The Torrid Zone
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The Torrid Zone
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Narrated by:
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Timothy Bond
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By:
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Alaric Bond
About this listen
A tired ship with a worn-out crew, HMS Scylla has one more trip to make before her much postponed re-fit. Bound for St. Helena, she is to deliver the island's next governor: a simple enough mission and, as peace looks likely to be declared, no one is expecting difficulties. Except, perhaps, the commander of a powerful French battle squadron, who has other ideas.
With conflict and intrigue at sea and ashore, The Torrid Zone is filled to the gunnels with action, excitement, and fascinating historical detail; a truly engaging listen.
©2014 Alaric Bond (P)2019 Timothy BondListeners also enjoyed...
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 311
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 263
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 264
October 1772, Portsmouth. Sixteen-year-old Richard Bolitho waits to join the Gorgon, ordered to sail to the west coast of Africa and to destroy those who challenge the King's Navy. For Bolitho, and for many of the crew, it is a severe and testing initiation into the game of seamanship.
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3 out of 5 stars
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This is *not* the book advertised.
- By Robert Bolin on 08-26-16
By: Alexander Kent
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Mutiny on the Bounty
- By: Peter FitzSimons
- Narrated by: Michael Carman
- Length: 22 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 926
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 807
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Story5 out of 5 stars 803
The mutiny on HMS Bounty, in the South Pacific on 28 April 1789, is one of history's truly great stories - a tale of human drama, intrigue and adventure of the highest order - and in the hands of Peter FitzSimons it comes to life as never before. Commissioned by the Royal Navy to collect breadfruit plants from Tahiti and take them to the West Indies, the Bounty's crew found themselves in a tropical paradise. Five months later, they did not want to leave.
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5 out of 5 stars
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You don't know the whole story.
- By Justin Sluyter on 05-01-19
By: Peter FitzSimons
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Sea of Poppies
- Ibis Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Amitav Ghosh
- Narrated by: Phil Gigante
- Length: 18 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 754
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 518
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 519
At the heart of this vibrant saga is an immense ship, the Ibis. Its destiny is a tumultuous voyage across the Indian Ocean, its purpose to fight China's vicious 19th-century Opium Wars. As for the crew, they are a motley array of sailors and stowaways, coolies and convicts.
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5 out of 5 stars
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ignorance may be bliss
- By Evelyn M Kloepper on 07-27-09
By: Amitav Ghosh
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Badge of Glory
- By: Douglas Reeman
- Narrated by: David Rintoul
- Length: 10 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 31
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 28
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 28
It was an age of empire, an age of contrast, and an age of dramatic change - and one which would determine the destinies of nations as well as of men. Captain Philip Blackwood of the Royal Marines rejoins his ship, HMS Audacious, in August of 1850, anxious to get back into action. "Per Mare - Per Terram" is the marines' motto. In the torturous heat of Africa, where they are sent to stamp out the remaining strongholds of slavery, and later, in the bitter war of the Crimea, Philip Blackwood and his men learn to obey it without question.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Good story
- By Thomas Crawford on 05-29-23
By: Douglas Reeman
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Batavia
- By: Peter FitzSimons
- Narrated by: Richard Aspel
- Length: 17 hrs
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 551
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 484
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 483
The story begins in 1629, when the pride of the Dutch East India Company, the Batavia, is on its maiden voyage en route from Amsterdam to the Dutch East Indies, laden down with the greatest treasure to leave Holland. The magnificent ship is already boiling over with a mutinous plot that is just about to break into the open when, just off the coast of Western Australia, it strikes an unseen reef in the middle of the night.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Disaster, Mutiny, Murder, Survival
- By Todd on 02-07-13
By: Peter FitzSimons
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The King's Coat
- By: Dewey Lambdin
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 13 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 732
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 627
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 620
It is 1780, and 17-year-old Alan Lewrie is a brash, rebellious young libertine. So much so that his callous father believes a bit of naval discipline will turn the boy around. Fresh aboard the tall-masted Ariadne, Midshipman Lewrie heads for the war-torn Americas, finding - rather unexpectedly - that he is a born sailor, equally at home with the randy pleasures of the port and the raging battles on the high seas. But in a hail of cannonballs comes a bawdy surprise.
