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Title: The Jefferson Allegiance

Author: Bob Mayer

Narrator: Steven Cooper

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10 hrs and 13 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-23-11

Publisher: Robert J Mayer

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 44 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

The Jefferson Allegiance: #2 nationally nest-selling eBook.

NY Times best-selling author Bob Mayer. Over 4 million books sold.

The 4th of July 1826. As Thomas Jefferson lies dying, he gives his part of his Jefferson Cipher to Edgar Allen Poe, with instructions to take the disks to West Point. In Massachusetts, John Adams entrusts his part of the Cipher to Colonel Thayer, the superintendent of the Military Academy. As Thayer rides away, Adams utters his final words: "Thomas Jefferson survives."

In the present, Green Beret Paul Ducharme has been recalled from Afghanistan after the "accidental' death of his best friend, the son of one of the Philosophers. While Ducharme is visiting his friend's gravesite in Arlington, an old man is executed by a member from the Society of Cincinnati know as the Surgeon, who is seeking to gather all the pieces of the cipher. In a nearby restaurant, former CIA and now Curator at Monticello, Evie Tolliver, waits anxiously for her mentor to arrive, but he's killed by the same assassin at the Zero Milestone. His heart and the Philosopher's head are displayed as a grisly message on top of the stone, echoing Jefferson's famous head-heart letter.

Ducharme and Tolliver, the unknowing heirs to become the next generation of caretakers of the Jefferson Allegiance, team up and must battle the Surgeon to assemble the Cipher and find the Jefferson Allegiance, a document that has kept the balance of power in the United States for over two centuries.

The story is a race back through history and the founding of the country.

This is the first book in a new series: The Presidential Thrillers, each novel based on a historical puzzle left behind by a President. The Kennedy Endeavor will be released in summer 2012.

The Facts

The Society of the Cincinnati was founded in May of 1783. A leading member was Alexander Hamilton, and the first President of the Society was George Washington. Thomas Jefferson was not allowed membership. The Society of the Cincinnati is the oldest continuous military society in North America. It has its current headquarters at the Anderson House in downtown Washington, D.C.

In 1802, President Thomas Jefferson, well known for his strong opposition to a standing army, established the United State Military Academy, the oldest Military Academy in North America. In 1819, Thomas Jefferson founded the University of Virginia, the first college in the United States to separate religion from education. It has its current headquarters in Philosophical Hall on Liberty Square in Philadelphia.

"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants."

Thomas Jefferson 1787.

Critic Reviews:

Praise for Bob Mayer: "Mayer had me hooked from the very first page." (Stephen Coonts)

"Exciting and authentic. Don't miss this one!" (W.E.B. Griffin)

"Fascinating, imaginative and nerve-wracking." (Kirkus Reviews)

Members Reviews:

Engaging and well-read

If you could sum up The Jefferson Allegiance in three words, what would they be?

Gripping, Intriguing, Suspenseful

Who was your favorite character and why?

The main character (Dusharm)

What about Steven Coopers performance did you like?

Each character's voice was uniquely different and the voices were consistent throughout the recording.

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Title: Oscar Wilde and a Death of No Importance

Author: Gyles Brandreth

Narrator: Bill Wallis

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins

Language: English

Release date: 11-09-11

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 31 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

London, 1889. Oscar Wilde, celebrated poet, wit, playwright, and raconteur is the literary sensation of his age. All Europe lies at his feet. Yet when he chances across the naked corpse of sixteen-year-old Billy Wood, posed by candlelight in a dark stifling attic room, he cannot ignore the brutal murder. With the help of fellow author Arthur Conan Doyle he sets out to solve the crime - but it is Wilde's unparalleled access to all degrees of late Victorian life, from society drawing rooms to the underclass, that will prove the decisive factor in their investigation of what turns out to be a series of brutal killings. Oscar Wilde anda Death of No Importance is a classic murder mystery in the tradition of Dorothy L. Sayers and Arthur Conan Doyle!

Members Reviews:

needs glue

I started listening with great expectations, based on the novel's inventive premise; this often sets me up to under-evaluate a book. I expected a clever mystery. It seems to be a clever recreation of a clever Oscar Wilde half-heartedly involved in a mystery that touched his historical life.

