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A Plague on Both Your Houses
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LONDON, 1590. Queen Elizabeth I's control over her kingdom is wavering. Amidst a tumultuous backdrop of Spanish plotters, Catholic heretics and foreign wars threatening the country's fragile stability, the body of a small boy is found in the City of London, with strange marks that no one can explain. When idealistic physician Nicholas Shelby finds another body displaying the same marks only days later, he becomes convinced that a killer is at work, preying on the weak and destitute of London.
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Francis Bacon is charged with investigating the murder of a fellow barrister at Gray's Inn. He recruits his unwanted protégé Thomas Clarady to do the tiresome legwork. The son of a privateer, Clarady will do anything to climb the Elizabethan social ladder. Bacon's powerful uncle, Lord Burghley, suspects Catholic conspirators of the crime, but other motives quickly emerge. Rival barristers contend for the murdered man's legal honors and wealthy clients. Highly-placed courtiers are implicated as the investigation reaches from Whitehall to the London streets. Bacon does the thinking; Clarady does the fencing. Everyone has something up his pinked and padded sleeve. Even the brilliant Francis Bacon is at a loss - and in danger - until he sees through the disguises of the season of Misrule.
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Summary
Matthew Bartholomew, unorthodox but effective physician to Michaelhouse college in medieval Cambridge, is as worried as anyone about the pestilence that is ravaging Europe and seems to be approaching England. But he is distracted by the sudden and inexplicable death of the Master of Michaelhouse - a death the University authorities do not want investigated.
But Matt is determined to get to the truth, leading him into a tangle of lies and intrigue that cause him to question the innocence of his closest friends - and even his family - just as the Black Death finally arrives.
A Plague on Both Your Houses is the book that introduced Matthew Bartholomew to the world.
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What members say
Average customer ratings
Overall
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4 out of 5 stars
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5 Stars103
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4 Stars67
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3 Stars30
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2 Stars12
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1 Stars9
Performance
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4 out of 5 stars
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5 Stars96
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4 Stars61
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3 Stars29
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2 Stars11
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1 Stars5
Story
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4 out of 5 stars
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5 Stars90
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4 Stars54
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3 Stars34
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2 Stars14
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1 Stars11
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Louis Hall
- 05-06-17
If I could give 3.5 I would. Entertaining enough
What three words best describe David Thorpe’s voice?
A little on the irritating side when acting the character voices.
Was A Plague on Both Your Houses worth the listening time?
Yes
Any additional comments?
No Shardlake but good enough
3 of 3 people found this review 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
- Heidi Harper
- 27-08-18
Just brilliant
I'm so surprised that this book has had so many negative reviews. The story was complex and gripping (I listened to it over a weekend) and the narration was superb, IMHO. The different voices for each character were great, especially Michael, and the twists and turns of the plot kept me enthralled. Fantastic stuff.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Heather
- 31-07-17
Cardboard characters & a dull whodunnit
I was desperate to finish some weeding in the garden, so persisted longer with this book than I might've otherwise. Had I been driving, I would have slept, so a safety warning here!
Some whodunnits are just plain dull and formulaic. Despite the historical setting, the use of disgusting period detail and the nature of the college rule books at the time, this is one of those. Part of the problem is the cardboard characters. They don't live and this is one of those dreary potboiler books in an endless series. Trouble is, the first book in such a series has to hook the reader to keep them reading. This fails, but at least I won't waste any more dosh on the rest of them!
The narrator does his best and gives a creditable performance of this dismal material.
If you want a truly ripping yarn set in the time of the Black Death and full of excellent characters and atmospheric historical detail, I suggest Connie Willis' novel 'The Doomesday Book'. Dunno whether her stuff is on Audible yet, but it should be!
4 of 5 people found this review 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
- Alison Marshall
- 15-08-17
The name is ?
A great but complicated story. It was my first audible book and I became hooked. However, at first I found it very difficult to sort out all the characters - when reading I can constantly flip back to check - not so easy when listening hands free. But just how many thousands of times does the name Bartholomew occur?!!
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- sara weeden
- 04-08-17
Too many characters
Perhaps because I am listening to the story rather than reading it, but I lost track of who is who and after a while I gave up caring
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Hathor
- 25-06-17
Not a great listen- the later books are better
If this book wasn’t for you, who do you think might enjoy it more?
I like Susanna Gregory's writing but the first couple of Mathew Bartholomew book suffer from weak characterisation and a poor narrator and the combination of the two is unfortunate. The good news is that the later books do improve and the narrater becomes slightly more bearable and are worth a credit but this, alas, isn't and I will be returning it.
What was most disappointing about Susanna Gregory’s story?
Having read all of Gregory's books the earlier books are definitely the weakest in the series, with poorly sketched characters, unrealistic dialogues and although the historical detail is interesting it isn't enough to keep the reader/listener engaged. As I have said above, the later books do get a lot better but this one, particularly with the terrible narration, is one to avoid.
