The Tarnished Chalice

By: Susanna Gregory

Narrated by: Andrew Wincott

On a bitter winter evening in 1356, Matthew Bartholomew and Brother Michael arrive in Lincoln - Michael to accept an honour from the cathedral, and Bartholomew to look for the woman he wants to marry. It is not long before they learn that the friary in which they are staying is not the safe haven they imagine - one guest has already been murdered.

It soon emerges that the dead man was holding the Hugh Chalice, a Lincoln relic with a curiously bloody history. Bartholomew and Michael are soon drawn into a web of murder, lies and suspicion in a city where neither knows who can be trusted...

©2006 Susanna Gregory (P)2007 W F Howes Ltd

Oddly Stilted

Although I loved the premise of the story and am I big fan of historical mysteries, I found this book very hard to finish. I suspect it was the rather strange, stilted diction and pacing of the narrator, rather than the story, but I found it so off-putting, I really can't be sure.

I strongly recommend you listen to the audio sample provided. See if you can get past the narrator before you buy.

Atmosphere and personalities

Where does The Tarnished Chalice rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Near the top of my listening list

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

The storytelling pulls you in, settles you down, and keeps you turning the pages as the different story lines develop and then began to come together

Which character – as performed by Andrew Wincott – was your favorite?

Brother Michael

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I'm a big fan of Susanna Gregory and my reaction is that I want more of this wonderful series on audio!

Loved It

This book is jammed with plot twists, well developed characters, and historical details. This time Matthew and Michael are in the city of Lincoln trying to stay alive while the city simmers with violence. Andrew Wincott did a fantastic job with many different voices. I enjoyed this book thoroughly!!

Story is Good, Narration So-So

The Tarnished Chalice has one of Gregory's usual complex plots and high body count, taking place this time in Lincoln, where Matt, Michael and Cynric meet a new cast of characters. with some very surprising outcomes! The plot is a little hard to keep one's finger on, but the book rewards concentration. As this is an audiobook I will concentrate on narration. Andrew Wincott's narration is fairly good, though he carries on in a sing-song fashion which sounds the same whether the scenes are action or contemplative - dah-dah-dah-DAH-dah-dah, dah-dah-dah-DAH-dah-dah, dah-dah-dah-DAH-dah-dah sentence after sentence. At one point a house falls down., and the description, a good action scene, is still this dozy dah-dah-dah-DAH-dah-dah. He also doesn't have the other narrator's, David Thorpe, ability to voice such a variety of characters as Gregory presents, and make them each sound very unique, despite Gregory providing any narrator with some wonderful eccentrics. Those he is able to distinguish, however, are done well (though if they speak for too long, the dah-dah-dah-DAH-dah-dah rhythm creeps back). I'll be glad to return to Thorpe's outstanding work, and in future will probably just read any more volumes that Wincott may narrate. I can voice better In my head.

Another Great Historical Mystery

I really like Matthew Bartholomew mysteries and think Susanna Gregory is a great writer with the historical training to make the story believable and grounded in historical accuracy.The details of Medieval Life are wonderful. This is not one my my favorite Matthew Bartholomew's as I did not care much for the Lincoln setting prefering the ones set in Cambridge instead. Still it is always great to have another one on AUdible. I do wish they would get the Thomas Chaloners which are available on Audible UK but not in the US. I enjoyed it a great deal and am eagerly awaiting the next Matthew Bartholomew on Audible

Audible! give us consistency! please!

For some reason after several books from a different publisher narrated by David Thorpe, now there are three in a row narrated by Andrew Wincott from this publisher. I'm sure Wincott is fine but changing the voices and name pronunciation midstream is frustrating. I'm sure it is a UK/US version issue but I am attached to the characters' voices and I spent this book and the last waiting for them to be over so I could get back to Thorpe's narration.

Edit: I gave up and skipped ahead to other books. I've now made it to a new several Wincott books....it is really Michael's voice that I am so attached to that I cannot abide the difference. I will buy these books because I am into this series but I will only listen when I run out of Thorpe-narrated books.

What a slog.

Ugh. I couldn't bear to finish it.

Disappointed

I was looking forward to this book as I love the genre and the description sounded intriguing. However, the book was long, boring and repetitive. The subplot about Matilde was very unsatisfying to me. The narrator was very good, though, and kept me listening to the bitter end.