The Devil in the Marshalsea cover art

The Devil in the Marshalsea

 Preview
Try Premium Plus free
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

The Devil in the Marshalsea

By: Antonia Hodgson
Narrated by: Joseph Kloska
Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

WINNER OF THE CWA HISTORICAL DAGGER AWARD 2014.

Longlisted for the John Creasey Dagger Award for best debut crime novel of 2014.

London, 1727 - and Tom Hawkins is about to fall from his heaven of card games, brothels, and coffeehouses to the hell of a debtors' prison. The Marshalsea is a savage world of its own, with simple rules: those with family or friends who can lend them a little money may survive in relative comfort. Those with none will starve in squalor and disease. And those who try to escape will suffer a gruesome fate at the hands of the gaol's rutheless governor and his cronies.

The trouble is, Tom Hawkins has never been good at following rules - even simple ones. And the recent grisly murder of a debtor, Captain Roberts, has brought further terror to the gaol. While the Captain's beautiful widow cries for justice, the finger of suspicion points only one way: to the sly, enigmatic figure of Samuel Fleet.

Some call Fleet a devil, a man to avoid at all costs. But Tom Hawkins is sharing his cell. Soon, Tom's choice is clear: Get to the truth of the murder - or be the next to die.

A twisting mystery, a dazzling evocation of early 18th-Century London, The Devil in the Marshalsea is a thrilling debut novel full of intrigue and suspense.

©2014 Antonia Hodgson (P)2014 Hodder & Stoughton Crime Fiction Historical Mystery Fiction Exciting Scary

Listeners also enjoyed...

 An Honourable Thief cover art
The Seeker cover art
The Alchemist of Souls cover art
Mind of a Killer cover art
Crimson Rose cover art
The Ashes of London cover art
Oliver Twisted cover art
Legacy cover art
Murder on Black Swan Lane cover art
City of Vengeance cover art
The Sixth Victim cover art
The Censor's Hand cover art
A Conspiracy of Violence cover art
The Bookseller of Inverness cover art
The Lost Ones cover art
State of Treason cover art
All stars
Most relevant  
Loved this tale, it gives a real feeling of the period. The narrator is perfect , but he, like the listener is let down by sloppy or non existent editing. Where an (inevitable) occasional mistake in the reading occurs, it is left in, with the line being repeated and on one occasion we even get the readers “sorry” before he tries again! Clearly no one listened to this before it was released. Other to this one small but significant niggle I highly recommend this and it would have gained five star ratings all round.

Excellent story, poor editing.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This was gripping and interesting. Tells what life was like in the Marshalsea prison. great

gripping

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Story: 10/10
Narration: 10/10
Production/editorial: 2/10

So poorly edited, it really spoils the enjoyment of listening to this audiobook (particularly when the actor even apologises for saying a line wrong and re-reads it). It's really distracting, especially when there are a few long paragraphs that ended up being read in full twice through. Audible, please, please: Sort this out for future listeners?!
That said, I'm really looking forward to the next Tom Hawkins instalment. If you're in to historical fiction (with some real life characters thrown in), you'll love this. Lots of twists and turns to keep the reader/listener guessing too.

Needs editing!!!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
An unusual story that was performed really well was let down by very shoddy editing. Lines were repeated throughout, sometimes two or three times, performed in different ways. How any editor listened to this and gave it the OK is unbelievable. I would be furious if I were the author.

Poor editing let this great book down

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Any additional comments?

I am still listening to this story and enjoying it too. It is, however, being somewhat spoilt for me by the so-called ‘music’ at the beginning and end of each chapter. I suppose the clanging of chains, keys turning in locks and creaking of doors etc is supposed to enhance the listening experience but, for me, it is doing the exact opposite and I find it annoying and time wasting.

Why the ‘music’?

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
lots of repeated sentences where narrator has messed up and hasn't been edited out properly shame it's a good story music interludes are annoying at every end and start of chapter Russel of chains gets boring and someone needs to oil that squeaky door

needs editing

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I really enjoyed this as its not my normal type of book. I loved the real factual history twisted into the plot so going to give book two a go
Only disappointment was the narrator - not the best on the block but the story made up for it- l've listened to much worse

Enjoyable

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Great book well delivered. just a warning to people who listen to books before sleeping, there is about 40 seconds of music between chapters which has the ability to interrupt your dose!

Sleeeepppp

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This is a wonderfully written and enjoyable book. Memorable characters and more plot twists than I could keep up with. Joseph Kloska reads beautifully and with just the right tone of amusement and humour when needed. There were several editibg issues however, that were irritating and should not have got through, which is why I have only given 3 stars overall.

Fantastic story

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I like the storey and it is well read, but the sound effects and music between sections is surplus to requirements and annoying

Sound effects / twiddling music

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews