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    A Christmas Message
    A Christmas Message
    A Christmas Message
    Audiobook3 hours

    A Christmas Message

    Written by Anne Perry

    Narrated by Jenny Sterlin

    3/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    As suspenseful as it is heartwarming, set in Jerusalem, the latest Christmas novel from New York Times bestselling author Anne Perry is the perfect holiday treat. When Victor Narraway, Thomas Pitt's close friend and former boss, and his new wife, Lady Vespasia, travel to Jerusalem for a Christmas holiday, Vespasia cannot shake the feeling that they are being watched. Then, an old man leaves a mysterious envelope for Narraway-and is murdered soon after. But it is only when the couple is ambushed the following morning that they realize they are in grave danger. Armed only with the instructions from the message in the envelope, they immediately set out on a journey through the Holy Land.while their unknown enemy pursues them all the while.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateNov 1, 2016
    ISBN9781501938429
    A Christmas Message
    Author

    Anne Perry

    With twenty million books in print, ANNE PERRY's was selected by The Times as one of the twentieth century's '100 Masters of Crime', for more information about Anne and her books, visit: www.anneperry.co.uk

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    Reviews for A Christmas Message

    3/5

    34 ratings6 reviews

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    • 3/5
      I have a friend who enjoys Anne Perry's William Monk books and apparently some of her Christmas series. She passed this book on to me. It's probably weird to drop into the Christmas set at book #14--I didn't know that when I was reading it but seeing it listed as such does make me wonder less at why there seemed to be some backstory I thought I was missing.Victor and Vespasia undertake a journey--well several journeys, I guess. There's the physical journey which is supposed to be a Christmas holiday, but there's a spiritual journey that develops as well as they decide to fulfill the delivery of a parchment they've been entrusted with. Likes:-Victor and Vespasia must love each other. One, they are willing to change their lives/behaviors for each other. Two, each is willing to die for the other.-The spiritual journey that several characters take and the beliefs that they must examine as they journey.-Vespasia is written as a self-sufficient woman (though her skirts do get in the way a time or two). She's not the typical historical female. Though she also has common sense and knows when she needs to be the typical female of the time. Dislikes: -I'm not quite sure the spiritual journey leads to the Christian belief system. -I have a feeling there is some symbolism present that went over my head. I vaguely think that Benedict was an angel sent to earth (and who's lost some of his memory by taking human form). Jeshua seems to me to be a symbol for Jesus. There's talk of the star followed by the wise men and whether it was a physical star that pointed them to Bethlehem or an inner sense that led them. (This book seems to lean toward the inner sense.) The Watcher character seems to represent Lucifer or a demon.
    • 3/5
      Strong message supported by an allegorical perspective on a Christmas message. Vespacia and .Narraway find their vacation trip to Jerusalem interrupted by a murder and the challenge of delivering a section of a coded message. Her introspection about her relationship with Narraway consumes most of her thoughts as they strive to complete their journey by the Eve of Christmas.
    • 2/5
      This is one of Anne Perry's Christmas mystery novellas that I usually enjoy. This one, however, is just preposterous. Victor Narroway & his wife, Charlotte Pitt's Aunt Vespasia have gone to Palestine with the goal of spending Christmas in Jerusalem. But, of course, in Jaffa, they meet a mysterious man who ends up being killed, apparently for the piece of paper that he secrets to Narroway just before his murder.Victor & Vespasia must travel to Jerusalem and deliver the paper to a bakery where, hopefully it will be matched up with the two other missing people to make a whole message. Presumably because they have nothing better to do, they set off, running into another person who amazingly has the second part of the puzzle.Unfortunately they also run into "The Watcher", a shadowy figure that obviously symbolizes evil. What then follows is a chase, a fight, and much religious hocus pocus as the mystery is solved & good triumphs over evil. Unfortunately good story telling doesn't triumph over muddled writing. This is four hours of my life I'll never get back.
    • 2/5
      I usually enjoy Anne Perry's Christmas novellas, as each one takes a lesser character (or two) from her other mysteries and inserts them into their own mystery. Up until now, they have always been well written and provide a little more insight into the character than the longer mysteries, and there is always a satisfactory conclusion. That is not the case with this book.This book, however, does not live up to her usual standards, in my opinion. Vespasia and Victor Narraway are on a journey to the Middle East for Christmas 1900. In Jaffa, they have dinner with a mysterious man only to find him murdered the next day and Victor in possession of a peculiar piece of parchment and a note which directs him to deliver the parchment to Jerusalem by Christmas Eve. The two set out by train from Jaffa and encounter more mysterious strangers en route, as well as meeting with not one but two malfunctions of the train. Once they make it to Jerusalem, two more pieces of parchment appear and are all delivered to the same location to three religious men, one Catholic, one Orthodox, and one Protestant. I believe this was intended to be a deeply philosophical novella which would lead to reflections on the message of Christmas and the meaning of life. However, I found it to be meandering and confusing; many of the sentences left me scratching my head as to what was being said, either due to poor writing or poor editing. This book will not get a second reading from me as many of her Christmas books have.
    • 3/5
      Every year I look forward to Anne Perry's little Christmas novellas, and this year especially because it was centred around two of my favourite characters - Great Aunt Vespasia and her new husband Victor Narraway. If anyone has read the wonderful Thomas and Charlotte Pitt series, you will recognize these names. This one is set in the Holy Land. Narraway has given his wife the Christmas gift of a trip to Jerusalem. Both are thrilled to be there, but it isn't long before they are dragged into a dangerous world of watchers and people who want to harm them. They have been entrusted to take a piece of very old parchment to a bakery in Jerusalem, and there are many dangerous people who want to stop the piece from making it there. The premise of the story sounds good, but I think the topic is far too complex to fit properly into the limited pages of a novella. And so many of those limited pages are filled with religious musings. Unfortunately I have to give this little book 3 out of 5 stars - totally contrary to my other review of this author's impressive backlist.
    • 5/5
      An illuminating Christmas mystery!On the surface of this Christmas mystery, Victor Narraway and his wife Lady Vespasia (two of my favourite Perry characters) travel to Jerusalem for Christmas. En route, at their hotel in Jaffa, they run across an interesting older gentleman who hands them a parchment to deliver in Jerusalem just before he is killed by a mysterious figure "The Watcher". The story morphs into a Dali like journey of deserts and death, faith defined and refined, and deepening spiritual mysteries.Following the theme of the wise men seeking truth and wonderment as they track the star that lead them to Bethlehem, Narraway and Vespasia embark on a similar journey, followed by the dark watcher. Along the way they are joined by another.Three pieces of parchment, and the truth for all mankind, are part of this journey.Narraway and Vespasia are confronted by their own beliefs and the gradual refining of them.A simple story of intrigue that cloaks hidden inner meanings of the mystical and faith surrounding the Christmas message and all that followed.A very different story from what I expected, challenging and thought provoking, reflecting much of Perry's own faith base.The title sums up the depth and breadth of what this story contains. I found it a fascinating treatise on the Christian message.I was struck that it is Narraway, ex head of Special Branch and Lady Vespasia, a force in her own right, both mature people, with years of the ability and shrewdness, including being able to mark the difference between the false and the genuine, who are the chosen to encounter this very different journey.Who is the watcher, what is the stick he carries, seemingly he's supernatural at times and yet able to be injured. What is he watching for? A mystery on many levels with faint echoes of Dan Brown.I found this story stuck with me long after reading.A NetGalley ARC