Would you be willing to try another one of David Thorpe’s performances?
Unfortunately Thorpe is the assigned reader for the Bartholomew books so I can only hope he, or the publisher, take notice of listeners comments and change/adapt his narration because, honestly, I can't bear to hear some of his interpretations of the monks and in particular Michael. In answer to the questionable, seeing Thorpe's name on an audio book would put me off.
If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from A Plague on Both Your Houses?
Not really applicable - it was the first book written a long time ago and Gregory's writing has got better with time, so just take this as an early attempt, not really worth a credit unless you are want to hear how it all started or you are prepared to return it if you don't like it.
Any additional comments?
A different narrator would have made all the difference but we have what we have and it is good that the whole back catalogue is been made available.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Lee
- Aberdeenshire
- 06-06-17
Loved the hardbacks but...
Is there anything you would change about this book?
Just couldn't get into it. I've read the whole series and I wish I'd not listened to this. The characters just weren't as I imagined them. The narrator didn't do them justice. Brother Michael was just lost..really disappointing ..
Would you be willing to try another book from Susanna Gregory? Why or why not?
I've read them all so far but I've returned the ones I had lined up to listen to. Just couldn't get into the first one. Maybe another narrator and I might try again.
What three words best describe David Thorpe’s performance?
Poor, unrealistic, monotonous. Sadly not my cup of tea. First time I've heard him and he just doesn't do the book justice. Didn't hold my attention.
If this book were a film would you go see it?
i would probably as I really liked the hardbacks.
Any additional comments?
Don't be put off by my comments about the book as I did enjoy it when I read it just couldn't get into it with this narrator. Mathew Bartholomew will grow on you .... Give it a go :)
5 of 7 people found this review helpful
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- DeeJay
- 27-03-17
Couldn't Finish This Book. Don't waste your money!
Would you try another book written by Susanna Gregory or narrated by David Thorpe?
Susanna Gregory - Possibly
David Thorpe - No
Has A Plague on Both Your Houses put you off other books in this genre?
I couldn't finish this book so difficult to comment, but the genre is one I usually enjoy, so probably not. I thought having read numerous positive reviews on this series of books that I would enjoy it but it was ruined by the atrocious narration.
Would you be willing to try another one of David Thorpe’s performances?
Definitely Not. It wasn't read as smooth prose as books should, but as a list of separate sentences with long pauses between them. It therefore did not keep my interest & I was unable to get past the first few chapters. I tried a number of times to get into the story but couldn't. Going to request a credit refund.
If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from A Plague on Both Your Houses?
Can't comment - didn't listen to enough of the story
Any additional comments?
Doesn't Audible have a quality check in place to prevent books being ruined by the narrator.? An author invests time & effort into writing interesting books but then their work is totally spoilt by a rubbish narrator. Good narration is vital when listening to a book so I am surprised that this is allowed to happen.
13 of 19 people found this review 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
- Freda Adams
- 05-01-19
Supperb!!
I couldn't stop listening to this story, wanting to know what was going to happen next. Absolutely brilliant. Narrator was excellent, giving personalities to the different characters. Looking forward to book number 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
- Frankieboy
- 06-12-18
Medical who done it can't be beaten
Love this book excellent production great reading story line so good .Have started the second one now enjoying very much
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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
- Wilkie Collins
- 12-01-18
Great Intro to a new series
Love that audible has every book in this series. David Thrope does a great job bringing all the wonderful characters to life.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Susan
- 03-12-17
Couldn't finish it
I had read a Bartholomew novel from later in the series, so decided to read this one. I assume the author learned a lot about writing mysteries between this one and the later one. The mystery was boring; the characters very superficial, and the plague episodes were more of an interference than interesting.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Derk
- 26-04-17
review
Nice introduction to Bartholomew series. good story but at the end a bit too much plotting for my liking
4 of 5 people found this review helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
- Sylvane
- 27-10-17
I don't faultl the reader
I fault the director or producer. I noticed at least 3 instances when the wrong word was said, but it wasn't caught.
6 of 8 people found this review 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
- barbara
- 05-05-18
Good story
The plot might be a little too complicated but comes clear in the end. Great start to a promising series
1 of 1 people found this review 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
- Jan Robison
- 28-03-19
Loved the performance
Have always loved the books, now I love the audio! Will definitely binge the rest!
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Gail N.
- 20-07-18
Gross, grisly, and horrible
The main character in this book is a doctor who has to deal with a huge number of corpses over the course of the the story. Some are murder victims and some died from bubonic plague. Sometimes they are fresh and other times they have been rotting for days. The descriptions were really offensive, but what was much worse is that the author has him handling the corpses and then wiping his face with his hands. And sometimes he puts his unwashed hands on other people's faces. I am not making this up. Really I couldn't listen to the entire sordid story and I am sorry if this language offends anyone, but better you know what you are getting before you decide to try this one on.
3 of 8 people found this review helpful