Speaks the Nightbird

By: Robert R. McCammon

Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini

Length: 30 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

Audie Award Nominee, Fiction, 2013

Judgment of the Witch

The Carolinas, 1699: The citizens of Fount Royal believe a witch has cursed their town with inexplicable tragedies - and they demand that beautiful widow Rachel Howarth be tried and executed for witchcraft. Presiding over the trial is traveling magistrate Issac Woodward, aided by his astute young clerk, Matthew Corbett. Believing in Rachel's innocence, Matthew will soon confront the true evil at work in Fount Royal....

Evil Unveiled

After hearing damning testimony, magistrate Woodward sentences the accused witch to death by burning. Desperate to exonerate the woman he has come to love, Matthew begins his own investigation among the townspeople. Piecing together the truth, he has no choice but to vanquish a force more malevolent than witchcraft in order to save his beloved Rachel - and free Fount Royal from the menace claiming innocent lives.

©2002 Robert McCammon (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

“Edoardo Ballerini performs this story of accusation and fear flawlessly. He effortlessly switches his pitch, accents, and timbre to suit the unfortunate Rachel Howarth, the endless curious Corbett, and the various determined characters, good and evil.” (AudioFile)

"a compelling story that should find a wide readership. Highly recommended for popular fiction collections." (Library Journal)

"An excellent story, full of tension and suspense.” (Stephen King)

Incredible!

I took a chance on this book and it paid off in aces. The narrator did an excellent job of simply becoming THE story. He had the correct tone, timbre, and talent. The story itself drew in me in quick and held me entranced until the very end. I simply cannot say enough about how well this book was written. I would give this selection more stars if I could.

Amazing!

What ana amazing writer Robert McCammon is, and Edoardo Ballerini was equally amazing in the narration. The story was built like a beautiful persian quilt rug. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to it.

An unassuming hero

Sometimes fulfilling the letter of the law does not result in jjustice. When a clerk becomes an investigator, who knows what sentence will be served

Really great LONG story!

I love a really LONG audio book when I can stay with it and this one did the trick!! A little slow start for me but once in, I was good to go! Lived it!

Amazing partnership between narrator and writer

I have now read 3 books by the author, and this is probably my favorite thus far. Then again, after reading the first one (Swan Song), I thought it was amazing. Then I read the second (Boy's Life, as narrated by Ray Foushee) and I was truly captivated. I should have known better than to start this book when I was in the midst of 3 other books. Because as soon as I started this book, I had trouble picking up any of the other books. There is something about McCammon's books (so far) that grabs on to you, and as long as they are, they never feel that way to me. There was never a moment when I thought, "Just get on with it." I was completely immersed in Matthew's world and couldn't wait to find out what would happen next. Like his other books, McCammon does not shy away from descriptions of violence, brutality, or sex, but they also don't feel gratuitous. Instead, they move the story along and in many ways increases the emotion of the scene. The setting for this one was 1699 in the Carolina's when belief in Witchcraft is alive and well and thought to be the work of the devil. Any woman (usually) who was disliked for whatever reason could be made to be the scapegoat of a town's woes by being accused of being a witch. Burning a witch at the stake was considered a proper way of "saving" the town. Matthew is a law clerk who is assisting the magistrate in charge of this particular case, and possibly because he is still young and curious, he starts questioning what is being told and his natural curiosity leads him to seek the evil that has invaded the town. There were many moving parts and many different characters and yet, I was never confused about who was whom and who said or did what. Part of that was likely Edoardo Ballerini's A-plus narration. He is fast becoming one of my favorite narrators and this partnership with Robert McCammon on this series will likely have me listening to the rest of the novels rather than reading them myself. As I said, I could not put this down other books ended up being put to the side in favor of this one. If you are a fan of historical fiction/mystery, you should absolutely check this out, and if you like audiobooks or you don't mind them, you should definitely give this one a listen.

Deserves 5 stars

Deserves 5 stars overall, but I could not get that to happen on my phone. At first I thought it moved too slowly, but I soon became engrossed and couldn’t leave it alone until finished. I will remember these characters for a long while

Long? Delightfully so!

I do enjoy a long audiobook. Makes me feel like I got my money’s worth! Very heavy on the details, which I also enjoy. Plenty of mystery, angst, love, history, surprises and a bit gruesome. What more could one want from a novel? Excellent performance. I highly recommend.

Loved it!

It took me awhile to get used to the narrator, he grated on my nerves at first. But after a few chapters, I grew to like, then to really enjoy his narration. The story was gripping and overall a great read.

Narrator is great!

Initially the story lags, but perseverepast the first chapter or so and it will be worth the listen.

Wow

Robert McCammon is a master story teller, and this novel is no exception. I loved every minute of it, and the narrator was absolutely wonderful in his narration. If I could give this more than five stars, you'd best believe I would.