious] inaccuracies, but the storyline is compelling and the excellent reader makes most of the text. Don't let the weaknesses of the book distract you from its captivating strengths. If you can cope with the occasional inappropriately modern language or factual error you will love this.

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4 people found this helpful

The desperate remedy

I enjoyed the storyline interesting and as always Michael Tudor Barnes brought the characters alive

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AUDIO RECORDING IS INCOMPLETE

[2020] In lockdown I have been going back to listen to many of the audiobooks I have enjoyed most over the years.
"The Desperate Remedy" by Martin Stephen is an excellent historical story and the narration is excellent. However I have always felt some dissatisfaction with the story which seems to jump at a critical point.
I decided to follow this up and referred to a paperback copy of this book and discovered a whole section of the book is omitted from the audio version. To be precise pages 254 to 289 from my 2002 edition are missing from the audio version. This is a key part of the story which links together various characters and subplots.
So disappointed and Audible gets a One Star rating.

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