Listen free for 30 days
-
The Unquiet Bones
- Narrated by: Steven Crossley
- Series: Hugh de Singleton, Surgeon Chronicles, Book 1
- Length: 8 hrs and 53 mins
- Categories: Literature & Fiction, Genre Fiction
People who bought this also bought...
-
The Indigo Ghosts
- A Gabriel Tavener Mystery, Book 3
- By: Alys Clare
- Narrated by: John Telfer
- Length: 9 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
October, 1604. Former ship's surgeon turned country physician Gabriel Taverner is surprised to receive an urgent summons from his old naval captain. Now docked in Plymouth harbour, having recently returned from the Caribbean, Captain Colt believes his ship is haunted by an evil spirit and has asked Gabriel to investigate. Dismissive of the crew's wild talk of mysterious blue-skinned ghosts, Gabriel is convinced there must be a rational explanation behind the mass hallucinations.
-
-
Up to her usual standard
- By Carol on 02-09-20
-
A Rustle of Silk
- By: Alys Clare
- Narrated by: Richard Attlee
- Length: 8 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
1603. Former ship's surgeon Gabriel Taverner is attempting to re-establish himself as a physician in rural Devon but it's not easy to gain the locals' trust and a series of disturbing incidents convinces him that at least one person does not welcome his presence. Called out to examine a partially decomposed body found beside the river, Gabriel discovers he has a personal connection to the dead man.
-
-
A Good Listen
- By A. L. Jones on 30-08-18
-
The Last Protector
- James Marwood & Cat Lovett, Book 4
- By: Andrew Taylor
- Narrated by: Leighton Pugh
- Length: 12 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Brother against brother. Father against son. Friends turned into enemies. No one in England wants a return to the bloody days of the Civil War. But Oliver Cromwell’s son, Richard, has abandoned his exile and slipped back into England. The consequences could be catastrophic. James Marwood, a traitor’s son turned government agent, is tasked with uncovering Cromwell’s motives. But his assignment is complicated by his friend - the regicide’s daughter, Cat Lovett - who knew the Cromwells as a child and who now seems to be hiding a secret of her own about the family.
-
-
Riveting historical fiction
- By Max on 07-04-20
-
The Angel's Mark
- By: S. W. Perry
- Narrated by: Kris Dyer
- Length: 14 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
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.
-
-
Excellent book
- By Kate on 28-10-18
-
The Cheapside Corpse
- Exploits of Thomas Chaloner, Book 10
- By: Susanna Gregory
- Narrated by: Gordon Griffin
- Length: 14 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
London in the spring of 1665 is a city full of fear. There is plague in the stews of St Giles, the Dutch fleet is preparing to invade, and a banking crisis threatens to leave Charles II's government with no means of paying for the nation's defence. Amid the tension, Thomas Chaloner is ordered to investigate the murder of Dick Wheler, one of the few goldsmith-bankers to have survived the losses that have driven others to bankruptcy - or worse.
-
-
Great fun as usual mixed with historical accuracy
- By Learning is fun! on 01-02-15
-
The Butcher of St Peter's
- By: Michael Jecks
- Narrated by: Michael Tudor Barnes
- Length: 12 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Exeter, 1323. A strange man is entering people’s houses at night, causing panic amongst householders. Although many had thought him harmless, now he seems to have committed murder. A man lies dead in his own home, slaughtered merely for trying to protect his children, and the folk of Exeter want this menace caught and hanged. Sir Baldwin de Furnshill suspects that the solution isn’t that simple.
-
-
The Butcher of St Peter's
- By john o connell on 19-04-20
-
The Indigo Ghosts
- A Gabriel Tavener Mystery, Book 3
- By: Alys Clare
- Narrated by: John Telfer
- Length: 9 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
October, 1604. Former ship's surgeon turned country physician Gabriel Taverner is surprised to receive an urgent summons from his old naval captain. Now docked in Plymouth harbour, having recently returned from the Caribbean, Captain Colt believes his ship is haunted by an evil spirit and has asked Gabriel to investigate. Dismissive of the crew's wild talk of mysterious blue-skinned ghosts, Gabriel is convinced there must be a rational explanation behind the mass hallucinations.
