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The Poison Bed

'Gone Girl meets The Miniaturist'

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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

 Crime Thrillers Historical Historical Fiction Mystery Renaissance Thriller & Suspense Women's Fiction Fiction Crime Murder Marriage

Critic reviews

Engaging, vivid and revelling in historical detail, this thriller delves into a notorious murder. The reversal comes in a double blow, the first of which is so cunningly done I found myself pausing, frowning and riffling back through the pages to confirm that I had, indeed, been thoroughly stitched up
A twisting psychological thriller based on a real Jacobean murder. Unputdownable
A gripping historical thriller. Think Gone Girl with bodices. Brilliant
A tale of intrigue and ambition, this is a rich and fascinating book (ONE OF THE BEST RECENT CRIME NOVELS)
A gripping page-turner that will have you awake long into the night. Ingenious
An intoxicating blend of intrigue, seduction, witchcraft and murder. The Poison Bed is beautifully told and impossible to put down (Karen Perry)
An electrifying, brilliantly executed thriller
Gripping and fascinating. Fremantle is a master
Who is to blame? And will they get away with it? A rollicking read
Immaculately detailed and atmospheric, this Jacobean mystery borrows from both the revenge tragedies and contemporary noir thriller to manipulate the reader. It is dark, clever and compulsive (Elizabeth Buchan)
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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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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Absolutely brilliant book. Not at all what I would usually listen to but it had very good reviews so I thought I would give it a try. Lots of twists and turns, not at all predictable. Narration was superb.

Wow

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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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