Just One Damned Thing After Another cover art

Just One Damned Thing After Another

The Chronicles of St Mary's, Book 1

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Just One Damned Thing After Another

By: Jodi Taylor
Narrated by: Zara Ramm
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About this listen

 'One of my favourite books of all time' CHARLAINE HARRIS

'Jodi Taylor is quite simply the Queen of Time. Her books are a swashbuckling joyride through History' C. K. MCDONNELL

'Time travel, history and romance - what more could you ask for?' ⭐ ⭐⭐ ⭐⭐ reader review

--

They say that History is just one damned thing after another. Welcome to St Mary's Institute of Historical Research - where damned things happen every day.

When Dr Madeleine 'Max' Maxwell is recruited by St Mary's, she finds their methods to be somewhat unorthodox. They don't just study the past - they actually visit it, carefully observing historical events as they unfold in real time.

And not dying. This last part is important.

The whole of History now lies before Max and her new colleagues, but, as she will discover, time travel is never straightforward. Because History doesn't like to be messed with, and danger lurks in every century...

Fast-paced, witty and delightfully unconventional, Just One Damned Thing After Another is the first in Jodi Taylor's beloved and bestselling Chronicles of St Mary's series. For fans of Terry Pratchett, Doctor Who, Genevieve Cogman and Ghosts.

Readers love Jodi Taylor:

'Once in a while, I discover an author who changes everything... Jodi Taylor and her protagonista Madeleine "Max" Maxwell have seduced me' ⭐ ⭐⭐ ⭐⭐

'Addictive. I wish St Mary's was real and I was a part of it' ⭐ ⭐⭐ ⭐⭐

'Science fiction, historical fantasy, love story and more all wrapped up in a fast-paced comedy of errors. Please don't wait to read it, you don't know what you are missing' ⭐ ⭐⭐ ⭐⭐

'Jodi Taylor has an imagination that gets me completely hooked' ⭐ ⭐⭐ ⭐⭐

'A tour de force' ⭐ ⭐⭐ ⭐⭐

(P)2013 Audible Studios©2013 Jodi Taylor Classics Fantasy Fiction Historical Science Fiction Time Travel Funny Witty Adventure

Critic Reviews

Takes readers on a carnival ride through laughter and tears with a bit of time travel thrown in for spice
A true page-turner
I've never seen time travel handled this way. I like it
[An] appealing cast of characters... [with] with plenty of humour, lots of action, and even a touch of romance
All stars
Most relevant
after a very promising start, the middle part of the book gets a little bogged down, introducing too many characters before the main characters have been fully developed. so thereby the listener gets a bit lost and the narrator does not distinguish enough between male/female tones.
by the end things are becoming clearer and the stage is set for a long running series. it has potential so i will listen to book two and hope to be interested enough to keep me going on with the rest of the series.

potential for great storyline

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I read the first book in this series and just couldn’t stop. It’s compelling to find out what happens next as the team lurches from one disaster to the next. Downloaded a sample, you’ll be glad you did.

Wonderful story teller.

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This was my first Jodi Taylor book & I was hooked from the start.

This is a highly entertaining story which hurtles along at a pace that that rarely slows. Its protagonist is truly subjected to “one thing after another”.
The story was engrossing - science fantasy meets historical accuracy with lots of action and dashes of romance. Not serious literature but such good fun.
I plan to “read” more of these escapist tales.
The narrator’s reading definitely added to the charm of this story.
Recommended!

Pure entertainment

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My immediate impressions were: "Very English" from the acerbic flow of the revealed thoughts of the characters and their conversations, to the very dry humour and the unorthodox institution of a St Mary's. Personally I loved it, but have to wonder whether it would appeal to a non-English audience.

The other significant enjoyment factor was the total novelty of the storyline premise. I can't recall ever reading a story quite like this one, so I would certainly applaud Jodi Taylor's imagination as well as the way she drew the plot together. Well done and thank you.

Finally Zara Ramm's narration was perfect for the characters. She modulated well to indicate the different roles, but kept it clipped enough to represent the story in its best light.

Comic and very novel (no pun intended)

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I've been looking for a pulpy adventure story for years now and this scratched that itch.
daring heists, exciting chases, sex, violence, romance, this story has it all. Each chapter ends on a cliffhanger and so I could not put it down.

that said, like so many stories, this one suffers from "too many endings" and I was expecting the story to be over at the half way, third quarter way, and six eight way through. And some of the themes got way darker than I was expecting from a book do funny.

Overall I couldn't be happier. Very similar to the early Thursday Next novels and other such nerdy, comedic, action thrillers. my only fear is that this ongoing story will turn the same was as Ffordes novels.

A Damned Good Read

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