By Any Other Name, Erin Cotter
By Any Other Name, Erin Cotter
List: $26.99 | Sale: $18.89
Club: $13.49

By Any Other Name

Author: Erin Cotter

Narrator: James Meunier

Unabridged: 12 hr 29 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 10/10/2023


Synopsis

“A high-stakes, high-drama mystery…led by a plucky, determined hero I would have followed anywhere…[A] romantic, delightful romp!” —Mackenzi Lee, New York Times bestselling author of A Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue

A down-on-his-luck actor and an English lord reluctantly team up to solve the murder of Christopher Marlowe in this Shakespearean-era “quippy, heart-wrenching debut…ideal for fans of Mackenzi Lee and F.T. Lukens” (Kirkus Reviews).

London, 1593. Sixteen-year-old Will Hughes is busy working on Shakespeare’s stage, stuffing his corsets with straw and pretending to be someone else. Offstage, he’s playing a part, too. The son of traitors, Will is desperate to keep his identity secret—or risk being killed in the bloody queen’s imperial schemes. All he wants is to lay low until he earns enough coin to return to his family.

But when his mentor, the famous playwright Christopher Marlowe, is murdered under mysterious circumstances, Will’s plans are hopelessly dashed. What’s worse, Marlowe was a spy for the queen, tasked with stalking a killer rumored to be part of an elusive order of assassins, and his secrets and untimely death have put Will under a harsh spotlight. Then, when Will unwittingly foils an attempt on the queen’s life, she names him her next spymaster.

Now, to avoid uncomfortable questions, prison, or an even more terrible fate, Will reluctantly starts his new career, which—yes—will secure him the resources to help his family…but at what cost? Adding insult to injury is the young Lord James Bloomsbury, Will’s new comrade in arms, whose entitled demeanor and unfairly handsome looks get under Will’s skin immediately.

Together, the two hunt the cunning assassin, defend the queen’s life, and pray to keep their own...all while an unexpected connection blossoms between them.

About Erin Cotter

Erin Cotter writes young adult fiction. Originally from Buffalo, New York, she currently calls Austin home. When not writing, she spends time with her partner and pets, eating tacos, and searching for Golden-cheeked Warblers in the Texas Hill Country.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Kristi on October 31, 2023

This was my most recent randomly chosen audiobook (thanks #19 💜). I don’t think I would have ever chosen this book, but I am glad I am trying new genres. I thought this was well written and interesting, especially once I discovered it was Erin Cotter’s first book. Well done! Loved the cover. I loved......more

Goodreads review by akacya ❦ on July 03, 2024

2024 reads: 186/250 2024 tbr: 75/120 set in london in 1593, by any other name follows will hughes, an actor, and lord james bloomsbury as they work together to keep the queen from being assassinated. i very rarely read books set this long ago, but this cover was too gorgeous and the premise too interes......more

Goodreads review by Jes on November 04, 2023

WHAT a delightful romp of a book. I’m a sucker for a prickly protagonist and Elias more than delivered on that front—I love how suspicious and damaged he is at the beginning and how much he slowly softens/allows himself to open up over the course of the novel as he learns to trust James. The spy/int......more

Goodreads review by Dilly on September 22, 2023

this book had no right hurting me the way that it did. full rtc.......more

Goodreads review by Krystal on July 11, 2023

Zounds! BY ANY OTHER NAME by Erin Cotter is a delightful romance full of hope and humor that flourishes against the backdrop of Elizabethan England. Complete with players, pirates, and plots, Cotter weaves an adventure that draws the reader in from the first page. Will Hughes, the anti-hero, finds m......more


Quotes

"Meunier’s narration adds to the novel’s rich atmosphere as he differentiates between upper- and working-class English accents, gives voice to Irish pirates, and delivers every exclamation of “Zounds!” with relish."