It's November in Bristol, England, it's already really cold, the heat is off in Detective Inspector Liam McLusky's office, and mauled bodies keep turning up in the frozen woods. And, headquarters has decided to remove the unit's coffee-maker as it's obviously too dangerous for detectives to brew their own. The plotting here is fairly formulaic, but the details are fresh and funny and the writing wonderfully sharp. Helton keeps shifting among narrators, requiring David Thorpe to produce an amazing range of accents and voices, and oh, he is up to the task. The Polish cleaning woman with her dark views on the people she cleans up after is minor but typical of the pleasures that abound in this terrific performance.
Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2012
Duration: 10 hrs, 45 mins
Publisher: ISIS Audio Books
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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