Miriam King

Portrait of an Unhappy Marriage

Revisado: 08-06-18

Family Matters is not a traditional whodunnit, with a crime committed at the beginning and a perpetrator unmasked at the end. Rather, this enjoyably sardonic tale from the golden age of British detective fiction portrays ongoing attempts to kill off an annoying character, from the perspective of the perpetrator, and leaves us wondering how things will end (somewhat in the tradition of Frances Iles' "Malice Aforethought.") Characters are distinctive and sharply drawn, particularly in the portrayal of a deeply unhappy marriage. Dark humor runs through the work, from the opening description of the shambolic layout of the country town setting to the closing lines. Highly enjoyable.

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Annoying narration

Revisado: 06-15-18

This book has a narrator whose mannered, over-dramatic style was extremely annoying and odd. He raises his voice in a questioning tone for no clear reason and seems to think that that old-fashioned prose style calls for weird delivery, with an affected accent, rising and fall tones, and excessive emphases. Background sound effects of wind, waves, and seabirds are distracting. I have no difficulty enjoying books written in earlier centuries, from Greek tragedies to Victorian novels, but the narrator made this unbearable and hard to understand. I might have enjoyed this with a different narrator or as written text, but I found this book ruined by poor narration.

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Dull, dull, dull

Revisado: 04-15-18

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

Nothing other than a different author could have made this book enjoyable. I like 19th century literature in general, and ghost stories in particular, but very little happens in these stories, and what does happen is more "odd" than "scary." The narrators are fine, but the material is poor.

What was most disappointing about Mary Louisa Molesworth’s story?

There is no suspense and nothing scary--"no there there." The stories generally have a long dragging prelude to any action, and the conclusion is disappointing.

Would you listen to another book narrated by Robert Bethune and Susie Berneis ?

The narrators were okay; the fault lies with the author.

What character would you cut from Mrs. Molesworth's Ghost Stories?

None of the characters were memorable enough for me to even recall their names. None were worthwhile.

Any additional comments?

Readers looking for 1i9th and early 20th century ghost stories would do better reading such works by Edith Wharton, Charles Dickens, M.R. James, Kipling, and others, not Mrs. Molesworth.

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