Kate Reading's performance is elegant, cool, and beautifully responsive to the text in this tenth and apparently last outing for Hanne Wilhelmsen, a cranky Norwegian master detective in a wheelchair who must investigate remotely via an able-bodied partner, as Nero Wolfe or Perry Mason did. The fact that Hanne is married to a woman and has a child adds complexity to her situation, as does the balky personality of her partner, detective Henrik Holme. There's no need to have read earlier installments to understand or relish the plot, in which apparently unrelated tragedies, the long ago death of a child, the suicide of a lesbian right-wing blogger, and the kidnapping of a lottery winner's grandchild, converge for a nerve-shredding climax. Nordic noir at its best.
Pub Date: July 31, 2018
Duration: 13 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781982538293
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
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
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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