Rotherweird cover art

Rotherweird

Rotherweird, Book 1

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Rotherweird

By: Andrew Caldecott
Narrated by: Kris Dyer
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About this listen

Rotherweird is a twisted, arcane murder-mystery with shades of Deborah Harkness, Hope Mirrlees and Ben Aaronovitch, Mervyn Peake and Edward Gorey at their disturbing best.

The town of Rotherweird stands alone - there are no guidebooks, despite the fascinating and diverse architectural styles cramming the narrow streets, the avant-garde science and offbeat customs. Cast adrift from the rest of England by Elizabeth I, Rotherweird's independence is subject to one disturbing condition: nobody, but nobody, studies the town or its history.

For beneath the enchanting surface lurks a secret so dark that it must never be rediscovered, still less reused.

But secrets have a way of leaking out.

Two inquisitive outsiders have arrived: Jonah Oblong, to teach modern history at Rotherweird School (nothing local and nothing before 1800), and the sinister billionaire Sir Veronal Slickstone, who has somehow got permission to renovate the town's long-derelict Manor House.

Slickstone and Oblong, though driven by conflicting motives, both strive to connect past and present until they and their allies are drawn into a race against time - and each other. The consequences will be lethal and apocalyptic.

Welcome to Rotherweird!

©2017 Andrew Caldecott (P)2017 WF Howes Ltd Historical Fiction Fiction Feel-Good Mind-bending Funny

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Critic reviews

"Intricate and crisp, witty and solemn: a book with special and dangerous properties." (Hilary Mantel)
"Baroque, Byzantine and beautiful - not to mention bold." (M. R. Carey)
All stars
Most relevant
A truly magical book. Full of inventiveness. I was sad when it ended. Heartily recommended.

Marvelous

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Who was your favorite character and why?

I liked quite a few of the characters. The female characters were nicely drawn, with Orelia Roc being my favourite followed by Vixen Valourhand. Of the male characters, perhaps Ferensen is the most likeable, followed by Fanguin. Gregorius Jones is the most intriguing.

What does Kris Dyer bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

I really loved the portrayal of the characters. Each character has a very recognisable voice, suited to the character. Delicious.

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I wasn't sure if I was going to like it after the first few lines. However, once I'd got into the story I found it fascinating. It made me laugh and there are moments of tension where I held my breath.

Any additional comments?

It's a book I've listened to several times over. There are a couple of small inconsistencies, for instance, the old injury that Salt has is said to be 6 months ago and then a short time afterwards, is said to have happened many years ago. I'm really looking forward to the next one in the trilogy to see if my predictions are right

Beautifully read historical fantasy

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A rather good tale that has blendend terrible crimes (that have occurred in a secret town) with all the usuals. There are goodies, baddies, humour, history, bizarre creatures, weird vehicles all mixed together in a kind of ' Lyra's Oxford' and 'Harry's Hogwarts'. Well worth a read. Be prepared to have your Lord of the Rings head on though as there are lots of characters and there forebears. A wonderful new world awaits you.

A mixture of Terry Pratchett and Phillip Pullman.

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Good story, brilliantly read (1,4x). Even pretty good Latin pronunciation. Lots of goodies for language and history nerds.

Inventive

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Had l been reading this as print form l may well have put the book down. The most able interpretation byKris Dyer meant l enjoyed a fascinating and intriguing tale. Strongly recommend to evreyone of all ages.

excellent tale excellent reading

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It has been a bit hard for me to follow these stories as I use them to listen to as I fall asleep, but I enjoy the narration and the story is excellent. Interesting and not too complicated that you need a degree in listening to understand it.

Interesting and a good listen

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the best array of names in anything I've read. very good performance. imaginative story very good

quirky. darkly comic.

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Wonderful trilogy (this being the four at book). Brilliantly woven story, with excellently drawn characters. It’s a terrific read with difficult themes. Do give it a go, you won’t be disappointed!

Brilliant

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well paced story, good character voices and we'll narrated. downloading next one ready. will be looking at other books from both author and narrator.

good narration and character voices

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It was the interesting plot and premise which made me keep going. But I would agree the characterisations were a little two dimensional and the prose was to superfluous for me in many places. A satisfying twist at the end was a good pay off, but the writing style did not suit my taste.

Interesting story

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