During that 'busy' fifteen week period, I recorded the eight books of Niccolo, together with three other audio books and a further three audio dramas. That kind of recording schedule is punishing indeed and there was precious little time to prep the Niccolo books. The reality of such a schedule meant that prep had to be done the night before recording; so after a full day in the studio, my evenings, nights - and early mornings! - were taken up by reading and marking up for the following day's work. I remember hearing the milkman arrive one morning as I was still prepping and thinking to myself, that within a few hours, I'd be back in the studio and really ought to get some sleep before then - prepped or not!
The scheduling meant that we had to record all eight books in as short a time as possible in order to meet the publishing deadline, which was set for the 11th November. Editing, proofing and any required pick-ups also had to be done well before that date to ensure there would be no delay to the hugely complex production process.
I'm sure you can imagine how much pressure producer Neil Gardner and I were under to meet the deadline, particularly given my other recording commitments (three other audio books and three audio dramas) and the fact that the Niccolo books are not an 'easy read'; they are complicated, densely written, require voice characterisation from all over the 15th century world (Bruges, Venice, Florence, Geneva, and the Hanseatic League; Burgundy, Flanders, Poland and Muscovy; Iceland; the Iberian Peninsula and Madeira; the Black Sea cities of Trebizond and Caffa; Persia; the Mediterranean islands of Cyprus and Rhodes; Egypt and the Sinai Peninsula; and West Africa, Timbuktu and the Sahara.) ...and are very long!
Total running time for the eight volume series comes in at a hefty 215 hours; the equivalent of 20 or so 'standard' length audio books and features 1,473 named characters...
After such a huge effort to complete recording, I can only express a sense of 'disappointment', that for reasons unknown and completely out of my control, actual publication did not occur on 11th November 2018, but instead, on 5th September 2019.
I recently met someone from The Dorothy Dunnett Society, who invited me to speak and 'perform' extracts from the books at next April's convention in Edinburgh. Of course, I'm flattered to have been asked, though for a number of practical reasons, I have declined the offer. Instead, I have agreed to write a short article for the Society's 'Whispering Gallery' magazine, set for December publication.
Here is a link to the Society's web site should you wish to know more about the series: The Dorothy Dunnett Society and here are details of the audio books, now available to download:
The time is the 15th century, when intrepid merchants became the new knighthood of Europe. Among them, none is bolder or more cunning than Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges, the good-natured dyers apprentice who schemes and swashbuckles his way to the helm of a mercantile empire.
The House of Niccolò
Penguin presents the audiobook edition of Niccolo Rising by Dorothy Dunnett, read by John Banks.
Niccolo Rising combines history, adventure and high romance in the tradition stretching from Alexandre Dumas to Mary Renault.
Length: 23 hrs and 28 mins
Penguin presents the audiobook edition of The Spring of the Ram by Dorothy Dunnett, read by John Banks.
In 1461, the mysterious, enigmatic Nicholas is in Florence. Backed by
none other than Cosimo de'Medici, he will sail the Black Sea to
Trebizond, last outpost of Byzantium, and the last jewel missing from
the crown of the Ottoman Empire. But trouble lies ahead.Nicholas's step-daughter - at the tender age of 13 - has eloped with his rival in trade: a Machiavellian Genoese who races ahead of Nicholas, sowing disaster at every port. And time is of the essence: Trebizond may fall to the Turks at any moment.
Crackling with wit, breathtakingly paced, The Spring of the Ram is a pyrotechnic blend of scholarship and narrative shimmering with the scents, sounds, colors and combustible emotions of the 15th century.
Length: 23 hrs and 55 mins
Penguin presents the audiobook edition of Race of Scorpions by Dorothy Dunnett, read by John Banks.
This is the third book in the House of Niccolo series.
Set in 15th-century Cyprus, this novel continues the saga of Nicholas van der Poel, international mercenary who started out as a dyer's apprentice, as he plays for the highest stakes with the greatest superpowers in Europe.
Set in 15th-century Cyprus, this novel continues the saga of Nicholas van der Poel, international mercenary who started out as a dyer's apprentice, as he plays for the highest stakes with the greatest superpowers in Europe.
Length: 26 hrs and 54 mins
Penguin presents the audiobook edition of Scales of Gold by Dorothy Dunnett, read by John Banks.
The year 1464 finds our hero Nicholas in Venice. Plagued by enemies
bent on dissolving his assets and smearing his character, he sets sail
for Africa, legendary location of the Fountain of Youth and the source
of gold in such abundance that men prefer to barter in shells. He will
discover the charms of the beautiful Gelis - a woman whose passion for
Nicholas is rivalled only by her desire to punish him for his role in
her sister's death.Erotic and lush with detail, Scales of Gold embraces the complexity of the Renaissance, where mercantile adventure couples with more personal quests behind the silken curtains of the Age of Discovery.
Length: 24 hrs and 22 mins
Penguin presents the audiobook edition of The Unicorn Hunt, by Dorothy Dunnett, read by John Banks.
The fifth title in the House of Niccolo sequence, re-creating the
perilous world of trade, war and banking in Renaissance Europe.
Niccolo has returned to Venice from Africa - richer, wiser yet ever unpredictable. He journeys to Scotland, closer at hand to the secrets of his birth.
Niccolo has returned to Venice from Africa - richer, wiser yet ever unpredictable. He journeys to Scotland, closer at hand to the secrets of his birth.
Length: 29 hrs and 20 mins
Penguin presents the audiobook edition of To Lie with Lions by Dorothy Dunnett, read by John Banks.
Merchant-banker Nicholas de Fleury, having wrested his infant son
from the boy's formidable mother, pauses en route to the land of golden
light to set in train a deception that will ensnar nations in the
triumphant ruin of his enemies. This is volume six in the House of Niccolo.
Length: 28 hrs and 29 mins
Penguin presents the audiobook edition of Caprice and Rondo by Dorothy Dunnett, read by John Banks.
It is the merchant Niccolo, diviner, soldier, banker to kings; shunned by all who know him after revelations of his murderous mischief-making. But his talents are too great to be squandered, and a subtle political dance ensues as rivals in Poland, Venice, and Persia bid for his services in trade and war and diplomacy. Niccolo has lost his family, but he will discover a new purpose in life....
Length: 26 hrs and 41 mins
Penguin presents the audiobook edition of Gemini by Dorothy Dunnett, read by John Banks.
Gemini represents the final appearance of Nicholas de Fleury,
who opened this series as a carefree, clumsy 18-year-old apprentice in
Flanders. Now he is in his 30s. The culmination of this amazing series
sees Niccolo face his toughest battle yet, against an enemy who will tax
every skill he has acquired over the course of the last few years....
Length: 31 hrs and 47 mins
* * * * *
Should you wish to invest both time and money in this series, you might also wish to look at the two volumes of 'The Dorothy Dunnett Companion', written by Elspeth Morrison, which provide "... an encyclopaedic guide to the world Dorothy Dunnett describes,
illuminating the tapestry of fact and allusion, of historial personages
and places, events and politics, literary references and music that
colour her books. It covers both her "Lymond" sequence, which explores
the intricacies of 16th-century history, and the "House of Niccolo"
series, set in the 15th-century world of trade and war and banking."
As usual, Audible has attached 5 minute samples taken from each of the audio books as an 'appetiser' should you wish to get a pre-purchase 'flavour' of the stories. For reasons unknown, the samples selected from books 4 to 8 are identical and are in fact, taken from Judith Wilt's lengthy introduction to the novels rather than extracts from Dunnett's narrative; an odd decision I think!
...all for now; more just as soon as it happens!
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