A Respectable Trade

By: Philippa Gregory

Narrated by: Adjoa Andoh

Length: 17 hrs and 26 mins

Publisher's Summary

From the author of The Other Boleyn Girl - a book about the devastating consequences of the slave trade in 19th century England.

Bristol in 1787 is booming, a city where power beckons those who dare to take risks. Josiah Cole, a small dockside trader, is prepared to gamble everything to join the big players of the city. But he needs capital and a well-connected wife.

Marriage to Frances Scott is a mutually convenient solution. Trading her social contacts for Josiah's protection, Frances finds her life and fortune dependent on the respectable trade of sugar, rum, and slaves.

Into her new world comes Mehuru, once a priest in the ancient African kingdom of Yoruba, now a slave in England. From opposite ends of the earth, despite the difference in status, Mehuru and Frances confront each other and their need for love and liberty.

©2019 Philippa Gregory (P)2019 Simon & Schuster Audio

TEN STARS!

To give this audiobook ten stars would not be enough! Philippa Gregory never disappoints. However, for this particular book, the real praise must go to Adjoa Andoh, the narrator. If there was a
“perfection” category, she just won the award. For me, the narration is everything. Her command of language and dialects is awe inspiring.
There is so much about the slave trade in Europe, America, and many other parts of the world that our history books have never told us. In today’s climate of bigotry and increasing racism, it would be prudent for us pause and educate ourselves in the hope that history will never be allowed to repeat itself in this regard. A Respectable Trade is a perfect way to begin.

6 people found this helpful

An exquisite, sad, incredible book!!!

NO SPOILERS! We have all heard true accounts of the awful, cruel, unbearable stories of how our African brothers, sisters, wives, husbands were treated. Maybe some of us have witnessed the cruelty and injustice of racism. What Phillipa Gregory has been able to do, is wake up all of our senses to comprehend the feelings, thoughts, actions and experiences of the slaves. She puts us in the villages of Africa, the terror of capture, the pain, sorrow, mistreatment of the long ocean voyages. You definitely get a lesson on the true thoughts and feelings of each individual slave. The narrator, Adjoa Andoh is so extremely talented!!! She is able to go from a Sierra Leone accent to a Scottish scullery maid accent in an instant. There are several main characters in this book, and she tackled every one spot on!! I really don't know if this audiobook would have worked without Adjoa Andoh! I feel this book is a must read, must listen. Not just for historians....but to get the history of a very, very long, destructing, wretched period.. A period that went on for more than half of a millennium.

3 people found this helpful

Slavery for-profit among the proper

Stunning descriptions of the horrors of the slave trade as a Respectable Trade.
The performance was amazing.
I find the romance far fetched and the heroine not an inspiring character: “I am not courageous...”
Exactly.
However the story is riveting and seems to represent a lot of serious research in the writing.
I love Phillipa Gregory. What a talent.

3 people found this helpful

Wonderful

Extremely well written and we’ll read. I was sorry to see it end. Many thoughts on how sad slavery was in those days.

1 person found this helpful

All around a wonderful listen

This book was hands down one of the best listens I've ever experienced. The narrator was amazingly talented. While the writing being simultaneously excellent. You won't be sorry in choosing this book. So well done.

1 person found this helpful

Meh

I like to listen to a book that’s not so full of drama sometime. A book that isn’t one disaster after another. A book that screams political correctness of the 17700 somethings that would never have been likely. Don’t waste your time.

Fantastic Narration!

The story line was great. The romance could have used a bit more fleshing out, but what made it a phenomenal read was the narrator! It almost defies belief that this woman can do so many different characters and accents that sound like a complete cast of people. I would listen to any book narrated by Adjoa Andoh.

Great story

Even if not totally factual, the insight into the history of slavery is very helpful. The characters are both hateful and eliciting sympathy.... I would have given it an overall 4 stars but some of the "voices" were barely comprehensible... Wish I had subtitles :)

Hard to put it down

Gripping story. It was difficult to hear how people were treated. Roth reading to the end!

Characters are not well drawn

First of all, I found the narrator to be annoying. Her performance of various accents was overly dramatic and did not seem very genuine. None of the characters were likable but all were predictable. The heroine is a moral coward, her sister in law lacks any sympathetic qualities and the slave, Mehuru, goes from hating the white mistress to being in love with her - not very believable. The story of slavery's cruelty seems as if it is cheapened by throwing in the forbidden romance aspect.