Marie

While I found Burying the Past a pleasant diversion, there was something missing.Even though the two main detectives are nearing retirement, and it is nice to meet characters that aren't brawny and nubile, I never warmed to them. Maybe there was just one two main plot lines that wasn't resolved in ways that made sense to me. I did appreciate the narrator, whose voice felt appropriate for the age of the main character.

It was a nice change of pace not to have a 15th century mystery set at court or involve kings, spies, or religious persecution. The Rough Collier is set in a mining community in Scotland. At times the narrator is hard to understand. I don't know if the text is written in dialect or if it is the readers interpretation. I enjoyed Gil and Elise, the main characters, who solve a murder mystery tainted by witchcraft and home brewed medicine. I will probably visit them again.

Sometimes huge plot holes and hard to accept coincidences don't matter because a story is so compelling it overrides the reader's (listener's) normal capacity to suspend belief. Code Name Verity is one of those stories. I don't want to spoil any of the story so I won't list its faults. It has a few, hence the 4 stars. But in the end, they don't matter, at least they didn't to me. Code Name Verity is a tale of courage, friendship, stamina, strength, determination, acceptance, and sacrifice.

It is not for everyone. Several scenes involving torture are hard to stomach, although I have read worse. People, both good and bad, die. If you have trouble with strong women characters, it isn't the book for you. If you are looking for a tortured romance, look elsewhere. If you like your YA stories full of young women tormented by their bodies or their attraction to the bad boy, this isn't it.

There is a simplicity hidden in the twists and turns of Code Name Verity that is disarming. You accept it is true because you hope that in the same situations, you would have acted like Mattie or Julie.

I enjoyed the first book in the trilogy, Gideon The Cutpurse. The author changed the focus away from Gideon and he barely makes an appearance in the second volume. Kate and Peter, two tweens from the present day, continue as the focal characters in both the present day and in the 18th century. Though the The Tar Man takes on a major role now as he lands in the 21st century.

The Tar Man, one of the bad guys, is wonderfully evil, though he might have a soft spot under all that meanness. He is my favorite character. He does adjust to the 21st century too easily, though, and based on what he accomplishes, it seems to be in the 21st century for a much longer period than Kate and the others are in the 18th century.

As in the first book, I found it difficult to believe 18th century characters so easily accepted the concept of time travel. Kate and Peter exist is several time periods and the transitions are well handled. The period details continue to ground the listener in the story.

I am not sure if I will continue with the third volume of the trilogy. The second was a disappointment and I lost interest in Peter and Kate. I wanted more Gideon.

I enjoyed Gideon The Cutpurse. Gideon is a great character, though he turns out not to be the main character. I wonder if the author intended that when she started the book. After listening to the second volume, it felt like the author changed the focus away from Gideon to make this book the first of a series. Kate and Peter, two tweens from the present day, become the focal characters in both the present day and in the 18th century. By the end of the book, I wasn't sure why the title included Gideon. Gideon falls by the wayside; he is barely in the second book, even though the series is called the Gideon Trilogy. And based on a review I read, the American version of this book had a different title.

The time travel is well handled and the reader will buy into it. The fading in and out of time periods is an great twist. There are a few scenes of violence or death that could be too strong for very young listeners but this would be a great for family listening. The Tar Man, one of the bad guys, is wonderfully evil, though he might have a soft spot under all that meanness. The period details ground the listener in the story.

I found it difficult to believe the 18th century characters so easily accepted the concept of time travel. I would have thought at least one of them would have suspected magic or witchcraft. I wanted more questioning. And it didn't help that Kate and Peter ended up being taken in by upper middle class people in the 18th century. Maybe they should have struggled with daily life of the masses in the 1763. Hence the 4 stars instead of 5. Spoiler alert: this becomes a greater problem in the second volume when 18th century characters travel to the 21st century.

I am not sure if I will continue with the third volume of the trilogy. The second was a disappointment and I lost interest in Peter and Kate. I wanted more Gideon.

Gerard Doyle has become one of my favorite readers. His character voices are distinct and the listener can see his characters.