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5 out of 5 stars
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"Sex, Swords, Sailing Ships"
- By Andrew on 05-16-10
By: Dewey Lambdin
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The House of the Four Winds
- One Dozen Daughters, Book 1
- By: Mercedes Lackey, James Mallory
- Narrated by: Emily Sutton-Smith
- Length: 10 hrs
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 357
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 318
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Story4 out of 5 stars 319
The rulers of tiny, impoverished Swansgaard have twelve daughters and one son. While the prince’s future is assured, his twelve sisters must find their own fortunes. Disguising herself as Clarence, Princess Clarice intends to sail to the New World. When the crew rebels, Clarice/Clarence, an expert with rapier and dagger, sides with the handsome navigator, Dominick, and kills the cruel captain. Dominick leads the now - outlawed crew in search of treasure in the secret pirate haven known as The House of the Four Winds.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Solid story, but this one is popcorn
- By Phillip on 09-19-14
By: Mercedes Lackey, and others
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A Beautiful Blue Death
- Charles Lenox Mysteries Series #1
- By: Charles Finch
- Narrated by: James Langton
- Length: 8 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 1,281
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,135
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Story4 out of 5 stars 1,134
Charles Lenox, Victorian gentleman and armchair explorer, likes nothing more than to relax in his private study with a cup of tea, a roaring fire and a good book. But when his lifelong friend Lady Jane asks for his help, Lenox cannot resist the chance to unravel a mystery. Prudence Smith, one of Jane's former servants, is dead of an apparent suicide. But Lenox suspects something far more sinister: murder, by a rare and deadly poison.
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5 out of 5 stars
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I like cozy
- By Sheryl on 05-21-12
By: Charles Finch
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Into the Storm
- Destroyermen, Book 1
- By: Taylor Anderson
- Narrated by: William Dufris
- Length: 16 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 4,330
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 3,338
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 3,336
Pressed into service when World War II breaks out in the Pacific, the USS Walker---a Great-War vintage "four-stacker" destroyer---finds itself in full retreat from pursuit by Japanese battleships. Its captain, Lieutenant Commander Matthew Patrick Reddy, knows that he and his crew are in dire straits. In desperation, he heads Walker into a squall, hoping it will give them cover---and emerges somewhere else.
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3 out of 5 stars
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It just never grabbed me.
- By Lore on 05-01-12
By: Taylor Anderson
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Burning Bright
- Extraordinaries Series, Book 1
- By: Melissa McShane
- Narrated by: Cat Gould
- Length: 12 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 225
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 202
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 199
Elinor is an Extraordinary and the only one in England capable of wielding fire in over 100 years. As an Extraordinary she is respected and feared, but to her father she represents power and prestige for himself. Mr. Pembroke, having spent his life studying magic, is determined to control Elinor and her talent by forcing her to marry whom he chooses, a marriage that will produce even more powerful offspring.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Amazing story and narration!
- By sweetliks on 07-06-17
By: Melissa McShane
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Treasure Island (Alpha DVD)
- By: Robert Louis Stevenson
- Narrated by: Dick Hill
- Length: 8 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 25
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 13
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 12
Treasure Island is a tale of pirates, treasure, and shipwreck. When young Jim Hawkins finds a packet in Captain Flint's sea chest, he could not know that the map inside it would lead him to unimaginable treasure. Shipping as cabin boy on the Hispaniola, he sails with Squire Trelawney, Captain Smollett, Dr. Livesey, the sinister Long John Silver and a frightening crew to Treasure Island. There, mutiny, murder and mayhem lead to a thrilling climax.
