Flashman and the Angel of the Lord

I can't get enough of these. The books are very funny the history is spot on and the narration is sublime. Please ask Timothy West to record them all..

Superb, funny, wonderfully written and best of all Timothy West superb reading of it. Of all the talking books I listen too which is many he is without a doubt the master of the art reading a book and a joy to listen to.

Timothy West is wonderful again as the reprehensible but impossible not to admire Flashman, lovely balanced reading - almost feels dramatised. I only withhold the fifth star because I didn't find this title quite as engaging as "the great game", but much of that may be down to me being more interested in the historical context of that title. Recommended.

A tricky one, this. As a long-time fan of the Flashman series, I was a little confused by the blurb of the Angel Of The Lord, referring to Flashman's exploits in both South Africa and the United States and I wondered where this fitted in to the established storyline.

However, McDonald Fraser's skill in writing kicks off from the beginning, explaining just how Flashman gets into this particular pickle he's in this time - always the best part of the books and the narration only makes it better. A wonderful performance that is easily worth downloading the entire thing for. Must say though, I never expected Spring to have a Lancashire accent.

That said though, despite a good start, the second half is a very lacklustre read/listen. The narration is still top notch, but the story drags and becomes morose, and the charm that the Flashman books always have seems to be leeched out of the book to my immense disappointment. It became a chore to listen to the second half, and it seems to do no more than set up the next book in the series - that which McDonald Fraser failed to finish before cancer claimed him. A disappointing ending to be sure, but it's worth it for the first part in particular.