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The Lions of the North

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The Lions of the North

By: Edward Marston
Narrated by: David Thorpe
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Soldier Ralph Delchard and lawyer Gervase Bret lead a group of the king's finest commissioners into the war-torn lands of Yorkshire to settle land claims and compile the Domesday Book. One island of wealth and luxury remains in Yorkshire: the castle of merchant Aubrey Maminot.

There the commissioners learn of two great terrors: the rogue Olaf Evil Child, a hero of the poor and conquered Saxon people, and the ravenous lions Aubrey Maminot keeps as pets. The lions make a feast of an anonymous young man who tries to sneak into the castle, and Gervase Bret begins to wonder why someone would commit such an act of suicide.

©1996 Edward Marston (P)2020 Soundings Crime Fiction Historical Mystery Fiction Crime England War
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As a regular reader one of the best of this series. Gripping throughout.A roaring story.

The roar of a lion.

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Good story and the characters. Fair narration and good length as an audio story. Onto the next series

Love this series

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I do not want an intricate story that requires regular listening as I travel in fits and starts. This book, and those in the same series, is easy to pick up on after a gap of a few days, but it will also suit more continuous listening.

The story is interesting and informative, concentrating on the tense relationship between the Saxons and the Normans. Added to this is excitement and a strong element of ‘whodunnit’. The narration was excellent: clear and strong, with obvious distinction between voices. The investigating team, commissioned by the King himself, comes alive as the novel unfolds.

An entertaining novel that, along with the others in the series, is a pleasurable addition to my Audible collection. A special thanks to the narrator, who is a class act.

Easy listening, interesting and very well narrated

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Really good story. All the time thinking one of the heroes would have to confront the lions and dreading it. How does David Thorpe do it? All those voices!
I want to read the next one but hate snakes! Ugh!

Loved it.

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I truly hope there are more books to come in the Doomsday series. The combination of the writing and David Thorpe’s narration has been absolutely brilliant. In all honesty, I think this has become my favourite series largely because the narration is so exceptional.

David Thorpe doesn’t simply read the story — he inhabits it. The pacing, character voices, atmosphere and emotional nuance are outstanding, and it makes the entire experience completely immersive. Some audiobooks are enjoyable, but these feel cinematic.

Ironically, we never really took to the other more popular series in quite the same way, and I think a large part of that is because David Thorpe’s narration is such a huge loss. Once you’ve experienced storytelling performed at this level, it genuinely changes your expectations of audiobooks.

Please keep writing this series — there is definitely an audience who absolutely loves it.

Brilliant storytelling, great characters and superb narration from David Thorpe

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