Although It's an imaginative portrait of Wilde and his London and Paris, it's a so-so mystery - And although the mystery is not the main point of this novel, Wilde playing Sherlock Holmes grated on me. The retrospective narration (of the story, not the audiobook) didn't mesh well with the mystery which in turn didn't mesh well with the excellent settings. It needed some literary glue to make strands work together.

Even Bill Wallis didn't make the listen lively.

I think some might love this series-- perhaps if I were more familliar with Wilde, I'd delight in his witticisms quoted in the context of a novel- however, I couldn't get engaged in the listen. I wouldn't download another installment, but I would download a bio of Wilde by this author.

Delicious Story of a Decadent Hedonist

In this delicious mystery, the flamboyant author Oscar Wilde and his friends (including the creator of Sherlock Holmes, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle) explore 1890s London in search of a murderer. Wilde's powers of observation hint that he is clearly the inspiration for Sherlock Holmes, and is perspicacity and wit pepper the book.

The story is littered with the quirky peculiarities of the 1890s culture, and stuffed with the gluttony of Wilde's endless train of Champagne, Pouilly Fuisse, Claret and oysters. When he's not solving the mystery, Wilde is having a good time or eating another course.

The narrator sounds a little too old and stuffy to make this book sing in audio format, unfortunately. Alan Cumming would have been perfect.

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Title: A Morbid Taste For Bones

Author: Ellis Peters

Narrator: Stephen Thorne

Format: Unabridged

Length: 7 hrs and 19 mins

Language: English

Release date: 10-06-11

Publisher: Hachette Audio UK

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 17 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

In 1137 the ambitious head of Shrewsbury Abbey has decided to acquire the remains of Saint Winifred for his Benedictine order. Brother Cadfael is part of the expedition sent to her final resting place in Wales, where they find the villagers passionately divided by the Benedictines' offer for the saint's relics.

Canny, wise and all too worldly, Cadfael isn't surprised when this taste for bones leads to bloody murder. The leading opponent to moving the grave has been shot dead with a mysterious arrow, and some say Winifred herself dealt the blow. Brother Cadfael knows that a carnal hand did the killings, but he doesn't know that his plan to unearth a murderer may dig up a case of love and justice, where the wages of sin may be scandal - or his own ruin.

Members Reviews:

A Morbid Taste For Bones

This is my first taste of Ellis Peters, and I have to say I'm enjoying it very much. It is an excellent story and the narrator, Stephen Thorne, gives a rich variety of voices to the characters.

The first of her Brother Cadfael murder mysteries, set in the 12th Century, is based on a true story of the removal of a saints relics from a Welsh village to the Benedictine Abbey at Shrewsbury. It might not be a strictly realistic representation of the period, but that doesnt matter in a novel of this style. It is easy and enjoyable to listen to, and I would recommend it without hesitation.

Cadfael at his best

What made the experience of listening to A Morbid Taste For Bones the most enjoyable?

The narration in this book is very good, I especially enjoyed the welsh accents, and the easy listening pace, which lulls you into comfort belying the action taking place.

What was one of the most memorable moments of A Morbid Taste For Bones?

The ecstatic trances of the good brother were very well written, especially seen from cadfael's point of view

Which character as performed by Stephen Thorne was your favourite?

Cadfael himself was the most memorable character in my opinion

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Who lies there?

Loved the tv show but.....

Probably the awful attempts Welsh accents in this that made it an unbearable listen will return

great story

I.prefer Derek Jacobi as a narrator but this was.also good. hope Audible stock all of Ellis Peters novels

nice ending nice wit nice humour.

Unusual plot told with wit and good humour. I wish the justice shown was real.

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Title: The Pride and the Anguish

Author: Douglas Reeman

Narrator: David Rintoul

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins

Language: English

Release date: 09-01-11

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 16 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

In November 1941, Lt Ralph Trewin, DSC arrives at Singapore as second-in-command of HMS Porcupine. To the shell-shocked Trewin, the gun boat and her five elderly consorts symbolise the ignorance and blind optimism he finds in Singapore.

Members Reviews:

Not for me...

