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Gallows Thief
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins
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Gallows Thief
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Summary
1820s Britain: after the wars with France, when unemployment was high and soldiers could be paid off, when the government was desperately afraid of social unrest, any crime was drastically punished and thousands were hung. But one could petition the King and an investigation might ensue…
The man in the dark cell in Newgate Prison was due to hang in a week. He had been found guilty of murdering the aristocrat whose portrait he was painting. He claimed to be innocent – but then the hangman had never hung a guilty man, he said. But even in 1820, the Home Secretary could occasionally use his powers to grant mercy if his investigator found cause and Rider Sandman, once of the First Foot Guards, is given the job.
Rider Sandman, a hero of Waterloo, has family debts to repay but when his first steps in the investigations produce a sizeable bribe to look the other way, this only arouses his smouldering anger over the condition of England, a country which he and others in Wellington's army had fought to preserve. Stepping between gentlemen's clubs and taverns, talking to aristocrats, fashionable painters, their models, and their mistresses, dodging professional cut-throats and deceptive swordsmen, Sandman uncovers a conspiracy of silence, a group whose proudest boast was that they would do anything for any one of them.
Sandman is a wonderful character, as yet undaunted by the sleazy streets, dank jails or the looming scaffold, and uncorrupted by politicians, sneering gentlemen or frightening bruisers, an investigator in the making and a brilliant, but very different, hero for all Bernard Cornwell fans.
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Critic reviews
"Bernard Cornwell is a literary miracle. Year after year, hail, rain, snow, war and political upheavals fail to prevent him from producing the most entertaining and readable historical novels of his generation…Cornwell at his best is utterly compelling. And this is Cornwell at his best." (Daily Mail)
"Page for page, sentence for sentence, scene for heart-stopping scene GALLOWS THIEF is the strongest historical novel I have read this year…he tells a cracking yarn and fills it with vivid characters and writes crisp dialogue and gets the period detail right..it is hard to stop reading…it is masterly." (Sunday Telegraph)
What listeners say about Gallows Thief
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mrs K M Squire
- 02-03-19
Great storytelling!
Jonathan Keeble does a great job telling this story - accents, voices, expression - just first class. Bernard Cromwell’s tale with likeable (macho) hero, attractive accomplices and great plot mean that the story moves with speed and interest. Highly recommended - if you like that sort of thing!!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- mr j m tattersall
- 28-10-19
excellent listen
great story narrated by the excellent Jonathan keeble, well worth it. Will listen to this again.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Robin Singleton
- 26-05-16
Excellent story
Bernard Cornwall's stories are always very good. It's well researched with an interesting fictional twist. The narration was good, and I found I spent a lot of time on the edge of my seat!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- JL Rogers
- 09-08-22
Simply brilliant!
I couldn't stop listening, and it was over in three days. The narration was superb. The story was gripping and with good characters. What more can I say!
The only downside is that this is not the first book in a series.
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- Philip
- 24-11-21
Brilliant
Superb evocation of the period, excellent characterisations by Jonathan. There's good then there's Cornwell. A must read for Sharpe trivia fans too. Subtle reference but very well done.
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- Brizano
- 07-05-18
This could be the pilot for another series
Wow! A great original story with a nail biting finale...Oops!... Spoiler!....kinda. What will come next I wonder?
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Mr. R Wexler
- 27-11-18
Excellent form start to finish.
Extremely well read. A thoroughly good story and well worth listening to. To be recommended.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- linda watson
- 11-05-18
loved it...great characters...superb narration ...
Excellent ...loved the rich voice and characterisations. Hopeful for further adventures. Too good not to.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Jonah
- 15-06-20
Gallows Thief
It’s a real pity Bernard Cornwell hasn’t used this character for a series of books. Thoroughly enjoyable rollicking listen, great characters well read as ever by the excellent Jonathan Keeble.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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- Music Lover
- 26-01-19
Why no sequels?
Love the idea of a Gallows Thief. This is a really enjoyable period thriller with a typically great cast of Cornwell characters. I am definitely surprised this did not spawn a sequel or two. Excellently narrated by Jonathan Keeble.
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