A Sicilian Romance


Read by Betsie Bush

(4.2 stars; 61 reviews)

A Sicilian Romance is a Gothic novel by Ann Radcliffe. It was her second published work, and was first published anonymously in 1790. The plot concerns the turbulent history of the fallen aristocrats of the house of Mazzini, on the northern shore of Sicily, as related by a tourist who becomes intrigued by the stories of a monk he meets in the ruins of their doomed castle.

The introduction to the 'Worlds Classics' edition notes that in this novel "Ann Radcliffe began to forge the unique mixture of the psychology of terror and poetic description that would make her the great exemplar of the Gothic novel, and the idol of the Romantics". The novel explores the "cavernous landscapes and labyrinthine passages of Sicily's castles and convents to reveal the shameful secrets of its all-powerful aristocracy" (Summary from Wikipedia) (7 hr 21 min)

Chapters

Chapter 01 34:11 Read by Betsie Bush
Chapter 02 50:40 Read by Betsie Bush
Chapter 03 1:13:56 Read by Betsie Bush
Chapter 04 41:39 Read by Betsie Bush
Chapter 05 16:04 Read by Betsie Bush
Chapter 06 19:14 Read by Betsie Bush
Chapter 07 8:32 Read by Betsie Bush
Chapter 08 18:34 Read by Betsie Bush
Chapter 09 20:11 Read by Betsie Bush
Chapter 10 20:59 Read by Betsie Bush
Chapter 11 25:31 Read by Betsie Bush
Chapter 12 21:09 Read by Betsie Bush
Chapter 13 27:52 Read by Betsie Bush
Chapter 14 29:57 Read by Betsie Bush
Chapter 15 22:33 Read by Betsie Bush
Chapter 16 10:14 Read by Betsie Bush

Reviews

fun and charming read


(4 stars)

i really liked this, though you can certainly tell it’s one of mrs radcliffes earlier novels! her ability to write a truly gripping gothic tale is yet to appear, but this was enjoyable and i remained engaged all the way through. the women all suffer from ‘faint-for-no-reason-itis’ but that is something to be expected in novels from this time, unfortunately. the male heroes were quite in engaging - i thought ferdinand might be prickish and horrible but my mans came through! i love him. i did think he’d get stitched up with some woman introduced in the last chapter but he remained single the whole way through so! mrs radcliffe exceeded my expectations with that one. an enjoyable read

evil vs. good


(5 stars)

Quite a few unexpected moments in this story. I enjoyed it all. The tale is very well read. Thank you so much for your reading of this excellent story!

A. Tale of all times


(4 stars)

A TALE of selfishness, suffering and retribution. Born into a castle is no protection from the universal experience of life under a selfish and tyrannical father. The language of this 1700s tale is complex but after accommodation expresses richly.

delightful plot


(5 stars)

thank you reader. Great job on narrating this amusing story. I couldn't guess the next development and fear for Julia's fate. Highly recommended.

One of my favourites-


(5 stars)

I love this! The layers of detail are perfectly balanced with plot, adventure and character!

Kept me listening


(4.5 stars)

Another good reading! Thanks for you time! Kept my interest!

lots of coincidence ... Didnt quite understand the end bit


(4 stars)

fantastic narrator

good reader


(2.5 stars)

The plot was a little thin, but descriptive. Good narration.