The Ringed Castle

Book Five in the Legendary Lymond Chronicles

By: Dorothy Dunnett

Narrated by: David Monteath

For the first time Dunnett's Lymond Chronicles are available in the United States in quality paperback editions.

Fifth in the legendary Lymond Chronicles, The Ringed Castle leaps from Mary Tudor's England to the barbaric Russia of Ivan the Terrible. Francis Crawford of Lymond moves to Muscovy, where he becomes advisor and general to the half-mad tsar. Yet even as Lymond tries to civilize a court that is still frozen in the attitudes of the Middle Ages, forces in England conspire to enlist this infinitely useful man in their own schemes.

Critic reviews

“Exciting, dangerous, fascinating.”
—The Boston Globe

“[Dunnett’s] hero. . .is as polished and perceptive as Lord Peter Wimsey and as resourceful as James Bond.”
—The New York Times Book Review

“Vivid, engaging, densely plotted. . . . Dunnett is a master of suspense and misdirection.”
—The New York Times

“A masterpiece of historical fiction.”
—The Washington Post

“[Lymond] is arguably the perfect romantic hero.”
—The Guardian

“Dorothy Dunnett is one of the greatest talespinners since Dumas . . . breathlessly exciting.”
—Cleveland Plain Dealer

“Dunnett is a name to conjure with. Her work exemplifies the best the genre can offer.”
—Christian Science Monitor

“Ingenious and exceptional . . . its effect brilliant, its pace swift and colorful and its multi-linear plot spirited and absorbing.”
—Boston Herald

“Dunnett evokes the sixteenth century with an amazing richness of allusion and scholarship, while keeping a firm control on an intricately twisting narrative. She has another more unusual quality . . . an ability to check her imagination with irony, to mix high romance with wit.”
—Sunday Times (London)

“A very stylish blend of high romance and high camp. Her hero, the enigmatic Lymond, [is] Byron crossed with Lawrence of Arabia. . . . He moves in an aura of intrigue, hidden menace and sheer physical daring.”
—Times Literary Supplement (London)

“With shrewd psychological insight and a rare gift of narrative and descriptive power, Dorothy Dunnett reveals the color, wit, lushness . . . and turbulent intensity of one of Europe’s greatest eras.”
—Raleigh News and Observer

Wonderful

This is book 5 of the Lymond Chronicles by Dorothy Dunnett. I love all six books in this series. This is historical fiction at its best. You should start at book one, and listen to them all in order. David Monteath is absolutely the best reader/performer of audio books I’ve ever listened to, and I’ve listened to many. This series is a joy to listen to.

Dialog

Dunnett, is probably the best author I've ever read. No other has ever moved me as intellectually or emotionally as she. Being an avid reader my entire life, all genres from Science fiction to Russian literature no one has the ability to keep my senses engaged like she. I wish she was alive today so I may have thanked her.

A much enjoyed series

For me this is a retread of a series I read first in paperback after it first appear and sparked my in the main character in the time periods an in the places the series isited taking us with the chapters. No, not cha tees but people that the author brought to life but people the author introduced us to. I finally squire all the books in hard cover and would reread them several times over the years until my eyesight for reading became difficult. I passed my books on to friend but sometimes I wished I haadthem back Audible has allowed me to experience them again. I am about to start last book right now. It has been such a pleasure to hear and experience them once again.

Possibly my favorite in the series

Dunnett's historical novels take readers/listeners to places all over the world of their times, far beyond the usual British or French settings (those are also included!). She recreates not only the scenery, but also the sounds and scents of these places. In The Ringed Castle, we visit Ivan the Terrible's Russia with Francis Crawford of Lymond and his mercenary troop--and with one of the first historical English merchant/explorers to visit Russia, Richard Chancellor. Meanwhile, back in England, Queen Mary ("Bloody Mary") is dealing with her reluctant Spanish consort Philip and trying to re-impose Catholicism on the nation. A plot full of twists and turns sets up the final moves in this excellent series of historical novels.
Narrator David Monteath is excellent, throughout.

A great story and a great performance

Listening to stories one has read and loved can be disappointing. I found this to be particularly true for the Lymond Chronicles 2 - 4 because the narrator could render the stories lackluster (plus he murdered the dialect and place names) I didn’t buy 5 and 6 then because the stories are complex and I dreaded the rendition but finding them again on Audible with the different narrator, I risked it. This time the narration was excellent and the stories unfolded effortlessly. Indeed, I found additional nuances I had missed when reading them before.
I’m looking forward to the final book and considering purchasing the volumes I disliked in their previous version.