Vivien Tarkirk-Smith

Unusual, well written and read

Revisado: 10-15-20

I was very impressed both by the excellent writing and the reading. Irish accents are well portrayed, soft and well differentiated. The story of a retired American cop who gets involved, against his better judgement, in solving a missing person case for a local child is well described. It is a new view on a "case", set in a remote Irish village and is a refreshing change from the run-of-the-mill mystery. I thoroughly recommend this audiobook, a satisfying long read with beautiful descriptions of the countryside, weather, etc, and excellent reading.

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Innovative and original Irish whodunnit

Revisado: 06-15-19

Dervla McTiernan is a new writer to me and both this book and The Ruin which I listened to recently are excellent. These are unusual stories, very well written and life is very irritating when it interrupts listening. If you have listened to all the others and are looking for a new author to follow I highly recommend this one, and hope she is a fast writer, as I am impatiently waiting for the next one. I must also add that the soft Irish accent of the excellent reader Aoife McMahon is charming and very pleasant to listen to.

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Not the best.

Revisado: 05-03-19

This is the third time I have come across a reader who always says "a" to rhyme with "hay" instead of "fluff". It drives you crazy. Readers must STOP doing this. Another reader always said "thee" for "the", never "thuh" which is how most of us pronounce "the".
The story is not like most Peter Diamond books, in that it is mostly bout the protagonist, less about the detection. Not the best, but we addicts will accept anything with Peter Diamond in it.

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Unusual true wartime story

Revisado: 04-10-19

The reader is British (as am I) but I found it very irritating that he adopted an accent from the north of England when reporting the speech of Germans. I would have preferred fake German accents. This really put me off the book. It is a novel based on the true story of the author's in-laws and is quite unusual. It is good to read of those Germans who quietly resisted the nazi regime - we can't blame them all. It is time we acknowledged their courage.

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Bad narrator

Revisado: 03-28-19

I haven't finished it yet but really I have to tell you to watch out for this narrator. She is jerky and staccato and drives me crazy. I feel as if I am being peppered with buckshot as she speaks. I will try to get through it and comment on the story when I have finished it.

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American author posing as a Brit.

Revisado: 08-28-18

I'm returning this book. I have only got a few chapters in and the use of "hood" for a car bonnet and pronunciation of "khaki" as "kakki" have already got my hackles up. The accents are OK, the reader giving appropriate accents to British and American characters, but if a book is set in the UK it shouldn't be altered for the benefit of Americans. Perhaps the American author is ignorant of certain things, in which case, set your stories in America.

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Irritating

Revisado: 09-17-17

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

This book might appeal to someone who likes romances. It is very lightweight, despite being set in wartime and code breakers.

Would you ever listen to anything by Rhys Bowen again?

No.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

For one thing, she must be very young as she pronounced "aerodrome" as "aerodome" every time the word came up. I know it is an oldfashioned expression these days, but READ the words properly! Where is the editor? French words also not properly enunciated.

Any additional comments?

If I had not taken so long to start listening to this book I would have asked for a refund.

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A fun book

Revisado: 01-19-17

Any additional comments?

I adore Trevor Noah, he is a mischievous pixie on television. The book is not particularly funny although it contains many amusing incidents, but it was so interesting to learn about life in South Africa for a mixed race child. I would have been interested to know how he found his way from there to hosting an important television programme in the USA, but that was not included. A fun listen.

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Don't shout!

Revisado: 01-19-17

How could the performance have been better?

This narrator delivers the story as if reading it in a large stadium. With a microphone inches from his mouth he delivers the words like sports commentators on TV. I do dislike being shouted at. I must add, however, that he does well with the female voices, something not all male readers do well.

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Better read the book

Revisado: 10-15-15

Would you try another book from The Great Courses and/or Professor Edwin Barnhart?

I'm an information junkie so I am very interested in academic books.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Absolutely. I pity the poor students in class having to listen to this very unattractive voice. I think "The Great Courses" should consider asking actors to read when the author is so hard to listen to. I must admit to being British educated and acutely aware of the way people speak, but many Americans have lovely gentle easygoing voices. This kind of voice is harsh, fast and grating.

Did Lost Worlds of South America inspire you to do anything?

I was already inspired to visit Peru so I can't say it influenced me.

Any additional comments?

I did listen to a sample of his voice, but hoped the content would overcome it. Unfortunately it did not.

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