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Precious Bones

By: Irina Shapiro
Narrated by: Verity Burns
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Summary

When the skeletal remains of a young woman and her baby are found entombed behind the kitchen wall of a historic Tudor house, Cassandra is overcome with grief. She seems to know who the young woman was, but not how she knows, or how she came to be there. Cassandra becomes inexplicably drawn to the house and the mystery of the bones of Blackfriars. As she begins to learn the truth about the Thorne siblings who occupied the house during the reign of Elizabeth I, her own life takes an unexpected turn, and she finds out that her fate is linked to the Thornes in ways she never imagined.

©2011 Irina Shapiro (P)2017 Irina Shapiro
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What listeners say about Precious Bones

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An excellent read!

What made the experience of listening to Precious Bones the most enjoyable?

This is a great read! The narrator is excellent and very listenable. A great dual timeline story that grabs you from the beginning, and continues in the same vein right to the end. Excellent, I will listen to this again!

What was one of the most memorable moments of Precious Bones?

The twist in the story.

What does Verity Burns bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

A very listenable voice, that's a pleasure to listen to.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Not necessarily, I enjoyed listening to it over a few days.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Engaging dual time novel

“I knew you’d come.” he said as he turned around and walked away before I could ask what he could possibly have meant by that comment. - Cassandra

Best selling novelist Cassandra Blake is suffering from a bad case of writers block, when she sees a TV news report based on the discovery of the skeletal remains of a woman and her foetus, who have been found entombed in the walls of a historic Tudor House. Overcome by a sense of grief but unable to explain how or why, Cassandra finds herself inexplicably drawn to the house and is compelled to buy it.

No sooner has she moved in, Cassandra is plagued by visions of a woman named Constance Thorne who lived there with her family in the 1500s. As she unravels more of Constance’s life, Cassandra begins to realise that her life is connected to her in ways she could never have imagined.

Precious Bones is a stand alone dual time novel, set between the turbulent times of Elizabeth l in 1586 and present day 2010. Constance and her family are staunch Catholics in a time when Papists were regarded with suspicion due to numerous conspiracies against Elizabeth l by those who wanted to see Mary Stuart on the throne instead. It is in the background of one such conspiracy known as the Babington Plot, that the Thorne family innocently fall victim.

As a reader who is familiar with the author’s Echoes of the Past series, I felt that once again she has managed to seamlessly blend the past and present and grab the readers attention from the offset.

The author has managed to capture the suspicion and uncertainty of the era, made all the more volatile by self serving ambitious politicians. We’re given insight into the brutal torture that victims, who were sent to the Tower of London, were subjected to and the impact it had on their families. Several graphic scenes were over done for my taste but perhaps that’s just me.

I also felt that the romance between both couples lacked depth. The modern day one in particular felt under developed as Cassandra was barely coming out of her previous relationship before starting a new one. I would like to have seen more of their feelings on an emotional level rather than a physical one.

I received an advanced free audible copy of Precious Bones and I am voluntarily reviewing it. This is the first time I have listened to Verity Burns’ narration and I was impressed by how clear and concise her delivery was. I would recommend this book to fans of historical fiction, dual time lines, past lives/reincarnation mystery and suspense.

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Another life

This book is about a couple who have been reincarnated from Elizabethan times and they find each other in current times.

The book is well written and truly enjoyable. The narrator is great.

This book was provided free of charge and this review is willingly done.

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Loved it

Loved this audiobook story was awesome written really well and loved all the characters Everyone needs to read this book it’s a sweet romance

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

An enjoyable historical romance

This is a dual timeline romance set in modern day and Elizabethan England. The characters are well drawn and the plot is engaging. I really enjoyed listening to it.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

A very worthwhile new 'find'

Once I'd got used to the dual time line (never encountered this before) I started to really enjoy the story until the name Babbington was mentioned when I nearly gave up as I knew things would go 'bad' and I didn't want them to. I picked it up again and I'm so glad I did. A worthwhile listen/read of a new author to me. Couple of things I could argue about as being historically inaccurate - chocolate didn't come to England until the mid 17th century and that was as a drink not a sweetmeat, and also when Richard compared Whitehall and Versailles - again, it wasn't until nearer the mid 17th century that there was more than a hunting lodge, then a chateau at Versailles, nothing like a palace until Louis XIV started his vast program of works on it. I thought the narrator was 'pleasant', with a sameness, no real spark to the narration, but I've heard worse, and she didn't put me off continuing to listen. I'd try another audio book by her. Definitely going to look for more books by this author.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Interesting slant on writing about history.

Bit of a stretch for me to believe in the premise of reincarnation but having said that i enjoyed listening.

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