A Mortal Bane Audiobook By Roberta Gellis cover art

A Mortal Bane

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A Mortal Bane

By: Roberta Gellis
Narrated by: Nadia May
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Magdalene la Batarde is the madam of the Old Priory Guesthouse in Southwark. She and her women are expected to engage in a number of sinful activities, but bloody murder isn't one of them until Baldassare, the messenger, dies. Though Baldassare isn't a regular client of the Old Priory Guesthouse, Magdalene and her women refuse to allow his death to go unavenged. Of course, their efforts aren't completely altruistic. Chances are if they don't find the killer, they will be assumed guilty, because they are whores, and will be gutted and hanged.

Into this sea of intrigue steps the handsome Sir Bellamy of Itchen. The bishop of Winchester, who was served for many years by Baldassare, has put Bellamy, his most trusted knight, in charge of the murder investigation and ordered him to prove Magdalene is the killer. Bellamy is instantly captivated by his chief suspect but also convinced that she is hiding something. Sure that she is involved in the messenger's death right up to her beautiful eyebrows but unable to believe she's a killer, Bellamy must find out how and why Baldassare died, or watch the mysterious Magdalene meet her fate on the gallows.

©1999 Roberta Gellis (P)2002 Blackstone Audiobooks Detective Fiction Historical Mystery Traditional Detectives Murder Murder Mystery

Critic reviews

"In this top-notch production Nadia May uses different cadences to effectively denote different characters. Her mellifluous voice and accents are perfect for the story. The authentic historical detail, mystery, romance, and well-defined characters work together to create a memorable story." (AudioFile)
Well-researched History • Complex Characters • Intriguing Mystery • Medieval Setting • Engaging Storyline
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Once I got into it I didn't want to put it down, it was a good story with a Who Done It.. I didn't feel bad every time they were called Whore, but I also laughed some

at first I didn't want to continue

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This book translates very well to the audio format. The narrator is terrific. The book keep my interest both because of the well crafted mystery and the many details about life in that time.

A real pleasure

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medieval england is alive with intrigue, emotion and the not so everyday trials and tribulations of life in a whorehouse. it's easy to find a kinship with these characters whose lives are so distant in time, but similar in the need to survive.

whores & heros

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This book was not exactly a fun read. But the author did such an amazing job of introducing the reader to a specific place and time that it was fascinating. And she told it not from the perspective of a celebrity of the time - a king, a duchess or a famous knight, but from the perspective of one of the least discussed types of person who existed at that time - a prostitute. It was a time when a prostitute evidently had a more institutional, integral and accepted role in society so she was a perfect observer, but wasn't really part of the history that was being made all around her.

The mystery itself was secondary to the characters and the plot was at its best when it was introducing or explaining one of the characters or a specific event that we know as History, but was just a part of any given day then.

Ms. May's narration is often too tremulous and old-fashioned for me. But I thought she did a wonderful job, especially as Magdalene.

An Extremely Unique Mystery

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Very interesting premise. Unfortunately, the author overuses phrases...if I hear the word "whore" one more time, I think I'll scream. >.<

Interesting premise

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What made the experience of listening to A Mortal Bane the most enjoyable?

I have enjoyed reading other Roberta Gellis novels; she researches the time and period well, puts in a great many details to make the story come alive. One gets attatched to Gellis characters. Nadia May reads well and adds further dimension to the story. My hope is that more Roberta Gellis books are added to the audible library and that Nadia May is available to narrate them.

Excellent Entertainment into another time

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I liked the eclectic cast of characters in this book. The leads were strong and versatile in their actions in each situation. Not a true thriller novel but entertaining all the same.

Different than the others.

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Overall, the story was good. Parts dragged and parts went into more detail than I cared for while other parts skipped on details. My biggest complaint was the reader. She read fine and had an English accent which makes sense for the characters. The problem was all the characters sounded the same. Without the visual clues one would have on the written page, one relies on the reader to provide the clues. The were too many points in the story that were making no sense for the last known character to be saying or doing what was being read. Once it became clear who the correct character was, I often needed to rewind to listen in the correct context. By the end of the book I was better as recognizing the characters change so have gotten another to follow the continuing story of Magdalen la Batarde.

Good medieval mystery

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Great narration, I liked it until I could no longer keep all of the peripheral plots and players straight. I liked the main characters very much.

Got lost in the Religious/Political intrigue

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This is a great listen. The characters are well developed and the plot is interesting and not twisted. Nadia May does a terrific job with the voices.

Very Good

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