Death of a Scholar

The Twentieth Chronicle of Matthew Bartholomew

By: Susanna Gregory

Narrated by: David Thorpe

In the summer of 1358 the physician Matthew Bartholomew returns to Cambridge to learn that his beloved sister is in mourning after the unexpected death of her husband, Oswald Stanmore. Aware that his son has no interest in the cloth trade that made his fortune and reputation, Oswald has left the business to his widow, but a spate of burglaries in the town distracts Matthew from supporting Edith in her grief and attempting to keep the peace between her and her wayward son.

As well as the theft of irreplaceable items from Michaelhouse, which threatens its very survival, a new foundation, Winwick Hall, is causing consternation amongst Matthew's colleagues. The founder is an impatient man determined that his name will grace the University's most prestigious college. He has used his wealth to rush the construction of the hall, and his appointed Fellows have infiltrated the charitable Guild founded by Stanmore, in order to gain the support of Cambridge's most influential citizens on Winwick's behalf.

A perfect storm between the older establishments and the brash newcomers is brewing when the murder of a leading member of the Guild is soon followed by the death of one of Winwick's senior Fellows. Assisting Brother Michael in investigating these fatalities leads Matthew into a web of suspicion, where conspiracy theories are rife but facts are scarce and where the pressure from the problems of his college and his family sets him on a path that could endanger his own future....

©2014 Susanna Gregory (P)2014 Soundings

good. historical mystery in English monasteries

I love the series. It's been awhile but I believe the detective is a hunchback and a Catholic in the days of Cromwell. Can you tell I learned a lot? that's my brain, no reflection on the books.

I read the whole series and can't recall the specifics of this one.

narrator was good and fit the book.

Why has the narrated changed his characters

It took awhile to get used to the narrator, and now he’s changed his characters voices so it’s back to being dreadful. Returning the audio and going back to print.

Good job by David Thorpe but voices have changed!

This is a great series with excellent voice characterisations but for some strange reason the characters voices have changed. Much less interesting voices and accents and annoying! Can’t imagine why they changed. Hope the characters voices go back to “normal” next book!

Voices changed in this book

Although the narrator is the same he changed the voices of some of the characters. I miss Cinricks (spelt wrong I am sure) Welsh accent. William and Michael seem different too- less individuality and character. I myself don’t like the changes.
The plot however was really great, one of the best in the series, I thought.

Tangled

A tangled web for dominance as the different schools appear to jockey for position. But there is a lot going on and hopefully the duo can figure it out before it is too late!