The Daughter of Time

By: Josephine Tey

Narrated by: Derek Jacobi

Length: 5 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

'Truth is the Daughter of Time' is an old proverb. And The Daughter of Time is Josephine Tey's search for the truth about the murder of the Princes in the Tower. Was the hunchback, Richard III, the monster that Shakespeare and the history books have made him out to be? With real brilliance she conducts her search in the form of a crime novel, and her investigator is none other than her famous detective, Inspector Alan Grant, who starts to examine the centuries-old scandal.

©1951 The National Trust (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

This is a classic - for good reason!

If you could sum up The Daughter of Time in three words, what would they be?

This is the classic armchair mystery. The primary sleuth, Inspector Grant, is in hospital and looking for something to keep himself amused. In desperation, he turns to historical mysteries and becomes fascinated with the story of Richard III and the Princes in the Tower. Since he can't do his own research, he relies on a young American researcher to do his investigating for him. What could be a story of boring, second-hand historical research is, in fact, quite interesting to anyone who has studied history in school and has wondered how "they" decided what was historically correct. It makes one ask - does what is written in the history books actually make any sense when considering human nature?

What does Derek Jacobi bring to the story that you wouldn???t experience if you just read the book?

The narrator, Derek Jacobi, is a joy to listen to. He uses subtle differences in accent and tone that make it easy to distinguish the "voices" of the characters, which makes it much more interesting for the listener.

Drole, sophisticated, mellifluous

An immense pleasure to have Derek Jacobi in one's ears for this "who didn't do it" tale of how to keep yourself occupied while recovering in hospital.

Yes a very fine novel

I don’t think I would call it the best mystery novel ever written although I can’t think of a better one at the moment - but yes really so very well written and narrated that it is clearly a cut above the average.

Best Detective Novel ever

In 1990, the Crime Writers Association declared this the best detective novel ever. This may be true, it is one of my favorite ever, and Derek Jacobi's performance is amazing.

The book that inspired the Richard III Society

I loved this very special detective novel. Having been brought up on the Tudors perspective of Richard III, Josephine Tey made me question my long held convictions. She weaves a very convincing case for the innocence of Richard III's involvement in the disappearance of the 'Princes in the Tower' as well as other long held beliefs. Even though the jury is still out for me, I am much better informed and from now on will keep an open mind. The unfolding of the story is very clever and the narrator did an excellent job.