Stephen Kelly has joined the growing ranks of crime writers who craft murder mysteries featuring sensitive, intellectual police inspectors who solve gruesome deaths in charming English villages. Like others in this subgenre, this novel's pace is relaxed, and time is spent developing characters and exploring relationships. The abundance of villagers--aristocrats, sheep farmers, urchins, wounded soldiers, orphans, and an alcoholic police sergeant--gives narrator Shaun Grindell a splendid opportunity to make each character unique and credible. In addition, Grindell delivers the narrative in a clear, straightforward manner. The author is fortunate to have his debut novel read by such an accomplished narrator.
Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2015
Duration: 10 hrs, 15 mins
Publisher: Tantor Media
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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