-
-
Up to her usual standard
- By Carol on 02-09-20
-
A Rustle of Silk
- By: Alys Clare
- Narrated by: Richard Attlee
- Length: 8 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
1603. Former ship's surgeon Gabriel Taverner is attempting to re-establish himself as a physician in rural Devon but it's not easy to gain the locals' trust and a series of disturbing incidents convinces him that at least one person does not welcome his presence. Called out to examine a partially decomposed body found beside the river, Gabriel discovers he has a personal connection to the dead man.
-
-
A Good Listen
- By A. L. Jones on 30-08-18
-
The Last Protector
- James Marwood & Cat Lovett, Book 4
- By: Andrew Taylor
- Narrated by: Leighton Pugh
- Length: 12 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Brother against brother. Father against son. Friends turned into enemies. No one in England wants a return to the bloody days of the Civil War. But Oliver Cromwell’s son, Richard, has abandoned his exile and slipped back into England. The consequences could be catastrophic. James Marwood, a traitor’s son turned government agent, is tasked with uncovering Cromwell’s motives. But his assignment is complicated by his friend - the regicide’s daughter, Cat Lovett - who knew the Cromwells as a child and who now seems to be hiding a secret of her own about the family.
-
-
Riveting historical fiction
- By Max on 07-04-20
-
The Angel's Mark
- By: S. W. Perry
- Narrated by: Kris Dyer
- Length: 14 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
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.
-
-
Excellent book
- By Kate on 28-10-18
-
The Cheapside Corpse
- Exploits of Thomas Chaloner, Book 10
- By: Susanna Gregory
- Narrated by: Gordon Griffin
- Length: 14 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
London in the spring of 1665 is a city full of fear. There is plague in the stews of St Giles, the Dutch fleet is preparing to invade, and a banking crisis threatens to leave Charles II's government with no means of paying for the nation's defence. Amid the tension, Thomas Chaloner is ordered to investigate the murder of Dick Wheler, one of the few goldsmith-bankers to have survived the losses that have driven others to bankruptcy - or worse.
-
-
Great fun as usual mixed with historical accuracy
- By Learning is fun! on 01-02-15
-
The Butcher of St Peter's
- By: Michael Jecks
- Narrated by: Michael Tudor Barnes
- Length: 12 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Exeter, 1323. A strange man is entering people’s houses at night, causing panic amongst householders. Although many had thought him harmless, now he seems to have committed murder. A man lies dead in his own home, slaughtered merely for trying to protect his children, and the folk of Exeter want this menace caught and hanged. Sir Baldwin de Furnshill suspects that the solution isn’t that simple.
-
-
The Butcher of St Peter's
- By john o connell on 19-04-20
-
The Seeker
- Damian Seeker 1
- By: S. G. MacLean
- Narrated by: Nicholas Camm
- Length: 10 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
London, 1654. Oliver Cromwell is at the height of his power and has declared himself Lord Protector. Yet he has many enemies at home and abroad. London is a complex web of spies and merchants, priests and soldiers, exiles and assassins. One of the web's most fearsome spiders is Damian Seeker, agent of the Lord Protector. No one knows where Seeker comes from, who his family is, or even his real name. All that is known of him for certain is that he is utterly loyal to Cromwell and that nothing can be long hidden from him.
-
-
A Dark-Cloaked Figure
- By Simon on 10-12-16
-
Cathedral of Bones
- Ela of Salisbury Medieval Mysteries, Book 1
- By: J. G. Lewis
- Narrated by: Madeleine Brolly
- Length: 8 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Salisbury, 1226. A young pregnant woman is found tangled in reeds in the river Avon, her identity a mystery. Grieving widow Ela Longespée is determined to succeed her husband as sheriff of Salisbury, and quickly takes charge of the investigation. She soon finds herself in the thick of a neighborhood scandal and a struggle to maintain her authority. With multiple suspects, can she identify the true killer?
