Labyrinth: The epic Richard & Judy read from the Number One bestselling author (languedoc Book 1)

This is dire. I haven't been so shocked at how bad a widely and wildly rated novel is when I actually got around to read it since I read Fugitive Pieces. The modern day story line is incredibly weak and unbelievable. We never find out why the central character split up with her long-term boyfriend, despite the novel going on for over 700 pages, and she ends up marrying someone she meets in the novel who she barely knows. We also find out only late in the day that the other leading character was a wartime resistance hero. This is only mentioned once, in a subordinate clause, which makes me think it was added at the last minute as a kind of decoration. I find that a little offensive. As for the medieval story, the central character there comes across as a prig, and the boy character I just thought was unbelievable. As with so much of today's Middle Ages-inspired literature (think Game of Thrones, Tolkien) the novel is completely humour-free too, when a lot of real Medieval literature is incredibly funny. The fact that this book's author helped set up the Orange Prize only makes me feel less interested in that prize.

I loved this book not only for the fascinating history of Carcassone and the surrounding area but also for the way it was written - through the eyes and ears of two very strong women. (In fact all the women characters in the book are strong women).Alice is a volunteer, who discovers a grave in a cave, and then finds herself embroiled in the intrigue behind an archaeological dig, all happening at the beginning of the 21st century. Alais, in contrast, lives in the same area in the 13th century. Although the story flits between the two time periods, sometimes, it's as if the the two times overlap.The book is full of action - betrayal, love and plotting. The adrenalin coursing through the characters is sometimes passed on to the reader. The twists keep one reading on. A true thriller. The tension is lightened by the threads of love and honorable behaviour.I highly recommend the book.

If you like your female characters swooning at the sight of a naked male thigh, then this book is right up your street. There also seemed to be quite a lot of padding, try reading the first few words of each paragraph for a few pages and you don't get lost from the "plot".I am clearly not target market for this author and won't buy another based on this title, I thought it was that bad. I prefer S J Parris or C J Sansom for my historic fiction.

I first read this when it came out and enjoyed it immensely. Rereading it so many years later I was surprised to find it still engaging for what is really a historical romance and obviously now lacks the suspense element.One odd flaw. I have lived in Languedoc, and until I moved to China was a regular visitor and the route outlined in Chapter 10 when for no apparent reason Alice decides to go from Foix to Carcassonne via Toulouse makes no sense, it is like travelling from Salisbury to Cambridge via Manchester!Otherwise still a good read.

I recently recommended this book to a new book club that has been set up in my area. I had to buy another copy as the one I had, had disappeared. I reread it with some trepidation as I wondered if it was going to be as good as I remembered. I was not disappointed. The consensus in the group was it's a cracking read and Kate Mosse had obviously done her research. Our only criticism was most of us thought the characters could have been developed more. One of the group had read it previously and had been so enthralled that she went for a holiday in the Carcassonne area. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves history and mystery.

As an avid reader of historical novels and those exploring time travel (particularly the Outlander series), I enjoyed the concept of this book enormously. What let it down for me is the extremely poor proofreading of the kindle edition. Typos and omission of opening qoutes for speech, particularly but not exclusively starting with a W ('What… 'Who… 'Why…) made a lot of the sense unintelligible, became a great frustration, and spoilt what might otherwise have been a great read. Editors please take note. My star rating reflects this. Sadly I will not be reading the rest of the trilogy.

I just had to skim read the last half, which was a disappointment. I read this in its entirety when it first came out and I remember enjoying it, I read the burning chambers and loved that. But 2nd time around it didn’t work for me, and one thing I will not do anymore is read for the sake of it. Shame! It kind of got to complicated half way through for me to enjoy, I dont need complicated I just need something that I can pick up and it flows, I get this story, its probably very great, but just not for my brain right now

Labyrinth was given to me by our Church book club. I shuddered at the size of the book, but I was soon engrossed in the story. I have not finished the book yet, but it is one of the most interesting, exciting and beautifully written books I have read for a long time. The way the author is able to swing between the two periods in history with 800 years in between is incredible. The description of the characters in the book are interesting, and as the story progresses the characters become well known and familiar. I cannot speak highly enough of Labyrinth, but it is not a book to be read with a time constraint.