mudcelt

A middle of the road cozy mystery

Revisado: 11-22-23

This book was a reasonable way to pass the time, I loved many details, like a supporting characters cats all having names from Austen's novels, but there are several small continuity details that really pulled me out of the story: timelines got muddled, odd details were included or omitted without relevance to moving plot or characterization forward, and, most annoying to me, it seems very clear that author doesn't really understand how much work goes into running a small business. Our protagonist closes her shop at noon on a Saturday to go on a ramble on the moors, and it's mentioned that most of her sales are done online yet she never has to list books or answer emails or pack and ship them or any of the hundreds of other tasks that being self employed requires. As someone who listens to cozy mysteries while running her own small business this was exasperating. Also, the plot itself seemed muddled and overly reliant on coincidence or implausible skill sets (a 10 year old hacking an email account which apparently the police bother to investigate?) If the series was free I might continue listening but I'm not willing to put any more money or credits or time into this, which is a pity as I loved the premise and the setting.

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New narrator isn't well suited

Revisado: 10-21-22

I really enjoyed the first two books in this series, but this new narrator just doesn't fit this series. I usually can adjust to a new voice in a series but the protagonist in these books is a lady "of a certain age" (mid 50s) and the new voice is just too youthful. I did get past it by pretending that the protagonist's niece or great niece was reading the book to me, but I still was bothered enough to write this review. (to be clear, the new narrator is quite competent, just too young for THIS series)
Still worth listening for the nice sense of time & place & the complex characters - I especially appreciate how the main characters are capable of changing their opinions based on compassion & experiences. I hope there are more books, but with an older female voice reading, please and thank you.

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An unexpected delight

Revisado: 07-07-22

I purchased this book as a daily deal, because it seemed diverting and it was the cost of a fancy latte, then I promptly forgot about it for months. When I finally got around to listening I really wasn't sure what to expect - I wound up falling hard for the quiet charms of this story.
This is a character driven ramble that sometimes takes us on side quests that don't seem relevant to the overall plot, though I'm hoping some of them might come to feature in future books.
There's no sex or romance, only glancingly referenced violence, no murder even, but I loved the world building, characters and friendships, and I really hope to spend more time with these characters at Shackleford House.
The only thing thar could have improved upon this delightful book would have been the addition of a quirky cat or dog, but I feel as if I just read Jeeves origin story, if Jeeves had been a time traveler. The writing is solid - it doesn't soar the way Wodehouse does, but I care much more for these characters than I ever did about Bertie Wooster and Jeeves. Less shenanigans, more nuanced character development and world building.
Overall, a really satisfying listen - I heartily recommend it and hope the next book come out soon.

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Sadly, doesn't live up to intriguing potentials

Revisado: 12-31-16

This is the only book in this series that I've listened to and I won't be going on. I love the narrator and I've really enjoyed the mysteries written by the actual Josephine Tey but I struggled to get through this book. I wanted to like the story, but there was just so much sitting around and talking. And I say that as a lover of classic golden age mysteries. I usually love details and setting and deep background but in this book it all seemed to be superfluous padding and an unnecessary and unwelcome extension of a surprisingly boring premise. I wouldn't waste a credit on this book. Instead, listen to some of Ngaio March's classic theater mysteries like Enter a Murderer or Night at the Vulcan.

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Solid Pastiche Destroyed by Horrible Narrator.

Revisado: 08-23-16

I've really enjoyed Goldsborough's continuation of the Nero Wolfe series even if the narrator of the previous Goldsborough books wasn't as good as Michael Pritchard. It was pleasant to spend time back in the brownstone with Nero, Archie and the rest of the regular crowd. And the narrator of the previous Goldsborough books wasn't Pritchard, but he wasn't terrible either.