-
The Harper's Quine
- Gil Cunningham Mysteries
- By: Pat McIntosh
- Narrated by: Andrew Watson
- Length: 8 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
At the May Day dancing at Glasgow Cross, Gil Cunningham sees not only the woman who is going to be murdered, but her murderer as well. Gil is a recently qualified lawyer whose family still expect him to enter the priesthood. When he finds the body of a young woman in the new building at Glasgow Cathedral he is asked to investigate, and identifies the corpse as the runaway wife of cruel, unpleasant nobleman John Semphill. With the help of Maistre Pierre, the French master-mason, Gil must ask questions and seek a murderer in the heart of the city.
-
-
An unusual 'detective' story set in medieval times
- By sams247 on 04-03-17
-
Heresy
- By: S. J. Parris
- Narrated by: Laurence Kennedy
- Length: 14 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Oxford, 1583. Giordano Bruno, a radical thinker fleeing the Inquisition, is sent undercover to Oxford to expose a Catholic conspiracy against Queen Elizabeth. But he has his own secret mission at the University, which must remain hidden at all costs. When a series of hideous murders are committed, Bruno is compelled to investigate. What he finds makes it brutally clear that the Tudor throne itself is at stake....
-
-
Good enjoyable lightweight read
- By S Price Sinclair on 08-02-15
-
The Dead of Winter
- Three Giordano Bruno Novellas
- By: S. J. Parris
- Narrated by: Daniel Philpott
- Length: 7 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Three gripping tales from number one best seller S. J. Parris. The Secret Dead: during the summer of 1566, a girl’s body is found within the walls of a Neapolitan monastery. Novice monk Giordano Bruno has a habit of asking difficult questions, but this time his investigations may lose him his place in the Dominican Order - or deliver him into the hands of the Inquisition. Also includes The Academy of Secrets and The Dead of Winter.
-
-
Evocative and a good story
- By Jonathan Coore on 16-01-21
-
The Ashes of London
- By: Andrew Taylor
- Narrated by: Leighton Pugh
- Length: 12 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
London, September 1666. The Great Fire rages through the city, consuming everything in its path. Even the impregnable cathedral of St. Paul's is engulfed in flames and reduced to ruins. Among the crowds watching its destruction is James Marwood, son of a disgraced printer and reluctant government informer. In the aftermath of the fire, a semi-mummified body is discovered in the ashes of St. Paul's, in a tomb that should have been empty. The man's body has been mutilated, and his thumbs have been tied behind his back.
-
-
Mystery and murder in 'the dunnest smoke of hell'
- By Rachel Redford on 27-04-16
-
Season of the Raven
- A Servant of the Crown Mystery, Book 1
- By: Denise Domning
- Narrated by: Gildart Jackson
- Length: 7 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It's 1194, and Sir Faucon de Ramis, the shire's newly appointed keeper of the pleas, must do his duty and make an official declaration of the cause of a miller's death. Saddled with a clerk who names Faucon his "penance", the shire's first crowner must thread the tangled relationships between the sheriff, the village of Priors Holston, and the priory that once ruled it. As a simple task takes a turn to the political, what seems obvious isn't, and what appears safe turns out to be more dangerous than he could imagine.
-
-
Good
- By Jennifer Chennell on 13-10-19
-
The Novice’s Tale
- A Dame Frevisse Mystery, Book 1
- By: Margaret Frazer
- Narrated by: Susan Duerden
- Length: 7 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the fair autumn of Our Lord's grace 1431, the nuns of England's St. Frideswide's prepare for the simply ceremonies in which the saintly novice Thomasine will take her holy vows. But their quiet lives of beauty and prayer are thrown into chaos by the merciless arrival of Lady Ermentrude Fenner and her retinue of lusty men, sinful women, and baying hounds. The hard-drinking dowager even keeps a pet monkey for her amusement. She demands wine, a feast.... And her niece, the angelic Thomasine.
-
-
really enjoyed this book
- By Jennifer Chennell on 25-03-20
-
The Merchant's Partner
- By: Michael Jecks
- Narrated by: Michael Tudor Barnes
- Length: 11 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When the mutilated body of midwife and healer Agatha Kyteler is discovered in a hedge one frozen wintry morning, it seems at first that a lack of clues will render the crime impossible to solve. Then a frightened local youth inexplicably flees his village, and a hue and cry is raised in his wake. Sir Baldwin Furnshill, once a Knight Templar, has doubts about the boy's guilt. He enlists his friend Simon Puttock, bailiff of Lydford Castle, in the hunt for a murderer.