A fun, funny, multidimensional fantasy that will make you laugh out loud at points, even if people do stare at you on the Metro. I haven't read any of this series but I think it must be better listened to rather than read. The vocal characterizations add so much to the word play, puns and teasers. I would have missed a couple in the text. The narrator is excellent and he becomes a very important and essential part of the book. I wasn't so in love with the author's writing style. It is a bit simplistic for the adult listener, and the author never met an "ly" adverb he didn't like. I would have preferred more detail and description; he needs to work on "show don't tell" in his narrative and his taglines. I wasn't surprised to see book reviews on Amazon and Audible from readers who first discovered this series in high school. That said, the book is worth a listen if you like your fantasy mixed with satire and humor.

Okay, so I don't like this book. I loved the first chapter and thought I would go on loving the rest. Yes, George Martin is an excellent writer. If only everyone didn't die or suffer grievous injury. I am only 1/3 through the first in the series. I don't think I am actually going to be able to finish this book. Violence and death can fit in a story but do they have to overwhelm it? Nobody stays around long enough for a multi volume story to go anywhere, except some of the bad guys it appears. And then I have an issue with the author's tendency to have prepubescent or very young teen girls be sexual objects, often involving rape or violent sex. There is something disturbing about that. Most of the women, at least in this volume, are little more than sexual objects.

There are so many things I wanted to know more about: the long winter, Winterfell, what was beyond the wall. But I am not willing to trudge through several volumes to find out.

Not for me. And I am not going to apologize.

I have a long standing mental image of Elizabeth I that the narrator, Katherine Kellgren, tore to shreds. Those of you who have listened to the Her Royal Spyness series will be familiar with Ms. Kellgren. She is great for that series (though wearing after a couple of volumes) which is campy and light. Unfortunately, her reading style doesn't translate well to Tudor England. Her overwrought narration often overwhelms the story. When a Elizabeth shouts, she shouts so loudly I jumped. I have trouble keeping the volume at a consistent level.

I selected the book because it takes place at almost the same time and involves many of the same characters as a book I had just finished (To Shield the Queen by Fiona Buckley) and I was interested in comparing the stories. To Shield a Queen is a lighter story but a much better listening experience.

So refreshing to meet an unapologetically flawed character. Crowner John, the man in black, cheats on his wife and his mistress but defends the right of the accused criminal to fair treatment. He shouts, he stomps, he hates his in-laws. You've got to love it. I've been reading a lot of historical mysteries and this may be my new favorite. The author easily weaves medieval history, culture and vocabulary into the story. The settings are gritty and real. I gave it a 4 instead of a 5 only because I didn't like the ending; I felt the author took the easy way out. That said, I will be visiting Crowner John again soon.

I love Ngaio Marsh books and this is one of my favorites. I love that Agatha Troy has such a major part in the story. I love her and her relationship with Roderick. The odd cast of characters in the story are so much fun from start to finish. And Nadia May is the best.

Nadia May is the best. Her narration is superb. It adds so much to the text. It's not that I didn't enjoy the book, I did as you can see by my rating. I am rating it for what it is, a light historical mystery with a romantic subplot. But I wonder if I would have been as taken if I had read it. Ursula Blanchard is an interesting character, as are those around her. I especially like her servants. But she is naive to say the least. Her support of Elizabeth and the protestants isn't based on any strong religious conviction but rather on a description she had heard of a burning under the reign of Queen Mary. While things weren't lovely under Mary, Mary certainly didn't start the torturing and killing based on religion. Henry the VIII's reign was rampant with burnings, beheading, and hangings. The dissolution of the monasteries was violent. Ursula's lack of serious contemplation about this issue made her a weak character for me. The description of the recorded plotting and intrigue at Elizabeth's court is superficial.

That said, the book was enjoyable and I will listen to at least one more. I admit the lack of brutal killings and graphic violence was a relief after other books set in the same or close time periods. I love Sansom's Matthew Shardlake books but the killings and murders can be gruesome.