Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

  • Pandora

  • A beguiling tale of romance, suspense, mystery and myth
  • By: Susan Stokes-Chapman
  • Narrated by: Olivia Vinall
  • Length: 11 hrs and 30 mins
  • 4.3 out of 5 stars (284 ratings)
Offer ends May 1st, 2024 11:59PM GMT. Terms and conditions apply.
£7.99/month after 3 months. Renews automatically.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Pandora cover art

Pandora

By: Susan Stokes-Chapman
Narrated by: Olivia Vinall
Get this deal Try for £0.00

Pay £99p/month. After 3 months pay £7.99/month. Renews automatically. See terms for eligibility.

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Listeners also enjoyed...

Who's That Earl cover art
Artfully Yours cover art
The Spinster Strikes Back cover art
The Convenient Marriage cover art
What a Gentleman Wants cover art
The House of Fortune cover art
The Duke Undone cover art
Spellbreaker cover art
The Embroidered Book cover art
Murder on Black Swan Lane cover art
The Impossible Girl cover art
A Clash of Steel: A Treasure Island Remix cover art
The Whisperling cover art
The Spirit Engineer cover art
The Business of Blood cover art
The Girl in His Shadow cover art

Summary

Brought to you by Penguin. 

A pure pleasure of a novel set in Georgian London where the discovery of a mysterious ancient Greek vase sets in motion conspiracies, revelations and romance.

There is a fine line between coincidence and fate....

In London 1799, Dora Blake is an aspiring jewellery artist who lives with her uncle in what used to be her parents' famed shop of antiquities. When a mysterious Greek vase is delivered, Dora is intrigued by her uncle's suspicious behaviour and enlists the help of Edward Lawrence, a young man seeking acceptance into the Society of Antiquaries. Edward sees the ancient vase as key to unlocking his academic future. Dora sees it as her chance to restore her parents' shop to its former glory and to escape her uncle.

But what Edward discovers about the vase has Dora questioning everything she has ever known, about her life, her family and the world as she knows it. As Dora uncovers the truth she starts to realise that some mysteries are buried and some boxes are locked, for a reason.

Gorgeously atmospheric and deliciously unpauseable, Pandora deals with themes of secrets and deception, love and fulfilment, fate and hope.

©2022 Susan Stokes-Chapman (P)2022 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"Olivia Vinall, who was delightful as DS Matilda Stone in Queens of Mystery, maintains a running current of excitement and copes effortlessly with the challenge of a cast ranging from grandes dames to Cornish seamen." (The Sunday Times)

What listeners say about Pandora

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    150
  • 4 Stars
    95
  • 3 Stars
    30
  • 2 Stars
    6
  • 1 Stars
    3
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    171
  • 4 Stars
    65
  • 3 Stars
    20
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    1
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    127
  • 4 Stars
    87
  • 3 Stars
    31
  • 2 Stars
    9
  • 1 Stars
    4

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Captivating and Brilliant!

One of those books that really capture your attention, and means you have to listen so everyone can get their own dinners. A Proper WOoW! The concept of the this tale, is very imaginative, the idea of this ancient pot influencing the destiny of so many, when all along, it's your good old friends greed, jealousy and desire. Extremely well told a Fantastic all round listen/ read. Thank you.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Well researched? 2.5*

I struggled to finish this, finding the story difficult to engage with. The reviews are all glowing, with many references to 'well researched' which I find strange as there are so many modern intrusions into the narrative both in the manner of the characters, their speech and various events. Set in 1799 when it would better fit a 1899 Victorian mindset. Oddities that seem incongruous include chemical analysis of pottery, gold embossed business cards, the term 'black market', lower class characters striving for entry into academic societies, character wanting to be a jewellery 'designer', and countless more out of time phrases. The characters are either saintly good or comically mean, and the husband and wife archaeologists digging up antiquities in the 1780s seems unbelievable if you know your history of archaeology. The novel is the first from the author, so it is not nice to point out incongruities when it would have been written speculatively, but the overwhelming praise heaped upon it just seem out of proportion.
If one was a middle teen then one could probably enjoy this, there's a wish fulfillment suspension of belief, a strong young female lead, and a troubled young man needing to be guided through life. Reality plays very little part in the narrative, and for some that is probably preferable.

Narrator does a good job.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

I like it, but not sure why

I enjoyed this but actually on reflection nothing really happened. The narrator was v good.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent

I have been anticipating the release of this novel for some time and it fulfilled my expectations

A touch of mystery and romance and an engaging lead in Pandora set in Georgian London

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

An amazing book

I didn't want this book to end. I loved it! Great story and characters, gives you a real sense of London in the 18th Century.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

A decent read

An easy listen/ read. The plot was a little predictable but enjoyable nevertheless. I particularly liked the beautiful descriptions of Georgian jewellery. I think the story would be better suited to a T.V. period drama than a novel. The characters were a little one dimensional and predictable stereotypes in places but maybe that was the authors intention.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Fabulous

I really enjoyed everything about this audio book. The story was gripping. The narration was amazing. If I had to pick a fault I would say the ending felt rushed. There were questions left unanswered. All and all though a fantastic read.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Slightly daft

This starts off as a run-of-the-mill ‘orphan finding out her parents’ legacy with the help of a clueless chap she has an on-off attraction for‘ story but then towards the end it goes a bit bonkers. It’s not a bad book per say but, for me, somewhat disappointing.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Enjoyable story, well read.

A good mix of historical myth, Cinderella and romance. Well narrated and easy listening made for a very enjoyable story.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

excellent story and well written.

very enjoyable, well written and imagined. Worth the time and cost. hope she has written more !

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful