Lady Rose is bored with her life of privilege and decides to join the working class. She and her maid, Daisy, work as bank typists and live in a dreary hostel for women. Narrator Davina Porter gives each of Chesney's characters his or her own snobbish or down-to-earth personality. Her delivery of background material possesses all the emotion, indignity, or delight warranted. Soon Rose is on the trail of a murderer, an adventure that returns her to high society. En route, she and Daisy encounter fanatical vegetarians and other eccentrics. Chesney, who is also M.C. Beaton, creator of Agatha Raisin and Hamish Macbeth, brings humorous intrigue and a mocking class-consciousness to this engaging Edwardian mystery.
Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2006
Duration: 6 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9780792746041
Publisher: AudioGo
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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