• When Christ and His Saints Slept

  • Plantagenets, Book 1
  • By: Sharon Kay Penman
  • Narrated by: Anne Flosnik
  • Length: 36 hrs and 36 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (1,069 ratings)

Access a growing selection of included Audible Originals, audiobooks, and podcasts.
You will get an email reminder before your trial ends.
Audible Plus auto-renews for $7.95/mo after 30 days. Upgrade or cancel anytime.
When Christ and His Saints Slept  By  cover art

When Christ and His Saints Slept

By: Sharon Kay Penman
Narrated by: Anne Flosnik
Try for $0.00

$7.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $30.09

Buy for $30.09

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

In When Christ and His Saints Slept, the first of a trilogy that will tell the story of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine, master storyteller and historian Sharon Kay Penman illuminates one of the less known but fascinating periods of English history. It begins with the death of King Henry I, son of William the Conqueror and father of Maude, his only living legitimate offspring.

Contains mature themes.

©1995 Sharon Kay Penman (P)2019 Tantor

What listeners say about When Christ and His Saints Slept

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    663
  • 4 Stars
    236
  • 3 Stars
    93
  • 2 Stars
    44
  • 1 Stars
    33
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    592
  • 4 Stars
    209
  • 3 Stars
    77
  • 2 Stars
    33
  • 1 Stars
    38
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    624
  • 4 Stars
    193
  • 3 Stars
    75
  • 2 Stars
    32
  • 1 Stars
    24

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Hurrah. Another Sharon Kaye Penman novel in Audio

At last we have another Sharon Kay Penman novel in Audio. Please can we have some more.

What makes Sharon Penman's historical novels set in medieval Britain so amazing is how they combine sticking quite close to historical facts, with making a thrilling read enjoyable to modern readers.

The saddest part of this book, and of the real life events it chronicles, is the suffering of the poor who find themselves at the mercy of battle-hardened soldiers, especially when on the losing end of a battle. Twenty years England was torn apart as two strong-willed people battled for what each believed rightly to be theirs.

I am amazed how much I loved Stephen and hated Maude in the beginning, and found myself completely reversed by the end.

I Highly recommend this book . This is Sharon Kaye Penman at her best.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Amazing Historical Fiction

This is one of my favorite books. It is a great novel spanning the entirety of the Anarchy over the succession in early 12th century England. This whole series is amazing.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent series

Enjoyed the whole series.
Not a fan of the narrator's voice. It was like a fake husky sound.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

A worthy read!

Where Christ and His Saints Slept


A good historical novel for the 12th century England, France, Wales and Ireland. A good read.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

lengthy and enjoyable

I like long historical books that are well narrated. This did not disappoint
I wish the sequel books were available from audible.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Wonderful information

I enjoyed the detail in the telling of the history of the war for the crown, but could not get past the odd voice of the narrator.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Horrible performance

Wow. I wish I read the reviews first. I’m returning this because I just cannot force myself to pay attention through some of the dullest, driest, flattest delivery I have ever heard. I look forward to reading the book someday because as it stands I won’t be listening to this for 30+ hours.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Disappointed

I was disappointed by this book. It was told as a story but had no main character to really care about. Therefore, they was no investment in the story itself. I found it boring. I did listen to the entire long book. I kept thinking it would get better. It didn’t. I realize that the author wanted to keep it as close to history as possible but maybe a shorter book that focused more on one or two main characters instead of 10 or 15 characters over the span of 30 or 40 years?
The narrator did a superb job!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Interesting but incredibly long

I loved the historical aspects of this book. i did not like the affectes accents of the narrator. This reading would lend itself to a group of performers.
A word od warning ... This book requires a commitment of time.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

best audio book ever

Fascinating. Nice to know where Plantagenet (sp?)name came from. Love this part of history and loved the narrator!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!