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  • Scarlet Widow

  • Beatrice Scarlet, Book 1
  • By: Graham Masterton
  • Narrated by: Emma Gregory
  • Length: 11 hrs and 38 mins
  • 4.1 out of 5 stars (90 ratings)
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Scarlet Widow cover art

Scarlet Widow

By: Graham Masterton
Narrated by: Emma Gregory
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Summary

Beatrice Scarlet is the apothecary's daughter. She can mix medicines to save lives - but she can't save the lives of her parents. An orphan at just sixteen, Beatrice marries and emigrates to America.

New Hampshire, 1756: In the farming community where Beatrice now lives, pigs are found dead with slices of looking-glass embedded in their mouths. According to scripture this is the work of Satan, but Beatrice suspects the hands of men. She must act quickly to unmask the killer - or become the next victim herself....

©2016 Graham Masterton (P)2016 W F Howes Ltd

Critic reviews

"A skilfully written and wonderfully unnerving thriller." ( Bookshelf Butterfly).
"Graham Masterton has perfected an eerie start that gets you intrigued right from the get go […] It's so fast-paced and never once misses a beat nor does it ever let-up on the speed." ( Published Moments)

What listeners say about Scarlet Widow

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Masterton gores the past.


Set in the 1750 in America, we are presented with Beatrice Scarlet the apothecary's daughter growing up in England and her earlier upbringing, this feels like the setup for a series of a new heroine and her adventures in the new world, this is a long setup for what is a crime story set in the past with Christian dominance of society and all kinds of ignorance dominating reality, making it vulnerable to the shenanigans of those who knew some of the powers of nature.

An interesting story, that has potential while being entertaining, but one must suspend disbelief, especially with anachronistic ideas and scientific knowledge. You must also remember who wrote it and that will let you know that some very unpleasant things will be described in detail including rape.

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Warning, contains gruesome detail and graphic rape

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

I would not recommend this book. I wish there had been a warning at the beginning about how much torture and murder was in it and the rape was very graphic. The writer was very gifted at creating such a very clear picture but I really didn't want those horrible images lodged so bluntly in my head.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

The author was really clever at bringing the novel to life, you could see the images he created very clearly as though you were watching a movie. It's an unusual and creative storyline, it's unlikely you would have read something identical before. It has many components including detective work, religion, unexpected outcomes in various places throughout the story (which I did appreciate because it was often in the smaller parts/details of the novel rather than the overall outcome of the storyline direction).

Which scene did you most enjoy?

I didn't enjoy the audiobook because it was too gory/violent/unpleasant and I really wished I had been warned of the content as I wouldn't have purchased it but in fairness to the author it was well written and the narrator read it well.

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

SUCH a great story with suspense throughout

What did you like most about Scarlet Widow?

I loved that it was set in the new colonial settlements in America. The language and historical detail made the story come to life.

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

What a lovely soft voice with great accent ability. Although, if I were Welsh I might think so :)

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes I wanted to. It was a 'can't put it down-er"

Any additional comments?

So different to Mastersons other novels, and it was such a refreshing difference.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A very different setting for a thriller

Would you consider the audio edition of Scarlet Widow to be better than the print version?

I don't know as I have never seen a print version

What was one of the most memorable moments of Scarlet Widow?

I do not want to answer this question for a thriller or it will spoil it for subsequent readers but there are numerous memorable moments, some for more gruesome reasons than others.

What about Emma Gregory’s performance did you like?

Emma has a nice voice to listen to which is always a bonus. Her ability to make each characters voice unique was good and I enjoyed her narration greatly.

Any additional comments?

This is a fabulous thriller, although it is a little gruesome in places as are many of this author's novels. At several points throughout the story I was positive I had predicted the outcome, but I have to admit, I hadn't got it right until very near the end.

An unusual setting in that it moves from England in the 1700's to America and maintains the historical references essential to the time. In fact the historical setting really adds to the story and makes it unique with the main character's personality very much being one sculpted from her life experiences during her childhood in England and then her life as a married woman in a small religious town in New Hampshire.

If you like thrillers but want something a little different then this could be a good listen for you.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Another Masterton Goodie

Time of new settlers in America when witchcraft was rife. A story of a young girl with knowledge of apothecary turns detective as unusual deaths begin to happen in her village. This was a good story as are all of Graham Mastertons. I'm not really into to female narrators as they can't do all the voices especially male but Emma Gregory really does this book justice. Listened to it all in one go. Recommend this book with supernatual overtones.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Listener beware.

I love Emma Gregory's voice and was looking for a new book narrated by her. This sounded interesting and, despite long chapters set in London which were just the introduction to the main body of the novel, I enjoyed it very much - right up to the appalling rape scene. The attack is described in graphic, anatomical terms, which was hard enough to listen to as 'entertainment', but I could not believe my ears when the victim was described as aroused despite also being described as terrified and in considerable pain. The whole episode struck me as nothing more than some cliched male fantasy of what rape is like for a woman, an impression borne out by the fact that no attempt was made to comment on the emotional after effects nor did the rape seem to serve any purpose of plot except that the woman is pregnant at the end of the book and unsure whether the rapist or her husband is the father. I listened to the end of the book but was disturbed enough by this horrible scene that I will not buy the next book in the series. I have read & listened to many, many crime fiction books, modern and classic and accept that violence is part and parcel of the genre but I cannot listen to yet another writer using rape as a sex scene intended only to titivate.

Emma Gregory only gets 4 stars here because, although her voice is as wonderful as ever to listen to, she does the worst Welsh accent I have ever heard!

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Gripping historical thriller

Beatrice's story is riveting from the outset and maintains the momentum to the very end.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Tedious

I found this dull and tedious. The narrator had limited expression, the story promised to be interesting but wasn't and unnecessarily graphic rape scene was the last straw. I'm really surprised they bothered to turn this into an audio book.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Utter Rubbish

This book was obviously not researched, so full of flaws.
The end was so predictable.
The first book I've listened to by this author and will be the last.
I would have returned it but had it to long before listening.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

One slight flaw !

The title rather gave it away. The story was tense and thrilling. Informative as well the narrator was wonderful and moved seamlessly around the characters.
I’m now going to book 2 - yep I’m hooked. Highly recommend

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