Narrator Davina Porter is the highlight of this drawn-out installment in the Isabel Dalhousie mystery series. Dalhousie is sought out by a mother whose young son "discovers" he's lived an earlier life when he visits a lighthouse. Porter portrays Dalhousie enthusiastically as she attempts to help the family, particularly when the child expresses a wish to die and return to his former life. Spirited descriptions of lighthouses and their surroundings bring Scotland's wild seashore vividly to life. However, Dalhousie's detailed musings about EVERYTHING--well rendered but very intrusive--make the mystery a minor part of the story. Listeners will be disappointed by the contrived solution to the mystery, although Porter's deft presentation may be some consolation.
Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2015
Duration: 8 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9781464035586
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Novelist Benet Archdale and housemaid Carol Stratford are two young, single parents who have no reason to know each other. They become tangled in a nightmarish spiral of kidnap, fraud, family violence and death. Ruth Rendell creates psychological suspense in thrillers that are compulsively readable or, in this case, listenable. British actress Imelda Staunton's reading is perfectly paced, and the characters are well defined. You'll have a hard time turning it off.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 9 hrs
Publisher: BBC Audiobooks America/ Chivers
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Emerson and Peabody are at it again! Uncovering antiquities takes a back-seat as the romantic archaeologists track down the master criminal who is stealing Egypt's ancient treasures. With the help of their precocious son, Ramses, the intrepid pair unravel this mystery in crowded bazaars, desert camps and the heart of the Black Pyramid. Barbara Rosenblat's reading fully measures up to the tale. She is a master of timing and nuance. Rosenblat's power for character interpretation has grown with each book in this amusing series. This is the best one yet.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 12 hrs
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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