The Ladies of Grace Adieu and Other Stories

By: Susanna Clarke

Narrated by: Simon Prebble, Davina Porter

Length: 7 hrs and 2 mins

Publisher's summary

Following the enormous success of 2004 bestseller and critics' favorite Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Susanna Clarke delivers a delicious collection of ten stories set in the same fairy-crossed world of 19th-century England. With Clarke's characteristic historical detail and diction, these dark, enchanting tales unfold in a slightly distorted version of our own world, where people are bedeviled by mischievous interventions from the fairies. With appearances from beloved characters from her novel, including Jonathan Strange and Childermass, and an entirely new spin on certain historical figures, including Mary, Queen of Scots, this is a must-have for fans of Susanna Clarke and an enticing introduction to her work for new listeners.

©2006 Susanna Clarke (P)2006 Audio Renaissance, a divison of Holtzbrinck Publishers, LLC

Critic reviews

"All but one of the stories takes place in or around 1811, and Clarke uses the language, diction, and historical settings beautifully, just hinting at Jane Austen. Each character is elegantly drawn and comes to life....These stories are charming, engaging, and deceptively simple." (Booklist)

Charming

If you are a Jane Austen fan you will really enjoy this book. The talk from that era is the same. Nothing grizzly here, just enjoyment. More of a woman's read I think. A quiet, leisurely listen.

excellent follow-up

As we near the BBC USA airing of JS&MN, this book helped pass the time by offering more stories of a magical England and a chance for women to show their mad magical skillz (the author had to leave much of the activities of magical women out of the preceding novel in order to keep with the tone of the times).

We also finally get the oft-referred to tale of John Uskglass & the Cumbrian Charcoal Burner, as written by Lord Portishead - made me wish for a full rendering of A Child's History of the Raven King :)

Simon Prebble's excellent voice is joined by Davina Porter's: she matches him perfectly in giving a better feel for the tales that are best read by a woman.

I highly reccomend this for any and all who want to revisit the world of JS&MN again.

Not as engulfing as Jonathan Strange

Simon Prebble is amazing as a narrator. The short stories themselves are a little on the dry side. Though the absurdity is quite entertaining. If you liked Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, I recommend you give this a try.

Great addition to one of the best fantasy books

I am hopeful this author will publish again. _JS & Mr.N_ was one of the best fantasy novels I have ever read. In the absence of anything else on her shelf, I gobbled this one up with relish. It was so worth it! All those of you who read Tolkien's appendices know what I'm talking about.

Write again, Ms. Clarke. Please! I am hungry.

4 out of 5 STARS Due to Flawed Recording

"The Ladies of Grace Adieu" = LOVED it, although the characterization of Jonathan Strange was less endearing than in the "Strange & Norrell" novel.

"On Lickerish Hill" = absolute-adorable retelling/revision of the famous classic (Rumple...). LOVED it!

"Mrs. Mabb" = my 2nd fav among the selections 😊. Deliciously sweet!

"The Duke of Wellington...." = Short and sweet. Thoroughly enjoyable!

" Mr. Simonelli... " = I enjoyed, although after several repeated listens, I still do not understand the ending. Can anyone explain? What was Simonelli's fate?

"Tom Brightwind..." = Amusing.

"Antickes and Frets" = Not my fav.

"John Uskglass and the Cumbrian Charcoal Burner" = My ABSOLUTE FAV! I laughed so hard that my eyes burned with tears.

This Review is solely based on my level of enjoyment.

I love the work of both Narrators, however the "trade offs in narration, " during the same story... it was a little distracting, but not enough to ruin the tales. it

Overall, the recording was merely fair, consisting of distracting long pauses, and other formatting issues. Still, not enough to ruin the stories, thank goodness.

Short take on short mysteries

I found these short tales light, pleasant and entertaining for a 1.5-2 hour drive. I would not call them gripping, but they held my attention well enough for me to think "no, don't go down that lane' or 'gees...don't look!' After a couple of hours, I found myself needing a little break to ponder the story and the times in which which it occurred. Would I recommend it to my Audible pals....as a nice diversion for one who likes to sample the menu and try something different, yes.

Disappointed Jonathan Strange fan

I jumped on this one as soon as I finished the delicious Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, but was sadly disappointed. It was difficult to adjust to the female narrator, and even Simon Prebble's voice had a different tone, but it seemed more like it was in the quality of the recording. I only took to two or three of the stories, the rest were not easy to follow, especially the one about Mary Queen of Scots. I don't even remember if that's the right title. The last story was charming, laugh out loud funny, and I wish more of them had that familiar whimsical, magical feel. But they don't. If you are yearning for more after reading Jonathan Strange, I'm sure you will want to follow it up with this one, but it was not the enjoyable transition that I'd hoped for.

I LOVED her last book, but am disappointed here

I loved Johnathan Strange and Mr. Narrel a ton, but this one, by the same author, was hard to finish. Perhaps it was partly due to the reader, I can't deal with the woman voice reader, very shrill and British, halfway through it transitions to a male reader that is better. but generally I struggled to get through this one or be captivated, even though I tried several times.

Very good IF you're read Strange & Norrell

It took a while for me to get to rhythm and patterns of narration, but when I caught it, this was very good book, each story better than one before.

Old Tales

Being from the USA, I think I missed some important connections and became befuddled by antiquated words. The cast system, so readily displayed distressed me. The sexiest dismal of women was offensive but probably more accurate than apocryphal. The odd admixture of Christianity and social striving opposing magic made the characters seem farcical. I doubt modern children would relate to passages in which objects and crafts of long bygone eras abound yet the plots are definitely meant as teaching tales for young readers. I am not clear about who the intended audience is, British history buffs perhaps?