Liked Unbroken quite a lot. This one I thought was similar, but it wasn't. Narrator did a fine job though...

A very good story

just as you would expect from a store teller as Douglas very good at his work

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Title: Emperor: The Death of Kings

Author: Conn Iggulden

Narrator: Alex Jennings

Format: Abridged

Length: 6 hrs and 1 min

Language: English

Release date: 09-01-11

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Limited

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

The ultimate Rome story.

The young Caesar must overcome enemies on land and at sea to become a battle-hardened leader in the spectacular new novel from the bestselling author of The Gates of Rome.

Forced to flee Rome, Julius Caesar is serving on board a war galley in the dangerous waters of the Mediterranean and rapidly gaining a fearsome reputation. But no sooner has he had a memorable victory than his ship is captured by pirates and he is held to ransom.

Abandoned on the north African coast after hard months of captivity, he begins to gather a group of recruits that he will eventually forge into a unit powerful enough to gain vengeance on his captors and to suppress a new uprising in Greece.

Returning to Rome as a hero and as an increasingly dangerous problem for his enemies Caesar is reunited with his boyhood companion Brutus. But soon the friends are called upon to fight as they have never fought before, when a new crisis threatens to overwhelm the city in the form of a rebellious gladiator named Spartacus

Members Reviews:

Four Stars

Makes history come alive. Can't wait to read the next volume in the series......even though it's embellished.

Wonderful. Amazing. Fun and Exciting.

I don't usually leave reviews, but when I saw this great book series only had 3-stars I couldn't just pass it by. It was not just good, it was awesome and fun and pulled you in for hours at a time. Hard to put down. Exciting and really made you feel like you were living in Roman times, what it must have been like. I so much enjoyed the entire 4-book series that I have sold my paperback versions and bought hardcover books to keep displayed on my book shelf. I do not have a large book collection, very few I keep around for future re-reading but some of them include Name of the Wind (Patric Rothfus), The Way of Kings (Brandon Sanderson), Game of Thrones (Martin), and Conqueror (Conn Igulden) - wonderful and similar writting style to Emperor but I liked the Conqueror series even better!

Great pace, drama and character developments

For those who are relatively unfamiliar with Roman history and characters.. This series has been great in defining the story of Julius Caeser and the characters around him in a thrilling drama. I personally prefer some fiction to make the stories more sticky!

Fast moving read and page turner

Not a dry or boring moment. Easy to pick up as it called to learn what happens next. Though a novel, it is fascinating to sense the reality it is based on. I just ordered book 3 in the series. Gods, what it must have been like!

Might have under rated it. Sorry

Its really good. But i cant give it 4 or 5 starts just because its not as good as the other conn igguldom serieses ive read. Conqueror or genghis series is the best. War of roses is nearly as good.

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Title: Bye Bye, Baby

Author: Max Allan Collins

Narrator: Dan John Miller

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 40 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-16-11

Publisher: Brilliance Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 53 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

Marilyn Monroe, the ultimate goddess of the silver screen, is at the peak of her popularity, internationally famous, universally admired by women and desired by men. But shes also famously insecure and temperamental and is being pilloried in the press for delaying the production of Somethings Got to Give. When the head of Twentieth Century Fox threatens to cancel her contract, Monroe hires PI to the stars Nathan Heller to tap her phones and record calls that might affect legal action.

Less than three months later, Monroe is dead from an overdose and, officially, a suicide. But Heller isnt buying it. He knows that in the weeks before, the star was anything but suicidal. He knows, too, about her affair with JFK, about the secret connections between the Kennedys and the Mob and about Bobby Kennedys blood feud with Jimmy Hoffa. In short, Heller knows too much to accept this bum rap on a beautiful, gifted woman.

So he investigates, though his efforts might enrage some very famous, very powerful, very dangerous people. But they cant keep Heller from finding out the astounding truth behind Marilyn Monroes untimely demise.

Members Reviews:

Outstanding narration.

Good story and of particular interest to those of us who grew up in the time depicted. What made the book a fantastic listen was the narrator. His characterization of the voices was outstanding. Definitely a book to listen to more than once!

