The Mysteries of Udolpho

De: Ann Radcliffe

Narrado por: Jason Smith

The Mysteries of Udolpho by Ann Radcliffe is a quintessential Gothic novel that combines romance, mystery, and horror, set against the backdrop of the picturesque but menacing landscapes of the Apennines. The story follows the fortunes of Emily St. Aubert, who suffers misadventures that include the death of her father, supernatural terrors in a gloomy castle, and machinations of an Italian brigand. This novel is celebrated for its elaborate descriptions of nature, its exploration of the sublime and the terrifying, and its influence on later Gothic literature.

©Public domain (P)2024 Stream Readers

Audio format is embarrassingly poorly done

The story, I think, is actually captivating for the period in which it was written. I listened to this book but the narration was so poorly done that it was distracting. In fact, it was so disappointing an distracting that it substantially decreased my ability to appreciate the literature. I wondered if it had been read by an AI but the reader is named. The reading lacks any realistic cadence with pauses between every phrase that suggests very poor editing and a very un- lifelike reading. This could have been corrected by a decent audio editor but was not. Additionally, the pronunciations of French words was also distracting. There seemed to be no attempt to get them correct, even the ones that any normal English speaking person would recognize. And even English words like a laceration on the hand (wound) was pronounced as though it was a loaded spring (wound). It was grating. I think the writing was good but the reading was so atrocious that it was difficult to appreciate. I for one will be reading or listening to this book but by a different editor/creator