Leonard

For fans of LeCarre's Smiley character, The Secret Pilgrim will be a great trip down memory lane. I read all of the Smiley novels, however, I don't remember this one. So when I saw it on the Audible list I quickly downloaded it. I was not disappointed at all. The story was classic LeCarre and Jayston's narration was phenomenal - it was as though Smiley was sitting in the room with you. A great audio experience.

I had been a devote le Carre reader for years, but have to admit after Smiley's retirement I was a bit dissappointed with the new characters and themes. Luckily, I saw a prepublication installment of A Delicate Truth in Harper's. The plot was intiguing and slightly reminiscent of the earlier novels. I am very glad I decided to download the books. The story only got better and better. Le Carre's narration was masterful and kept me riveted to the book. I finished it in two days. Definitely recommend and look forward to the next book.

Listening to Jeremy Irons narrate was the highlight of this story. I have read print versions of other Cuelho books and have had a bit of a problem following the story. The audio version held my attention from beginning to end.

Definitely. The narration was like being at a live performance of a play.

Clarity and imagination. The story is set in Jerusalem in 1099, just before the Crusaders put the city to the sword (one of the worst massacres in history). I put my IPOD in a player and just sat back and listened to the story. I could close my eyes and imagine a dusty square in 11th Century Jerusalem filled with frightened people listening to the old Coptic. This performance was a pleasure.

No

I have always been interested in the subject of the Madhi Uprising in 19th Century Sudan. The novel started out very well, but started to run on and on. After about 17 hours, I just had to pull the plug. I have only done that once before. Overall, the novel is 23 hours long, I can't imagine how you go from that length to a six hour abridged version. This I will avoid other novels by this author and by this narrator.

Ludlow did his homework in researching the characters in this, the second trilogy of the de Hauteville family. The story-line is great and the narration is continually excellent and my only problem is that I finish the novel too, too quickly. It is hard to turn off the IPOD. Can't wait for Book 3!

I've always been a fan of Cornwell's medieval novels and this is the first one that I have had the pleasure of enjoying as an audiobook. The story is great and Jack Hawkin's narration is first class. Can't wait for the next installment.

For fans of Charlton Heston's movie "55 Days at Peking", this is the history that inspired the movie. I knew something of the history of the Boxer Rebellion and the Allied efforts to relieve the besieged legations. Fleming's book gives great detail of the intrigue in the Chinese Imperial Court, the dithering of the Allied ministers and the bravery of the soldiers and residents of the foreign legations. Shaw-Parker's narration was a bit dry at times, but good overall.

When I saw the listing of Gilham's novel, I was unsure if I wanted to download it. However, the WWII buff in me was curious to hear a description of wartime Berlin from the perspective of ordinary people. I was not disappointed with the story and Suzanne Bertish's narration was absolutely superb. The depiction of the characters living under the stress of food shortages and Allied bombing is fantastic. For the history lover this is a great listen.

French's book is a splendid mystery set in the twilight days of the pre-WWII China. In addition to a great story, the listener is given a wonderful insight into life in Peking in the late 1930s. The narration is good, though at times clinical, but the story keeps you wanting to listen.

I was initially very excited to listen to the book because of my interest in the subject. However, the first part of the book is like listening to someone reading a textbook aloud. 80 Percent of the first part of the download is a historical framing of the subject. This was, frankly, tedious (in large part due to the narration). I was twice tempted to just delete the book from my IPOD, but decided to continue. Finally, the book started to deliver on its premise and presented several insightful vistas of the future.

I generally do not like to post negative reviews, however, unless you are a die-hard devotee of the subject you may want to pass this one over.