Gideon the Cutpurse

By: Linda Buckley-Archer

Narrated by: Gerard Doyle

Length: 11 hrs and 15 mins

Publisher's summary

The year is 1763. Gideon Seymour, cutpurse and gentleman, hides in dense underbrush from the villainous Tar Man. Suddenly the sky peels away like fabric and from the gaping hole fall two curious-looking children. Peter Schock and Kate Dyer have fallen straight from the 21st century, thanks to an experiment Kate's father was running with an antigravity machine. Before Gideon and the children have a chance to gather their wits, the Tar Man has taken off with the machine and Kate and Peter's only chance of getting home. Soon Gideon, Kate, and Peter are swept into a journey through 18th century London, over the routes of notorious highwaymen, and even into King George's palace and form a bond that, they hope, will stand strong in the face of unfathomable treachery.

Historical detail comes alive as debut author Linda Buckley-Archer weaves the 18th century trials of Gideon, Kate, and Peter with the modern-day worries of their parents and the wily investigator trying to piece together the children's disappearance. A time-travel tale in the tradition of Mark Twain with a touch of Back to the Future, the first audiobook of the Gideon trilogy introduces listeners to a modern genre all its own.

©2006 Linda Buckley-Archer. All rights reserved (P)2006 Simon & Schuster Inc. All rights reserved.

Long road trip made short

This is a fantastic family adventure! Entertaining for everyone in our family 6, 9, and 10year olds all loved it. It was the second time my wife and I listened to it and it was just as captivating as the first time we heard it.
Highly recommend it! It made our 5 hour road trip fly by!!

One of the best I've heard!

This is definitely one of the very best audio books I've heard. The narrator's voice is warm and engaging. He does a great job with the characters and accents. The plot is exceptional. I've read all three of these books, now, and this is definitely the best! The author does a great job connecting a modern audience to an 18th C England.

Great Fun

Very engaging. The characters were completely believable and the whole thing was a enjoyable escape from reality.

love this story I've listened to it many times

I first found this book as in middle school and I still love it today in my 20s.

Great Young Adult Fantasy

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.

++ narration, history, story

Compelling story, fascinating historical insights, and superb narration. My 8-year old daughter and I both enjoyed listening to this very much.

I was nicely surprised.

Excellent eighteenth century language. Great vocal presentation of many different characters. Somewhat surprising ending of this book.

Entertainingly Predictable

What did you like best about Gideon the Cutpurse? What did you like least?

Engaging story, well read. The story is predictable, among time travel genre stories, with an occasional "golly gee wow this is what it's like to be alive when..." moment. The biblical character connection was pretty much a straight line, when a little blurring of that line would have added suspense, especially if the reader was already well connected to the biblical story. Fine moments of humor--the parson in his underwear, preaching the finest sermon of his life....

What about Gerard Doyle’s performance did you like?

Gerard Doyle could read the inside of a pig's ear and it would be enjoyable.

Pretty entertaining

Not bad, not the best book I've ever read. It was enjoyable and nice and long to keep my attention for a while. I like the narrator, and the plot was okay. Especially good for young people

An interesting time travel

Good story. Very good narrator. Many ages of readers will enjoy this one. Now if you can get over the idea that science will rein and fix all evils you can really like this book. Really like the characters and how they develop.