-
-
Too much snow
- By John on 23-05-11
-
A Plague on Both Your Houses
- The First Chronicle of Matthew Bartholomew
- By: Susanna Gregory
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 13 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
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.
-
-
Just brilliant
- By Heidi Harper on 27-08-18
-
The Sanctuary Murders
- Chronicles of Matthew Bartholomew, Book 24
- By: Susanna Gregory
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 13 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 1360 Edward III issues a call to arms, as sporadic attacks by the French threaten to turn into a full-blown invasion. In Cambridge, fear of the enemy is magnified by the belief that foreign agents are lurking in the area. Tension runs ever higher as rumours and ignorance fan the flames of suspicion amid preparations for war. And then the first murder occurs - of a French scholar living in the town.
-
-
The best yet
- By Kate on 15-08-19
-
The Canning Town Murder
- By: Mike Hollow
- Narrated by: Simon Mattacks
- Length: 8 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
September 1940. As the Blitz takes its nightly toll on London and Hitler prepares his invasion fleet just across the Channel in occupied France, Britain is full of talk about enemy agents. Suspicion is at an all-time high, and no one is sure who can be trusted. In Canning Town, rescue workers are unsettled when they return to a damaged street and discover a body that shouldn’t be there. When closer examination of the corpse reveals death by strangling, Detective Inspector John Jago is called upon to investigate.
Summary
First in the medieval whodunnit series set in Bampton, Oxfordshire, during the plague years and featuring a newly qualified surgeon
Hugh of Singleton, fourth son of a minor knight, has been educated as a clerk, usually a prelude to taking holy orders. However, feeling no certain calling despite a lively faith, he turns to the profession of surgeon, training in Paris and then hanging out his sign in Oxford.
A local lord asks him to track the killer of a young woman whose bones have been found in the castle cesspit. She is identified as the impetuous missing daughter of a local blacksmith, and her young man, whom she had provoked very publicly, is in due course arrested and sentenced at the Oxford assizes.
From there the tale unfolds, with graphic medical procedures, droll medieval wit, misdirection, ambition, romantic distractions, and a consistent underlying Christian compassion.
More from the same
What listeners say about The Unquiet Bones
Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Mr. Stephen Gould
- 20-09-20
Shardlake's Younger Brother, the surgeon
Anyone who admired the Shardlake series and especially Stephen Crossley's narration, as i did, will enjoy this book and hopefully the series, I have immediately downloaded book 2! The plot seemed slightly less edgy and aggressive than the Shardlake plots but was still enjoyable and Stephen Crossley was once again excellent.
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- james k s smith
- 21-03-20
well told interesting story
enjoyed the narrative, story well told thank you plot was good , love story well told too
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jennifer Chennell
- 18-03-20
pleasant book
Its a reasobable book, story quite good and goes at a reasonble pace. Not particularly taxing so great for when listening to while doing other things just not while operating machinery because the narrator is soporific.. not so terrible that you cant dtand listening to him but not a real story teller.
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- The Curator
- 15-01-20
Enjoyable
Surgeon turned Bailiff hunts killers. Rattled along decently and was a good solid plot. The main character didn’t grab me but but might grow on me in later books.
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Ian Smith
- 20-11-20
Entertaining and engaging
I enjoyed this audiobook. It was nicely performed, and the reading was done smoothly and at a nice pace. The story itself was entertaining, although not the most challenging of mysteries, pretty well-researched, with interesting characters, and a good first person narrative. I found Hugh to be an engaging character, an unenthusiastic and not exactly brilliant detective, a bit uncomfortable in many social situations, and a lonely romantic on the quiet. His fixation on food was amusing, and, in a time when famine was common and the range of food available was restricted, a nice touch. His religious faith was nicely included, and it came across as natural for someone brought up in 14th century England. The author had clearly done their research and wove the facts neatly into the story. The way it was written made it "feel" like an old form of English without making me work at following it.
