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Harlequin
- The Grail Quest, Book 1
- Narrated by: Andrew Cullum
- Length: 14 hrs and 49 mins
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Harlequin
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Agincourt
- Written by: Bernard Cornwell
- Narrated by: Charles Keating
- Length: 16 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 49
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 42
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 42
Bernard Cornwell, the New York Times best-selling "reigning king of historical fiction" (USA Today), tackles his most thrilling, rich, and enthralling subject yet - the heroic tale of Agincourt. The epic battle immortalized by William Shakespeare in his classic Henry V is the background for this breathtaking tale of heroism, love, devotion, and duty from the legendary author of the Richard Sharpe novels and the Saxon Tales.
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3 out of 5 stars
-
Solid story
- By B. Helwig on 2023-02-06
Written by: Bernard Cornwell
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The Last Kingdom
- The Last Kingdom Series, Book 1
- Written by: Bernard Cornwell
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 13 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 325
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 285
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 285
The first book in a brand-new series, The Last Kingdom is set in England during the reign of King Alfred. Uhtred is an English boy, born into the aristocracy of ninth-century Northumbria. Orphaned at 10, he is captured and adopted by a Dane and taught the Viking ways. Yet Uhtred's fate is indissolubly bound up with Alfred, King of Wessex, who rules over the only English kingdom to survive the Danish assault. The struggle between the English and the Danes and the strife between christianity and paganism is the background to Uhtred's growing up.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Epic Historical Fiction
- By Christopher Anthony Dean Smale on 2019-07-26
Written by: Bernard Cornwell
-
The Winter King
- The Warlord Chronicles, Book 1
- Written by: Bernard Cornwell
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 19 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 129
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 118
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 118
Uther, the High King of Britain, has died, leaving the infant Mordred as his only heir. His uncle, the loyal and gifted warlord Arthur, now rules as caretaker for a country which has fallen into chaos - threats emerge from within the British kingdoms while vicious Saxon armies stand ready to invade. Uther, the High King of Britain, has died, leaving the infant Mordred as his only heir. His uncle, the loyal and gifted warlord Arthur, now rules as caretaker for a country which has fallen into chaos - threats emerge from within the British kingdoms while vicious Saxon armies stand ready to invade.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Incredible narration
- By jason on 2020-09-18
Written by: Bernard Cornwell
-
Sharpe's Tiger: The Siege of Seringapatam, 1799 (The Sharpe Series, Book 1)
- Written by: Bernard Cornwell
- Narrated by: Rupert Farley
- Length: 14 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 146
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 121
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 121
Richard Sharpe avoids the tyrannical Sergeant Obadiah Hakeswill and endeavours to rescue a British officer from under the nose of the Tippoo of Mysore. But in fleeing Hakeswill, Sharpe enters the exotic and dangerous world of the Tippoo. An adventure that will require all of his wits just to stay alive, let alone save the British army from catastrophe.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Great book and better narration!
- By John on 2023-06-19
Written by: Bernard Cornwell
-
Stormbird
- The Wars of the Roses, Book 1
- Written by: Conn Iggulden
- Narrated by: Roy McMillan
- Length: 13 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 56
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 52
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 52
The thrilling first instalment in the Wars of the Roses series - set at the beginnings of this turbulent period of English history which saw the throne change hands six times in 30 years. The Swan sees Henry VI crowned King of England, and married to the young French noblewoman, Margaret of Anjou - and so begins the extraordinary story of how England became a divided nation, where brother took up arms against brother. This was the war which defined the England we know today.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Incredible detail!
