The Dance of Death

By: Kate Sedley

Narrated by: Robbie MacNab

Newly returned from an eventful mission to Scotland - and eager to be reunited with his family - Roger the Chapman is far from pleased when Timothy Plummer, Spymaster General to the King, commands him to undertake another mission. He is to accompany the beautiful but manipulative Eloise Gray on a special journey to Paris, pretending to be her husband.

Though Plummer is reluctant to reveal the motive behind this appointment, Roger understands that the French king is making overtures to the Duke of Burgundy on behalf of the Dauphin - a move which could wreck the relationship with England's staunch ally and most important customer for her wool exports.

©2009 Kate Sedley (P)2009 Soundings

Another Good Book

All in all, another good book. An enjoyable and satisfying story. The attention to detail of the lives, the languages, the food, the cities and the countries fascinate me. However, the ending was a little abrupt for me. I would like to know more of the finer details to wrap up the story. But then again, most books leave out the details I would like to know at the ending. Nevertheless I expect another book to follow to tidy up a few items I am still curious about.

Irritable characters make for a long listen

I very much enjoyed the first in this series (and do wish that Audible would indicate the order of the series) but in The Dance of Death, Roger Chapman and nearly every other character was in a foul mood.

It became a struggle to finish the book because I could find nothing to like in any of the characters. By the end, I couldn't even root for our "hero" Roger.

In addition, the motivations of many of the main characters were never revealed: Why was Eloise Gray chosen for the mission? Why was she attracted to the various men around her? Why were they attracted to her? Why could two old friends not find it possible to confide in one another? There are many other questions that readers will find to ponder. I hoped to listen to more of this series but will look carefully at reviews before I do.