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Hawksmoor

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Hawksmoor

By: Peter Ackroyd
Narrated by: Sir Derek Jacobi
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About this listen

Peter Ackroyd's Hawksmoor was first published in 1985. Alternating between the eighteenth century, when Nicholas Dyer, assistant to Christopher Wren, builds seven London churches that house a terrible secret, and the 1980s, when London detective Nicholas Hawksmoor is investigating a series of gruesome murders on the sight of certain old churches, Hawksmoor is a brilliant tale of darkness and shadow.

©2014 Audible, Inc.; 2002 Peter Ackroyd Historical Fiction

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Brilliantly written by Peter Ackroyd and brilliantly performed by Derek Jacobi. Fictional but with some grounding in facts and rumours around the 'devils architect', Nicholas Hawksmoor. The streets of London are bought to life by Ackroyd. Highly recommended

Excellent Peter Ackroyd fictional thriller

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Not a traditional murder mystery. The murders are just links that hold the two main characters together. I liked Derek Jacobi narration ( who wouldn't ) and found it very easy to distinguish the two main characters ( or should I say one character two time zones ) it's a book that makes you think and in that sense is a difficult book to fully understand. It has inspired me to visit the churches and walk the areas so vividly described. A beautifully written book which is always lovely listen to coupled with a fantastic orator.

Interesting and beautifully written

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One of the strangest and yet most compelling books I've listened to. About 45 minutes into this, I thought I would have to abandon it because the story seemed to be going nowhere. It was only the love of Sir Derek Jacobi's voice which kept me listening. And then I "got it". Well, sort of got it!. If you are expecting a conventional murder mystery, this is not it. The beauty of the book lays in the manipulation of words and images far more than it does the plot. I do not think I could read the print version of this, for me it only works because of Jacobi, I truly think he is the only actor who could narrate this. The speed, clarity and dexterity of his delivery is awesome. I shall listen to this one again, not for the story but for the comforting feeling of listening to well-written English prose read by one of the best actors ever.

Strangely compelling

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As murder mystery books go, this one is probably the most unusual one I have come across. It took a while to get into it and to understand the plot device - two sets of characters living in different time periods and involved/implicated in a series of murders which take place in the same set of London churches.

The churches were all designed by an architect, Nicholas Dyer, who is a contemporary of Sir Christopher Wren and Vanbrugh. Dyer appears to be a perfectly normal craftsman who designs unusual churches in London; but the reality is that both the design and construction of the churches form part of Dyer's heretical, Satanic beliefs and practices that hark back to London's dark and pagan past.

A modern-day investigator, Nicholas Hawksmoor, is involved in the cases of several murders which are connected to the very same churches and parallels between both time periods begin to emerge. Hawksmoor investigates in London's dark, inhospitable underbelly, trying to find the link between the murders and dealing with his own strange private life.

Derek Jacobi's narration was good but the story would have been easier to understand if he had managed to make the two time periods sound different from each other.

A challenging book, but stick with it. It's worth it.

A very different kind of historical 'thriller.'

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I first read this book well over twenty years ago and immediately identified with Peter Ackroyd’s vison of London as being a place with a unique arcane character. Living in London's East end (having moved down from up North) I was immediately struck by the curiously elegant Hawksmoor churches that stood out brilliantly against the decay and grime of the City's edge and I often wondered if there was something behind their strange otherness. This is beautifully addressed in this novel where the author tells us about the building of the churches and mixes historical facts with a fictional story of mystery, arch villainy and magic. Here the architect is Nicholas Dyer; a man on one hand is firmly rooted in reality and with a very human and petty sense a rivalry with Sir Christopher Wren. In contrast he harbours dark and murderous secrets and beliefs that belong in the world of paganism and devil worship. The historical story is interlaced with the tale of the modern day Nicholas Hawksmoor who is a detective investigating a series of murders centred on the Hawksmoor churches and seems to have a link with the erstwhile Mr Dyer. This is a book that is difficult to describe but for those who enjoy chilling, imaginative and innovative fiction it is a wonderfully atmospheric experience which will entice you to find out more about London’s incredible history.
I think on balance I enjoyed reading the book more than listening, but I really liked Derek Jacobi's performance and in particular his interpretation of Nicholas Dyer which very neatly avoided the obvious temptation to make him sound too much like a pantomime villain. As an aside, if you want an easier introduction into Peter Ackroyd’s fiction, I recommend Dan Leno and the Limehouse Golem and I think from that you could very easily develop an addiction to this very special author.

London as a place of darkness and enlightenment

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