- By Laura on 2021-12-02
Written by: Conn Iggulden
-
Gallows Thief: A Novel
- Written by: Bernard Cornwell
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 16
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 16
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 16
The year is 1820 and England has fought its last victorious battle against the French. Rider Sandman, a hero of Waterloo, has finally returned to London to wed his young bride. But instead of being able to settle down to his fame and glory, he finds himself penniless in a country where unemployment and social unrest are raging high, and where men - innocent or guilty - are hung for the merest of crimes. Thus, when the Home Secretary offers him a job as private investigator.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Great performance and story
- By CharlesR on 2022-04-20
Written by: Bernard Cornwell
-
Agincourt
- Written by: Bernard Cornwell
- Narrated by: Charles Keating
- Length: 16 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 49
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 42
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 42
Bernard Cornwell, the New York Times best-selling "reigning king of historical fiction" (USA Today), tackles his most thrilling, rich, and enthralling subject yet - the heroic tale of Agincourt. The epic battle immortalized by William Shakespeare in his classic Henry V is the background for this breathtaking tale of heroism, love, devotion, and duty from the legendary author of the Richard Sharpe novels and the Saxon Tales.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Solid story
- By B. Helwig on 2023-02-06
Written by: Bernard Cornwell
-
The Last Kingdom
- The Last Kingdom Series, Book 1
- Written by: Bernard Cornwell
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 13 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 325
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 285
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 285
The first book in a brand-new series, The Last Kingdom is set in England during the reign of King Alfred. Uhtred is an English boy, born into the aristocracy of ninth-century Northumbria. Orphaned at 10, he is captured and adopted by a Dane and taught the Viking ways. Yet Uhtred's fate is indissolubly bound up with Alfred, King of Wessex, who rules over the only English kingdom to survive the Danish assault. The struggle between the English and the Danes and the strife between christianity and paganism is the background to Uhtred's growing up.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Epic Historical Fiction
- By Christopher Anthony Dean Smale on 2019-07-26
Written by: Bernard Cornwell
-
The Winter King
- The Warlord Chronicles, Book 1
- Written by: Bernard Cornwell
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 19 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 129
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 118
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 118
Uther, the High King of Britain, has died, leaving the infant Mordred as his only heir. His uncle, the loyal and gifted warlord Arthur, now rules as caretaker for a country which has fallen into chaos - threats emerge from within the British kingdoms while vicious Saxon armies stand ready to invade. Uther, the High King of Britain, has died, leaving the infant Mordred as his only heir. His uncle, the loyal and gifted warlord Arthur, now rules as caretaker for a country which has fallen into chaos - threats emerge from within the British kingdoms while vicious Saxon armies stand ready to invade.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Incredible narration
- By jason on 2020-09-18
Written by: Bernard Cornwell
-
Sharpe's Tiger: The Siege of Seringapatam, 1799 (The Sharpe Series, Book 1)
- Written by: Bernard Cornwell
- Narrated by: Rupert Farley
- Length: 14 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 146
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 121
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 121
Richard Sharpe avoids the tyrannical Sergeant Obadiah Hakeswill and endeavours to rescue a British officer from under the nose of the Tippoo of Mysore. But in fleeing Hakeswill, Sharpe enters the exotic and dangerous world of the Tippoo. An adventure that will require all of his wits just to stay alive, let alone save the British army from catastrophe.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great book and better narration!
- By John on 2023-06-19
Written by: Bernard Cornwell
-
Stormbird
- The Wars of the Roses, Book 1
- Written by: Conn Iggulden
- Narrated by: Roy McMillan
- Length: 13 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 56
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 52
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 52
The thrilling first instalment in the Wars of the Roses series - set at the beginnings of this turbulent period of English history which saw the throne change hands six times in 30 years. The Swan sees Henry VI crowned King of England, and married to the young French noblewoman, Margaret of Anjou - and so begins the extraordinary story of how England became a divided nation, where brother took up arms against brother. This was the war which defined the England we know today.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Incredible detail!
- By Laura on 2021-12-02
Written by: Conn Iggulden
-
Gallows Thief: A Novel
- Written by: Bernard Cornwell
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 16
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 16
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 16
The year is 1820 and England has fought its last victorious battle against the French. Rider Sandman, a hero of Waterloo, has finally returned to London to wed his young bride. But instead of being able to settle down to his fame and glory, he finds himself penniless in a country where unemployment and social unrest are raging high, and where men - innocent or guilty - are hung for the merest of crimes. Thus, when the Home Secretary offers him a job as private investigator.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great performance and story
- By CharlesR on 2022-04-20
Written by: Bernard Cornwell
Publisher's Summary
The first book in Bernard Cornwell's best-selling Grail Quest series, in a bright and bold repackage.
The year is 1342. The English, led by Edward III, are laying waste to the French countryside. The army may be led by the King, but it is the archers, the common men, who are England's secret weapon. The French know them as Harlequins.
Thomas of Hookton is one of these archers. But he is also on a personal mission: To avenge his father's death and retrieve a stolen relic. Thomas begins a quest that will lead him through fields smeared with the smoke of fires set by the rampaging English, until at last the two armies face each other on a hillside near the village of Crécy.
