Bristol House

By: Beverly Swerling

Narrated by: James Langton, Kristen Colson, Kristen Sieh

In the tradition of Kate Mosse, a swiftly-paced mystery that stretches from modern London to Tudor England

In modern-day London, architectural historian and recovering alcoholic Annie Kendall hopes to turn her life around and restart her career by locating several long-missing pieces of ancient Judaica. Geoff Harris, an investigative reporter, is soon drawn into her quest, both by romantic interest and suspicions about the head of the Shalom Foundation, the organization sponsoring her work. He's also a dead ringer for the ghost of a monk Annie believes she has seen at the flat she is subletting in Bristol House.

In 1535, Tudor London is a very different city, one in which monks are being executed by Henry VIII and Jews are banished. In this treacherous environment of religious persecution, Dom Justin, a Carthusian monk, and a goldsmith known as the Jew of Holborn must navigate a shadowy world of intrigue involving Thomas Cromwell, Jewish treasure, and sexual secrets. Their struggles shed light on the mysteries Annie and Geoff aim to puzzle out - at their own peril.

This riveting dual-period narrative seamlessly blends a haunting supernatural thriller with vivid historical fiction. Beverly Swerling, widely acclaimed for her City of Dreams series, delivers a bewitching and epic story of a historian and a monk, half a millennium apart, whose destinies are on a collision course.

©2013 Beverly Swerling (P)2013 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"An intricately woven plot with voices from the past give Swerling’s latest historical thriller an otherworldly aura." (Kirkus Reviews)

"Swerling adds a paranormal dimension to her latest novel, interweaving narratives set in contemporary and Tudor London.... Elements of romance, religious mythology, cultism, and the supernatural abound as this genre-blending thriller stretches back and forth through time to a suitably dramatic denouement." (Booklist)

Kristen Sieh and a very rich tapestry woven here.

Would you listen to Bristol House again? Why?

Absolutely! Catholics, Jews, Bletchley, Cryptography, King Henry the 8th, Nazis, Cromwell, Templar Treasures, Ghosts, Israeli Politics, Love Stories and Red Heels? Talk about a very full story line. Something for everyone here. I fell in love with this book and have listened to multiple chapters over again.

What other book might you compare Bristol House to and why?

This has coded spy moments worthy of Robert Littell's the Amateur, Ancient religious cymbal-ism worthy of the Davinci Code and Kristen Sieh doing multiple accents beautifully like Glittering Court. Very impressive.

Have you listened to any of the narrators’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Kristen Sieh is probably my favorite narrator. She is excellent in everything. I love her accents.

Sadly, I wish I'd liked it

What disappointed you about Bristol House?

I never quite connected with the female Indiana Jones/Robert Langdon/Benjamin Franklin Glass character who didn't have the background of those three. Even so, she still managed to figure out all the unbelievably impossible clues, including how to decode "aaaaaa..." using Hebrew, English, left to right, no right to left, every 5th word, leave out the vowels, etc. but never figured out why she was picked for such a mission.Don't worry about the plot. You'll never figure out who is doing what and why. It's all revealed in the last chapter anyway.

What do you think your next listen will be?

Islands of Profit in a Sea of Red Ink

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

Decent reading of the characters.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

I was disappointed in the story. I loved City of Dreams (the book not the audio book). Maybe too much pressure to crank out a book every year or so to write another City of Dreams?