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A Vengeful Longing Audiobook
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(2.99) - 118 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
R. N. Morris received accolades from numerous publications, including the Sunday Times, who called this work "extraordinarily vivid" and "sophisticated." This enveloping crime novel ventures into the dark heart of 19thcentury Russia as detective Porfiry Petrovich investigates the poisoning of a doctor's wife and their autistic son. "Right from the start we are hooked by his storytelling panache . The pungently vivid recreation of pre-Soviet Russia is painted with a master's touch."-Express
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"It is quite a feat to put a mystery into a historical context and have it work. I read these things because I love costume dramas and this has the best of them -- and then has a plot as well that isn't just about romance, for heaven's sake."
— Martha (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“Full marks to the author for bringing Petrovich back to life in this ambitious work that is a real pleasure to read.”
— Economist -
“Porfiry’s second outing is entertaining and educative, thanks to the author’s passion for his canvas.”
— Financial Times -
“Morris captures this world with expert strokes, never content to merely peddle exotica, but making sure that his characters spring convincingly from their setting. While the person behind the crimes is a little unlikely, this novel stands out from a number of fine czarist-era mysteries—by Russians and foreigners alike—like a Fabergé egg at a yard sale.”
— Publishers Weekly -
“Morris seems to have hit his stride. His characters come alive in all their destitution, pretension, madness, fractiousness, and humanity. His portrait of the city, abandoned by the well-to-do in summer, offers a rich, palpably fetid sense of place, and his depiction of nineteenth-century Russian society, festering with revolutionary notions and old grudges, is compelling.”
— Booklist -
“Morris seamlessly and brilliantly segues from intensely grave to laugh-out-loud funny. Provocative, satirical insights into humanity’s darker corners.”
— Kirkus Reviews
Awards
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Shortlisted for the 2008 CWA Gold Dagger
A Vengeful Longing Listener Reviews
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" A good mystery, but somewhat overwritten. Still, Morris does an outstanding job setting the mood of life in 1800s St. Petersburg. "
— Bryan, 1/6/2014 -
" too hard to follow and enjoy "
— Beth, 12/15/2013 -
" I did not get on with this book, it was very long winded and slow moving, i did not relate to the characters, in the end i felt it was not improving and gave up on it. "
— Dawn, 11/24/2013 -
" makes me wish I had already read Crime and Punishment as this seems to be a spin off..... interesting story set in Russia in the 19th century when detective methods were emerging.... "
— Eleni, 5/26/2012 -
" Read it just before traveling to St Petersburg, Russia, which is the setting for this book. Okay as far as mysteries go, but not especially informative for someone traveling in present-day Russia since it is set in the 19th century. "
— Marta, 5/19/2012 -
" After two full weeks of "not really getting into it" I took the hint and stopped. It wasn't bad; just not for me right now. "
— Chris, 12/6/2011 -
" 1860s St. Petersburg in all it's filthy, stinking squalor. "
— Monica, 10/6/2011 -
" A murder mystery of increasing complexity that is awesome in the setup but suffers from the same problem I've found with other Russian-set mysteries: The magistrate thinks up the solution, then it's just there -- readers don't get to share in the imagining of it. "
— Gina, 2/21/2011 -
" Hard to follow and disjointed "
— Rod, 12/25/2009 -
" I learned that Roger Morris is a master storyteller and that I have to take the time to write a full blown review for this. So, look for it on BonnieGlover. com in a few days. I'm still blown away by the ending. Never saw it coming. "
— Bonnie, 11/6/2009
About R. N. Morris
Roger N. Morris sold his first short
story to a teenage girls’ magazine while still a student at Cambridge
University, where he read classics. Making his living as a freelance
copywriter, he has continued to write, and occasionally publish, fiction. One
of his stories, “The Devil’s Drum,” was turned into a one-act opera, which was
performed at the Purcell Room in London’s South Bank. His book A Vengeful Longing was shortlisted for
the 2008 CWA Gold Dagger Prize for Best Crime Novel and highly commended by
the CWA Ellis Peters Award for Best Historical Crime Novel 2008. He lives in
North London with his wife and children.
About John Curless
John Curless is a theater, film, and television actor. He has appeared on Broadway in Journeys End, The Sound of Music, and The King and I and off-Broadway in Passion Play, Comic Potential, and The Entertainer. His film and television credits include Vibrations, Ed, and NYPD Blue. His audiobook narrations have been awarded two AudioFile Earphones Awards.