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What listeners say about Harlequin
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
- Stephen Nordquist
- 2022-07-14
Book two missing from series
It’s a good story , I listen to the first half of the book. I tried to buy book two of this four book series, it’s missing. Amazon only offers a abridged version . I stopped listening to Harlequin, if I can’t hear the whole complete book . Read something else. Bernard Cornwell has so many great series, Sharpe series. The Last Kingdom series. I advise anyone to read or listen these books instead
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1 person found this helpful
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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
- Mike
- 2022-03-27
Be warned the 2nd Book is missing from Audible
I read the novel version of the Grail Quest series years ago and decided to revisit them in audio format - this is a masterful unabridged recording of the first book by Andrew Cullim ( Complete with Historical Note at the end for Cornwell fans ) - For some reason audible provided the first and third book, unabridged by Andrew Cullum but the 2nd book only exists in a heavily abridged format with a different narrator. I should also add that to me this series was a perfect trilogy, and the 4th book that exists is really more of a "where is he now" follow up. Until the complete version of the second book is made available I recommend skipping here and heading to the library to get the full story.
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1 person found this helpful
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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
- Jordan
- 2019-08-22
Great story.
I loved everything about the book. Both the story and narrator were first class.
My only criticism is that this is part of a 4 part series and Audible is missing book 2 in the series link and only when you search for it by name do you find it, in abridged version only!
Bernard Cornwell: Top mates.
Audible: Fail.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- William T.
- 2018-05-03
Harlequin - Excellent Historical FIction
Great Listen, excellent narration by Andrew Cullum. I had read Edward the Black Prince back in the day and was into 14th century Anglo-Franco affairs, when my Grandmother recommended this book. I was enthralled. Great story cleverly woven around historical events at the time, the start of the 100 years war(s). English long bow archers constantly winning the day, French Noble Knights being felled in droves by basically well trained English peasants. This actually happened, changing the way that war was to be waged. It is a trilogy, and although I thought the first book was by far the best, I plan on Audible-ing the other two.
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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
- Darrell Gibbs
- 2018-03-07
Harlequin is a Historical Literary Masterpiece
Bernard Cornwell is a genius in writing excellent period books. Attention to detail and character development throughout the story gives the reader or in this case the listener wanting more. Thomas is a young archer who matured and grew very quickly into being a well liked character and bowman. Some characters left you hanging as to what happened to them at the end. The main reason why Thomas went in pursuit for the lance finally concluded in the story while the story ended. Will there be a sequel? BRAVO!
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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
- Syphi
- 2014-11-27
A Masterful Tale Told by a Truly Gifted Narrator
Where does The Archer's Tale rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?
I love Bernard Cornwell and have read this story a few times before, although it has been some years. I needed a book for a road trip and was delighted to find this title in unabridged form for the first time. It is magnificent. Cornwell is unequaled in medieval historical fiction, and this narrator pays it the honor it deserves with an amazing performance. I rate this as one of the top five audio books I've ever listened to.
What other book might you compare The Archer's Tale to and why?
Agincourt and 1356 by Bernard Cornwell. One of the greatest pleasures as a book lover is listening to a great book performed by an able narrator who can convey nuance and feeling, and through whom the listener can differentiate characters simply from the unique, consistent voices affected by the performer. All of these books are of this sort.
I would also compare to The Martian by Andy Weir or Daemon by Daniel Suarez. Each is a great story, great adventure, great narrator.
Which character – as performed by Andrew Cullum – was your favorite?
Too many to say. All are good, but a few that stand out because they are such fun characters are Will Skeet, Sam, Jake, Father Hobb, Jeanette, the Earl and, of course, Thomas of Hookton.
If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?
The Grail. A Quest. And a War.
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14 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- susan
- 2018-08-06
NOT Agincourt
I finished ‘Agincourt’ yesterday and immediately purchased this audiobook. I was SO disappointed. I believe the story may have been a good one, but after 14 hours of listening to Charles Keating, I couldn’t stand more than an hour of this narrator. Such long pauses between phrases-he can’t read a sentence without stopping ! Not only does he speak in excited phrases-as if he is retelling a story and can’t contain his excitement, you can hear his intake of breath before every sentence. EVERY. SENTENCE. Once I heard if I could NOT un hear it. It became so distracting I had to stop. I don’t understand all of the stellar reviews about this performance-this narrator is one of the most annoying I’ve heard yet. Agincourt and Keating is a perfect marriage of a wonderful book read by an amazing narrator. Perhaps this wouldn’t have been so disappointing if the first weren’t so fresh in my mind.