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- pixiepaws
- 01-08-20
didn't always keep my attention
it was fine but there wasn't enough twists and turns for me to keep me on a knife edge.
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- cyndy foard
- 11-07-20
unquiet bones
loved it and a great storyline easy listening too looking forward to book number 2
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Sylvia Mackay
- 01-07-20
Excellent
Easy listening and you could easily pick up the story. Love the narrator who acts out all the characters.
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- AKowalczyk
- 05-01-20
Wonderful!!!
So glad to have found this series!! Very well written and Steven Crossley’s narration is superb! If you enjoy CJ Sansom’s Matthew Shardlake or Susanna Gregory’s Matthew Bartholomew- I’m sure you’ll enjoy this!!
14 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Chana Goanna
- 29-12-19
Thrilled to have found this series
It’s hard to find a book that combines interesting history, good writing, a great narrator, and an excellent mystery. This one is a winner in all four aspects. If you’re a fan of CJ Sansom’s Matthew Shardlake series, try this book. Surgery in the 14th century was a ghastly affair, and Starr provides enough grisly detail for interest while not overdoing it. Stephen Crossley of the Shardlake series narrates this one as well, and he’s wonderful as always. I listened to this in two sittings, and it kept me distracted and entertained while deep-cleaning my kitchen. I can’t think of a better recommendation than that!
9 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Gail N.
- 29-02-20
Enchanting medieval mystery
This book has much to enjoy: a bit of philosophy, a bit of theology, a bit of pleasure in nature, reflections on the human condition and several captivating mysteries. The characters are interesting and not at all stereotypical. The writing is first rate with quite a bit of wry humor and quite a bit of drama to enliven this medieval story. Above all, the narration is understated and relaxing, a perfect pairing. I look forward to enjoying the rest of this series.
6 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- george
- 19-06-20
Investigating Murder with an odd Twist.
Fellow Reader / Listeners - I suspended disbelief for the first of this series as the idea of a Surgeon being asked to investigate a death, was to the best of my understanding very unlikely, if only because of how low down the social order Surgeons were., (At the time, the title would likely have been Barber/ Surgeon although this isn't userd in the novels). I ended up reading / listening to the First 5 in this series as there are links from one to the next and a few common and crucial characters. This was skillfully done. However, there are increasingly obvious and almost ridiculous situational and social actions that do not ring true. Without revealing plot lines as these are for others to discover: I cannot believe that a lowly Barber / Surgeon would defy a Knight and escape sanction I will not believe that a lowly Barber/ Surgeon would defy his all powerful Lord, putting his own future at risk, for a scullery maid or that a A woman in Medieval England would be given the choice to reject a Knight Suitor in favour of a Barber Surgeon by her upwardly mobile businessman Father. I wont be reading the rest in the series.
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Paul M. Stackhouse
- 23-01-20
Intriguing and Interesting
What a multi-faceted character Starr has created! Looking forward to "reading" the next books in the series. Highly recommended.
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall

- Pro Bachlor
- 03-03-20
Heart warming
Good guys win, bad guys die. just as it should be. Nice narration. Relaxing listening
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Susan
- 05-07-20
Needs way more suspense
Nice, un-offensive story, but there is no character development or suspense, The narrator speaks in a monotone for the entire time, which is how the character comes off. Other than one red herring the story proceeds predictably and I could see the ending coming way ahead of time. The character never really has any problems to overcome, nor ever gets into danger or trouble. So there is no suspense to keep you turning pages.
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Amazon Customer
- 04-02-20
Light but enjoyable
Quite an easy and unchallenging read but enjoyable. I may read more in this series.
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- barbara
- 22-01-21
Not one that will grip you
Have to admit i like a mystery that pulls you in and won’t let you go til you reach the end. This isn’t one of those. If you like a likable narration and a main character you want to read more about then this is for you. Its a story you can pick up and put down but still want. To read to the end
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- dr
- 16-01-21
Worthwhile
The story is a bit plodding. However, in many ways the details add rather than detract from the novel.