The Ash Tree  By  cover art

The Ash Tree

By: M. R. James
Narrated by: David Suchet

Publisher's summary

The tale of a man who unwittingly angers a sorcerer, who is assumed by some Monty scholars to be based on the self-styled 'Great Beast,' occultist Aleister Crowley.

Montague Rhodes James was a noted British mediaeval scholar and provost of King's College, Cambridge (1905–1918) and of Eton College (1918–1936). He is best remembered for his ghost stories which are widely regarded as among the finest in English literature.

One of James's most important achievements was to redefine the ghost story for the new century by dispensing with many of the formal Gothic trappings of his predecessors, and replacing them with more realistic contemporary settings.

'Montague Rhodes James has an intelligent and scientific knowledge of human nerves and feelings; and knows just how to apportion statement, imagery, and subtle suggestions in order to secure the best results with his readers.' HP Lovecraft.

Actor David Suchet is best known for his definitive portrayal of Hercule Poirot, the Belgian detective created by the legendary mystery author Agatha Christie, in a number of international television productions. He narrates his story in Poirot and Me.

©1904 M. R. James (P)2013 Audible Ltd

What listeners say about The Ash Tree

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Ggy

Guy guy ugh bought in my m mind has madam as a. A as as A as

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3 people found this helpful

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

Wonderful performance.

The narrator was superb as always.
MR James never fails to create a captivating story.

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2 people found this helpful

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

Entertaining

I’m trying to check out some of the short stories offered in the plus catalog for a break before I get to my normal selections. This was another quick listen that served its purpose.

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1 person found this helpful

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

NOPE! POOR NARRATION RUINS THIS ONE

So hard to get past the way the narrator drags out every single “s”! Some people just shouldn’t narrate stories. Intonations made it difficult to concentrate on the story.

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1 person found this helpful

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

Just looking out my window

Observing the surroundings of ash trees as I gaze out the window and finish the dishes. Perfect short little creepy crawler of a story!

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

Not at all what I was expecting

It was mortifying
The story was stomach churning and the narration was … well bland and no
Flavor at all
I don’t read reviews or descriptions in detail because I don’t want to spoil the story for myself, but this just was awful

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

Masterfully written

Short story written by one of the masters!
I’ve always enjoyed M.R. James and his craft for writing books in a Victorian style.
These treasured authors of old are invaluable.
The story is interesting, and the performance was excellent.

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

A Great Classic Ghost Story

I love Suchet’s work as Poirot, but this was the first time I’d heard him narrate literature. Spectacular performance, as expected. This was also my first taste of M.R. James. I liked this story and will read more.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Chills on Chills! So visual!

Wow! I am such a fan of M. R .James now. You can almost see the authors who took inspiration from him. What is better than a creepy tree, mysterious deaths, witches and catching movement out of the corner of your eye? For such a short story, this felt like it was three times as long. Time seemed to slow in the creepy parts, which is most of it. The narration is wonderful and fits this story perfectly! I have listened to three of these stories now ( and this will not by last) they feel like the twilight zones, the good ones! A+

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

Old school story about witches

This was an old school story about witches. Nice basic short story. I'm not sure I would really consider it a mystery / thriller though.

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