Listen free for 30 days
Listen with offer
-
Valentine Grey
- Narrated by: Joanna Bending, Peter Kenny
- Length: 10 hrs and 50 mins
Failed to add items
Add to basket failed.
Add to wishlist failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
£0.00 for first 30 days
Valentine Grey
Buy Now for £12.99
No valid payment method on file.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Summary
From the author of Between the Stops and Toksvig's Almanac.
London, 1897. A young girl, Valentine Grey, arrives in England. She's been brought up in the remote and sunny climes of India and finds being forced into corsets and skirts in damp and cold country insufferable. The only bright spot: her exciting cousin Reggie. Reggie and his lover, Frank, seek out the adventure the clandestine bars and streets of London offer and are happy to include Valentine in their secret, showing her theatre, gardens - even teaching her how to ride a bicycle.
And then comes the Boer War, and Reggie's father volunteers him; the empire must be defended. But it won't be Reggie who dons the volunteer regiment's garb. Valentine takes her chance, puts on her cousin's uniform, leaves Reggie behind and heads off to war. And for a long while, it's glorious and liberating for both of the cousins, but war is not glorious, and in Victorian London, homosexuality is not liberating....
Longlisted for the Green Carnation Prize
Listeners also enjoyed...
Critic reviews
"Teasing out untold stories of the battlefield...follows the footsteps of the likes of Sarah Waters and Pat Barker." (Independent)
What listeners say about Valentine Grey
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Nancy Jane
- 05-01-24
Worth a listen
A interesting tale of war and women and the injustice of the world. Do the gods envy us as homer wrote or is war worse than hell, as told by mash, for Valentine Grey I guess you need to hear her story to decide.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Karolina
- 14-07-24
Moving story
I liked the slow pace that gave the opportunity to get to know and feel with the characters
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Kindle Customer
- 11-06-22
Magnificent
Thank you 💔 A history I needed to know. Proud to a woman, ashamed of empire’s savage story. Valentine Grey rocks
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance2 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 13-07-22
Narration was irritating
This story is narrated by a male & female narrator.
I was surprised at first as I expected it to be the author.
The female narrator has a husky voice and tends to trail off in her sentences and drops ‘d’ and ‘t’ at the end of a word so made it difficult to hear/understand her. I found myself rewinding a lot to understand what it was she had read.
The male narrator was ok.
This took away from my enjoyment of the story (which I could visualise being adapted for tv).
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall3 out of 5 stars
-
Performance2 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Karen Leake
- 10-04-24
Pronunciation
Bad pronunciation of South African words - very annoying when you know what they should be!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!