But there's a different narrator for this book (Peter Berkrot instead of L J Ganser) and I HATED him. He made both Archie Goodwin and Nero Wolfe sound terrible, like sneering condescending actors who hate the lines they're forced to speak. The narrator drops in and out of a travesty of a southern accent at random and that probably the least objectionable thing in his performance. Perhaps he'd be decent for a different series, but I won't listen to him ever again to find out. The only reason I didn't stop listening to the book and return it was because I was desperate to spend time with Archie and Nero Wolfe, I've already listened to literally everything else Audible has from both Rex Stout and Robert Goldsborough and I didn't have the time to read as opposed to listen to the book.

Don't make the mistake I did. Re-listen to one of Michael Pritchard's masterpieces or revisit earlier books from Robert Goldsborough, but this book with this narrator is not worth your time or your money.

Buy or download the actual book and read it for yourself if you can: the plot is decent and the characters are solid, I loved that we got to spend a bit more time with Archie and Lily Rowan, but don't make the mistake I did. The narrator ruined an otherwise solid book for me.

I'm off to have Michael Pritchard sooth me with the beginnings of Archie & Lily's friendship. I'm going to re-listen to Some Burried Ceasar and then maybe Death of a Dude. Summertime with LaRowan, with Pritchard reading, please and thanks.

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Sometimes it's better to go without...

Revisado: 05-16-15

I've recently had to stop eating gluten and so I've started exploring gluten free breads and pastries. Sometimes they're almost as good as the original but other times they're so disappointing that I'd rather go without.
I discovered Robert Goldsborough's continuation of Rex Stout's most enduring characters when I'd exhausted Audible's extensive collection of Rex Stout's original stories. And the first few of Mr Goldsborough's books were quite satisfying. Almost as good to my ears as the original series. But then this winter I listened again to most of my Rex Stout stories. And afterwards, this latest book just came up short for me. The fact that reader isn't Michael Pritchard doesn't help at all, though that didn't bother me with Goldsborough's earlier books. I really don't like how Fritz, Saul and Fred are portrayed and I don't know who's more to blame, the reader or the author. There are also pretty glaring flaws with the plot of this book. Archie and Wolfe have to overlook some very obvious clues for the action to move forward. And don't get me started about the implications Goldsborough makes about Archie and Lilly's relationship. Though it does happen at the very end of the book, so you don't have to suffer that indignity, at least, til the bitter end.
Overall, while I would generally recommend Goldsborough to Wolfe starved readers out there, I have to advise that you give this particular episode a miss. I do hope the series continues, but I also hope that it get closer to the stronger first few volumes.

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Russell and Holmes in Japan and Oxford

Revisado: 04-04-15

Delightful. A nice combination of the exotic and familiar. I have a renewed interest in exploring the nuances of Japanese culture and was delighted to be immersed in the world of between the wars British upper class.

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Timely, beautiful, terrible and haunting

Revisado: 11-02-09

Now more than ever, I am recommending that everyone I know listen to this book. It is an amazing, satisfying, beautiful and terrible story mostly about a time traveler who is trapped in a small medieval village that is stricken by the plague. Meanwhile, current day Oxfordshire is also suffering from an especially virulent flu and attendant quarantine. The book was written in 1992 and much of the action takes place in a squalid, medieval village and yet it is all terribly timely. The characters and setting are beautifully written and this is one of the most moving books I've ever had the pleasure of reading or listening to.
Three more selling points for this great book: 1) I love a good, long book from Audible and "Doomsday" is a wonderful 26 hours and 30 minuets of listening to one of my favorite narrators, Jenny Sterlin. 2) "Doomsday won a Hugo Award in 93 and Nebula Award in 92 and 3) Connie Willis has written another book with some of the same characters that is much lighter in tone yet still very worth reading and a good way to recover from the terrible, searing beauty of "The Doomsday Book". That other book is also available on Audible :"To Say Nothing of the Dog"
Listen to "Doomsday" first, save "To Say Nothing of the Dog" to cheer you up and you can then finish off with Jerome K Jerome's sweetly funny "Three Men in a Boat". There- I've just come up with a great plan for your next 50 or hours of Audible listening. You can thank me later. After you've thoroughly enjoyed all of these amazing books.

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esto le resultó útil a 328 personas