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Title: The Calling of the Grave

Author: Simon Beckett

Narrator: Jonathan Keeble

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 54 mins

Language: English

Release date: 05-18-11

Publisher: Random House AudioBooks

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 56 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

At first glance it could have been anything a stone, a knotted root until you looked more closely. Thrusting out of the wet earth, its bones visible through rags of flesh, was a decomposing handIt was eight years ago that they found the body buried on the moor. They were certain that this was one of psychotic rapist and multiple murderer Jerome Monks teenage victims. Which left just two more bodies to find? But the ill-conceived search ended badly. And with Monk safely behind bars, the momentum faltered. For forensics expert David Hunter, and those others who were part of the recovery team, life moved on. And the dead were left undisturbed.

Now, though, a nightmare scenario unfurls. Monk has escaped and seems to be targeting anyone involved in that original ill-fated operation. Lured back to the moors by a desperate call for help, Hunter begins to realise that neither the events unfolding now nor those of eight years ago are quite what they seem. And as the maniacs violent trail edges ever closer, the past is suddenly anything but dead and buried

Members Reviews:

A Course in Forensics

This is not Simon Beckett's first novel centered around forensic anthropology, but it is the first available on Audible. The plot--the search for a corpse believed to be a victim of an imprisoned serial killer--keeps twisting as little can be taken for the truth.

Oh Dear

The readers performance does much to salvage this book. The plot however is overfilled with ridiculous contrivances and hackneyed plot devices. I spent too much time to tutting and rolling my eyes during this one.

The good doctor gets pulled in and pulls us along

If you could sum up The Calling of the Grave in three words, what would they be?

Linear, effective momentum

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

It was interesting how effective it was to have a protagonist (Dr. David Hunter) who's essentially passive as a character----or who at least is an obvious vehicle for the reader to get pulled along into the story. He gets pulled into the whole "Where are the bodies of the dead missing girls and the guy who killed them?" saga, allowing himself to be available to several other characters with more active personas. You would think this would make him a boring or contemptible character, but while Dr. Hunter's not the most wildly exciting person on his own, his amenableness to enter exciting situations brings us interest and he never comes off as totally clueless.

Also, although the story itself was quite linear and simple-- agreeable forensic doctor gets pulled into potentially dangerous amateur sleuthing, with increasingly perilous encounters--the author made different choices for several of the characters than I would have expected. I liked that. There were several notable surprises related to both minor and major characters, some life-altering and shocking, others simply a matter of the character's motivations or choices being different than I half-consciously assumed based on their familiar character "type" when first introduced to us.

What does Jonathan Keeble bring to the story that you wouldnt experience if you just read the book?

I bought this audiobook specifically because I wanted more mysteries narrated by Keeble. He's really good for this genre.

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Title: A Ship Must Die

Author: Douglas Reeman

Narrator: David Rintoul

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 14 mins

Language: English

Release date: 05-10-11

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 37 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

January, 1944. When the British light cruiser Andromeda arrives at Williamstown naval dockyard to be handed over to the Royal Australian Navy, she is already a legend - having earned her young captain, Richard Blake, the Victoria Cross in her last victory against overwhelming odds in the Mediterranean.

Blake has grown to love Andromeda, so has few regrets when he is unexpectedly told to retain his command with a British and Australian ships company. At this crucial time of the war, with the Allies advancing on almost every front, comes the startling news that a heavily armed German raider is at large in the Indian Ocean, stalking supply ships and destroying any unescorted vessel.

As the toll of lives and ships mounts, Blake is ordered to seek out and destroy the raider - the ship which must die.

Members Reviews:

SOAP OPERA

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

I WAS LOOKING FOR ADVENTURE.LIKE MANY OF HIS OTHER BOOKS IT IS MORE SOAP OPERA.I HAVE TRIED A FEW AS I AM DISABLED AUDIO BOOKS ARE GREAT.BUT THIS IS MY LAST WITH THIS AUTHOR..SAME AS ANOTHER AUTHOR SAME PERSON

What could Douglas Reeman have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

MORE ACTIO .LESS SOAP

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

OK

You didnt love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

VERY FEW

A Ship Must Die

For some obscure reason I have been an avid reader/listener of both The Douglas Reeman and Alexander Kent series of books - I don'think I have missed any of them. I say obscure reason because they always seem to follow the same pattern which includes the "love interest" for the main character. However, the plot here is as always very well researched and the book offers the normal, enjoyable if slightly predictable escapism. I would not, however, want this personal review to be construed as criticism in any way. If it were, I would not keep returning for more of the same!