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1 out of 5 stars
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terrible narrator
- By Lesa on 03-30-09
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His Majesty's Dragon
- Temeraire, Book 1
- By: Naomi Novik
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 9 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 5,832
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 4,779
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 4,779
When HMS Reliant captures a French frigate and seizes its precious cargo - an unhatched dragon egg - fate sweeps Captain Will Laurence from his seafaring life into an uncertain future and an unexpected kinship with a most extraordinary creature. Thrust into the rarified world of the Aerial Corps as master of the dragon Temeraire, he will face a crash course in the daring tactics of airborne battle.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Excellent AU period fantasy
- By Melanie on 07-08-10
By: Naomi Novik
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The Bright and Breaking Sea
- Kit Brightling Series, Book 1
- By: Chloe Neill
- Narrated by: Danielle Cohen
- Length: 10 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 63
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 53
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 53
Kit Brightling, rescued as a foundling and raised in a home for talented girls, has worked hard to rise through the ranks of the Isles' Crown Command and become one of the few female captains in Queen Charlotte's fleet. Her ship is small, but she's fast - in part because of Kit's magical affinity to the sea. But the waters become perilous when the queen sends Kit on a special mission with a partner she never asked for. Rian Grant, Viscount Queenscliffe, may be a veteran of the Continental war, but Kit doesn't know him or his motives....
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4 out of 5 stars
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It's really good, but not quite great
- By Mariya Joldzic on 11-29-20
By: Chloe Neill
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Sacred Hunger
- By: Barry Unsworth
- Narrated by: David Rintoul
- Length: 22 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 205
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 181
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 179
In this Booker Prize-winning work, Barry Unsworth follows the failing fortunes of William Kemp, a merchant pinning his last chance to a slave ship; his son, who needs a fortune because he is in love with an upper-class woman; and his nephew, who sails on the ship as its doctor because he has lost all he has loved. The voyage meets its demise when disease spreads among the slaves and the captain's drastic response provokes a mutiny.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Wise, Perceptive, Heart-breaking
- By S. Coldsmith on 04-16-16
By: Barry Unsworth
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The Lion of St. Mark
- By: G.A. Henty
- Narrated by: Ralph Cosham
- Length: 10 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 180
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 132
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 131
Of The Lion of St. Mark, G.A. Henty wrote: "I have laid my story in the time not of the triumphs of Venice but of her hardest struggle for existence, when she defended herself successfully against the coalition of Hungary, Padua, and Genoa, for never at any time were the virtues of Venice, her steadfastness, her patriotism, and her willingness to make all sacrifice for her independence more brilliantly shown.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A Great Listen
- By Jef on 04-04-05
By: G.A. Henty
What listeners say about The Torrid Zone
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- 80 Winters
- 03-28-19
Great yarn from new classic Fighting Sail author
Alaric Bond is a proven master at spinning yarns from the Age of Fighting Sail as his 'Fighting Sails series' has shown those with a thirst for shipboard action well grounded in historical fact. Now, these yarns are becoming available on audiobook for those of us who enjoy the convenience of this medium. The narration by son, Tim Bond, has provided a credible performance of the action that leaves the listener with no doubts as to the emotions, urgency, and intentions of both friend and foe.
I enjoyed this audio performance as much as I enjoyed the kindle version I had read earlier and look forward to future releases of other titles from Alaric Bond's 'Fighting Sails series' on audiobook
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- lscollison
- 05-24-19
Authentic Adventure & Intrigue
The Torrid Zone is realistic action and adventure fiction set aboard ship in the Napoleonic Wars Era. The narration is delivered in an authentic and pleasing voice; the setting and characters are well drawn in an imaginative yet believable plot. I love how the reader interprets the characters' mannerisms. The Torrid Zone is just one of many well-developed stories in Alaric Bond's fleet of historical fiction. I'm glad the Bonds have teamed up on this audiobook production and I hope more audio versions of the Fighting Sail series are in the offing.
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