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The Poison Bed

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The Poison Bed

By: Elizabeth Fremantle
Narrated by: Ross Anderson, Perdita Weeks
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About this listen

Penguin presents the audiobook edition of The Poison Bed by E C Fremantle, read by Ross Anderson and Perdita Weeks.

A Marriage. A Murder. One of them did it. Which of them will die for it?

In the autumn of 1615 scandal rocks the Jacobean court when a celebrated couple are imprisoned on suspicion of murder. She is young, captivating and from a notorious family. He is one of the richest and most powerful men in the kingdom.

Some believe she is innocent; others think her wicked or insane. He claims no knowledge of the murder. The king suspects them both, though it is his secret at stake.

Who is telling the truth? Who has the most to lose? And who is willing to commit murder?


'A Jacobean GONE GIRL Dark and deeply satisfying, THE POISON BED is a tale of monstrous intrigue and murder' M J Carter

'Deliciously sinister. A toxic blend of glamour, intrigue and ambition' Andrew Taylor

'A thoroughly compelling tale of sexually-charged intrigue and murder. Once started, impossible to put down' Minette Walters

©2018 E C Fremantle (P)2018 Penguin Audio Historical Historical Fiction Mystery Renaissance Thriller & Suspense Fiction Crime Murder Marriage

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All stars
Most relevant  
Brilliantly told story with a neat twist. Performances convincing and made me want to keep listening.

Amazing story based in fact

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Had I not waited so long to listen to this, I would have returned it unfinished. It was hard work, and would have been better had it been maybe a third shorter. It was, in the end, an interesting take on the trials, imprisonment and eventual pardon of Robert Carr and Frances Howard; interesting but not gripping.

The narration was patchy too. Ross Anderson made a good fist of Robert Carr, but Perdita Weeks' performance was disappointing, for so clear a reader (her reading of 'Circe' was perfection). It was really annoying to have to replay bits with the volume turned up. I stopped doing that eventually. it made no difference to the story.

What a slog

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Not the usual thing I would listen to, but I enjoyed Perdita Weeks narration of Circe so much I thought I'd give another of her performances a go, and I wasn't dissapointed. An enjoyable listen.

Enjoyable

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The book was well written but the story some how trailed off and I felt Francis’ character was somewhat hard to believe.
With little background into why she was the way that she was.

Started great ended okay!

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Listenned all the way through, but it was a struggle, just to see where it was going. Rather too slow for me.

Not gripped by this book

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a beautiful story of love and deception. I enjoyed every part of the store. well written and had me hooked all throughout.

a lovely read.

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Excellent tale of historical intrigue, romance, politics and murder. Manipulation is to the fore in making this an excellent read / listen. Highly recommended.

Superb

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Very good tale of treachery and power lust. Beautifully written characters and lovely dialogue

Narrating is vastly different from reading out loud. One is easy, the other is supremely difficult. Ross Anderson can read out loud. His delivery is monotonous, colourless and ultimately very boring to listen to. Perdita Weeks has a very good voice, full of colour and subtle nuance. Her internal volume control needs some readjustment, though. She veers wildly, from a whisper, to a sudden bellow. This happens continually, from sentence to sentence and within sentences. It has quite a significant effect on the listeners ability to actually hear what she is saying. This is important, but easily fixed by simple microphone technique.

Well worth a credit.

Good Old Fashioned Treachery

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fab book, good twist, great character descriptions and personalities, well read, defo recommend this read

Poison Bed

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Finally I'm not sure I loved this book, but I did appreciate it. Little known historical characters find themselves in the Tower of London. A husband in one room and the wife in another. Him and Her. The story of how they got their unfolding from their two different perspectives. Who is doing what to whom? The author spins out this tale with a deftness akin to a stealthy spider. Suffice to say I liked it enough to have just started another of her books.

Interesting and Impressive

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