Having only recently converted to Audible I am absolutely very pleased to have found a new "reading" experience. The quality is exceptional and David Rintoul's narration is first class.

I listen to audio books while I am working and I am delighted to be able to recommend audible to any potential listener.

Good action.

Excellent narration once again. Good story line with plenty of action sequences. Well worth reading.

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Title: World's Greatest Sleuth!

Subtitle: A Holmes on the Range Mystery

Author: Steve Hockensmith

Narrator: William Dufris

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 31 mins

Language: English

Release date: 01-18-11

Publisher: Tantor Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 96 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

In 1893, the Amlingmeyer boys venture forth from the west in response to a summons from Otto's ("Big Red") publisher - they are to come to Chicago immediately, to the World's Columbian Exposition, and compete with some of the most famous detectives in the world. Set to coincide with the closing days of the first World's Fair and the publication of the story revealing the death of Sherlock Holmes, Gustav ("Old Red") will be competing for the title of World's Greatest Sleuth!

Hating train travel and cities, the real draw is the chance to meet up again with the intriguing and elusive Diana Corvus. But the competition has barely begun before there is a murder in "the White City" - the organizer of the contest is discovered face down in the Mammoth Cheese from Canada - and from there, the game is really afoot.

Critic Reviews:

"Hockensmith has delivered a fine addition to his Holmes on the Range series.... This should satisfy historical mystery readers who enjoy a tale full of clues leavened with humor." (Library Journal)

Members Reviews:

Enjoyable romp through the white city

With this novel S.H. has gotten the series back "on track". I think I could listen to Mr. Dufris read names from a phone book, and his voice has the right touch of humor to really bring the author's story to life. Well done!

Fun characters and excellent narrator

I enjoy the Holmes on the Range series. If you have never read the series start with the first book. Big Red and Old Red are wonderful characters and the narrator William Dufris does a fantastic job of bringing them to life. I laugh out loud when I listen to this series. If you prefer serious mysteries with wholly realistic characters then these books may not be for you but if you enjoy fun and outlandish characters you will like this series set in the old west.

Absolutely loved this series

Negative reviews seem to want a one size fits all series. This series is unique, and wonderful. Plot and narration. I can't wait for another to be written.

Can do no wrong?

What did you love best about World's Greatest Sleuth!?

The characters and the writing

Who was your favorite character and why?

None

What does William Dufris bring to the story that you wouldnt experience if you just read the book?

Charismatic voice. He makes the book!

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

They already have it from the title of a previous book - Holmes on the Range, Chicago style.

Any additional comments?

Love these books!

Not recommended

What would have made World's Greatest Sleuth! better?

Plot was so-so. Interesting background on the Chicago World's Fair. DROP the "good ole cowboy" accent for the narrating character. It became very annoying and I had to force myself to finish the book. A book has to be pretty awful for me not to finish it!

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Title: Storm Warning

Author: Jack Higgins

Narrator: Michael Page

Format: Unabridged

Length: 8 hrs and 31 mins

Language: English

Release date: 01-15-11

Publisher: Brilliance Audio

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 11 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

Its August 1944 and as the Allied forces gain momentum in Europe, a group of loyal German expatriates trapped in Brazil hatch a desperate plan to return to the Motherland. Twenty-seven of them crowd aboard a 19th century, three-mast schooner, the Deutschland, in a desperate journey to return home. They must cross 5,000 miles of rough sea, and slip past both the American and British navies.

A captured U-boat ace, a female American doctor caught up in the nightmare, a veteran gun boat commander, and a rear admiral determined to get back into the action. Allies and enemies, men and women, the hunters and the haunted - all drawn inescapably into the eye of the storm.

Critic Reviews:

"The waves crash across the decks so wildly you will find yourself sinking into your armchair for protection. (Philadelphia Bulletin)

Members Reviews:

Honor

A damn good nautical story about war and the longing for home. And honor on both sides of the conflict