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13 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mike From Mesa
- 2016-02-20
Simply outstanding
Occasionally I come across a book that is so good that I have a hard time deciding if I want to continue reading it or put it down to extend the pleasure of reading it for another day. Bernard Cornwell's Agincourt was such a book and so is this.
The Archer's Tale tells the story of Thomas of Hookton, an Englishman who is driven from his small town by its destruction by a group of men looking for some hidden religious relics. He ends up as an archer in the Army of King Edward and most of the story tells the tale of the army's fight in what is now France trying to recover the English King's lands during what we know as the Hundred Years War. Thomas loves his life as an archer and must wrestle with his love of the army and his vow to recover The Lance of Saint George which was stolen from Hooton during the raid that drove him from the village.
Mr Cornwell is a master at character and story development and I found all of the main characters, both good and evil, to be interesting and believable and his description of life during the 1300s fascinating. The story leads to the battle of Crecy and the description of the battle, one of the most famous battles in history, is outstanding, even if a bit bloody. This is volume 1 in a set of four books of The Grail Quest. I planned to buy this book almost immediately after finished Agincourt but found when I selected The Grail Quest on the Audible website that only the first two volumes were actually available and I was unwilling to become involved in what I suspected would be a very interesting story without being able to complete the entire sequence. However the last two volumes, Heretic and 1356, although listed as not being available are, in fact, available although the volumes are not listed as part of the series and must be searched for individually. When I found them I immediately bought volumes 2 and 3.
My only complaint about this book relates to the narrator. Mr Collum has an unfortunate habit of pausing for a long time between a statement and the description of who made that statement. For example, "Where are you going when you leave here?" followed by a long pause and then "asked the monk". It can be quite annoying and would normally have caused me to drop a star from the book, but Mr Cornwell's writing is so flawless and his books so interesting that I could not bear to do so, even given the annoying narration.
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9 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Beach Girl
- 2016-08-15
Great novel as expected!
Only after reading a new book in this series I discovered that it was part of one. So here I am at the beginning of this saga. I found this book to be an excellent listen and have the next one ready to listen to. I always enjoy Bernard Cornwell's historical fiction- his writing style let's me see the characters in my mind as though I knew them personally.
'The Harlequin' did not disappoint, kept me interested enough to forgo going in the house on several occasions!!
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7 people found this helpful
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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
- James
- 2015-09-07
Fantastic book!
5th book i've read/listened by Mr Cornwell. This is superb!! Cant wait to get to the rest of the series.
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5 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Fernando Rodriguez
- 2015-03-05
Well written, great characters. fascinating
It was an entertaining story, full of memorable and captivating characters. The narration is superb, making the story so vivid that is hard to stop listening. If you like history you will love this book. Is very well written.
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3 people found this helpful
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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
- Son of Odin
- 2018-06-28
Robin Hood has nothing on Bernard Cornwell
Bernard Cornwell has done it again. With arrows flying, shield walls forming, and swords swinging the blood of battle flows throughout this book.
I really enjoyed Cornwell's storyline for the Holy Lance and the Holy Grail. Several authors have tried to use these holy relics to form their own storylines, but none compare to Cornwell.
To top off a great storyline, Andrew Cullum did a superb job of narrating! I would give this book overall 6 stars if I could.
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2 people found this helpful
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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
- Amazon Customer
- 2016-03-08
Well researched
Cornwell does his research like the best. You get a great story and know a little more history. Highly recommend all 4 books in this series!
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Debbie Krueger
- 2017-12-28
Long and dull
I started out enjoying this book. The narrator was quite good and there was interesting detail and a credible plot. I found as I got further into the book that there was les and less plot, minimal character development, and very long, tedious descriptions of battle preparation and battle scenarios. I found myself longing for the book to end, and really had to force myself to finish it.
I didn't hate the book, just got really tired of it. I won't be continuing the series.
If you want a series about battles and military strategy I would recommend the Aubrey-Maturin books by Patrick O'Brian. They are outstanding.
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1 person found this helpful
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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
- Elissa McChesney
- 2017-02-14
very good narration . fantastic story that was bro
made my workday fantastic. I have read this book before and was so happy to find an audio version
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1 person found this helpful