Falconer and the Ritual of Death

By: Ian Morson

Narrated by: Gordon Griffin

Length: 8 hrs and 14 mins

Publisher's summary

Oxford University, 1271: for the first time in the university's history a college is to be purpose-built. As old buildings are pulled down, a skeleton is revealed. The skull is missing - it is clear the man has been murdered.

Regent Master William Falconer deduces that the body was hidden 20 years ago. He must rack his brains to recall significant events in Oxford during that decade, when England was involved in an earlier Crusade and the apparent ritual murder of a child shocked the community. Could this provide a solution to the case?

As the heavens open, and Oxford is threatened with flooding, Falconer is drawn into violent events where the past and the present collide with startling consequences...

©2009 Ian Morson (P)2009 Soundings

Interesting

Well written and well narrated. The mystery is intriguing and complex. The interaction between Christians and Jews in 1271 England is an interesting topic. I saw the other reviews about missing an hour. My copy was complete.

Last hour missing Good Book but unifinished

This audiobook is listed commercialy with 9 hours of book. The last hour ismissing. WHy isn't audible doing something about it?

Also Reported Incomplete Book

Six or so weeks ago I also complained to Audible that I had wasted a credit on this book - the credit was refunded and the complaint was referred within to the Audio Department. Still nothing has been done - and the incomplete book remains available for purchase - Unbelievable!!!!
This is otherwise a great book!

Unfinished

I have reported that this books is missing about 30 minutes at the end but Audible has done nothing. I reported this several months ago.

Potential not realised

The reader, Gordon Griffin, had passion but the style was tiresome. Sentences fell into very short arcs that show a very simple structure; I would like to compare the written with the reading to see from which this stems. The “sample” doesn’t really reflect this problem although there is a hint. Some of the coma breaks, if that is what we can call them, are just a fraction in time, but they do as described above. Some running on for variation please; and maybe a little more pause for between chapters; or when jumping back and forth in time.

Yet Griffin didn’t show this tendency with City of the Dead. Maybe Morson likes comas.
In the end the reading wasn’t able to bring me to care enough to finish; I had persevered for 6 of the 8 hours.

I enjoyed City of the Dead, so don’t dismiss Morson or Griffin, but be ready to give up if either can’t keep the narrative going interestingly; a bit of an up hill battle if Morson reuses Falconer. As in the other book, he does a good job of making the times clearly understood; squaller, mud, poverty, etc. Maybe he over does it a bit … mud, mud, mud … but maybe that was down to the comas; running sentences on would have made it less persistent.

The story stands on its own if it becomes part of a series. The plot idea is an intriguing one; it is a shame it wasn’t given a little more support.

If you don’t find the short phrasing a problem and wish a lite listen where nothing intellectually demanding is required, this might pass the time sufficiently well; even if in the end I was too disappointed to finish.

unfinished

While the story is well written it ends abruptly and unsatisfactorily. You are left hanging after almost eight hours of listening. I expected more. This book should not be offered without the warning that it is unfinished.