Donna

Complex and satisfying story. Very enjoyable

Reviewed: 11-03-24

This is an excellent addition to the DC Smith stories. They all seem like old friends now & I await each release impatiently. The story again is complex & satisfying, and I enjoyed every minute. Narration as usual is impeccable. It’s interesting because there’s a line in the story saying that if you change narrators during a series, your fans will be very upset. I hope this means Gildart Jackson is in for the long haul.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

This series shows some promise, but needs work

Reviewed: 09-17-24

The story has glimpses of the wit, warmth and humour of the Thursday Murder Club series, but that's all. Not sure whether it's the narrator or the writing, but one of the main characters - Amy - has no affect at all and so it's hard to feel anything for her. There are a huge number of characters, and a few that were completely unnecessary in my opinion. The device of explaining to the reader what is going on works well with Joyce's diary in TMC, but is less effective with the emails from Francoise. The ending was unsatisfying and felt contrived. While the situation in TMC is not completely realistic, the characters are. That is what is missing from this story. I would probably listen to the next book in the series, if one is done, but I'm looking forward to the next TMC club.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

Not one of her best

Reviewed: 09-10-24

The narration was patchy. Vera’s voice was clear and as expected, but the accents for the others were quite odd at times. In terms of the story, I’ve recently listened to the inspector Ramsay series and this felt more like one of them - where everything is kept to the end and it finishes quite abruptly. The Vera stories used not to be like that. I’ll read the next one when it comes out, but I’m hoping a bit more thought goes into it.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

Boring and predictable

Reviewed: 08-31-24

I find it hard to believe Dervla McTiernan actually wrote this drivel. I've read her other books and this is nothing like them - they were good. The story is incredibly slow, with seemingly dozens of POV for each chapter. Nothing much happens - you know what happened to Nina in the first 10 minutes and the rest is just endless introspection and sadness and dumb decisions.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

One book too many

Reviewed: 05-25-24

I’ve read all the books in this series and have noticed the stories getting less and less believable. I know it’s fictional but the early stories were really good, this one was not. The main thing I disliked was the dialogue - the characters I’d come to think I knew have turned into wise cracking idiots, trying to be funny. The premise of the story is ridiculous, and there are mistakes with names and back stories that are just annoying. Scott Brick does his best and is always good, but his Aussie accent is dreadful.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

Unrelieved depression and literally no plot

Reviewed: 07-31-23

I tried to like this book, Barbara Kingsolver has written some of my favorite books. This was not one of them. The story - such as it is (and I have to say I only listened to 10 hours) is about a boy, whose life is one of unrelieved sadness and hardship. I kept hoping anything good would happen to him, but at the halfway point I just gave up. Life is too short for this. The narrator has only one voice - a rough southern twang that really grated. There was not a single character I liked, including the boy, and the first 10 hours are all happening from when he is 9 to 11.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

Sorry when it ended

Reviewed: 06-13-23

I could have continued to listen to this amazingly detailed and beautifully written story for much longer than it lasted. At first I was concerned that a narration by the author would not be as entertaining as from a more experienced person. I was so wrong, the narration was excellent and entirely appropriate. I just loved this story, as I did “Cutting for stone”, still one of my favourite books.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

Loved the back story, plot and characters perfectly created as usual

Reviewed: 02-14-23

Sean Barrett’s narration was excellent as well. The Christmas short story was very unsatisfying & way too short, so was lovely to find this gem.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

Interesting story, astonishing ending

Reviewed: 07-21-21

Spoiler alert:
I cannot believe the ending of this book. For 6 books now we've followed Evan, trying to be a human, craving companionship and relationships. Finally he finds his only relatives in the world, and then leaves them in a crappy house in a dreadful neighborhood and doesn't share any of his millions with them. I couldn't believe it, what was Gregg Hurwitz thinking??? It's possible something happens in the next book, but most of them tie up quite neatly at the end. Evan is looking for responsibility and he now has 3 people/families that he could connect with and make a life, but he chooses to keep "working". It's the way to keep the franchise going, but sometimes you need to know when to stop. Ultimately unsatisfying and unbelievable.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

Interesting premise poorly executed

Reviewed: 07-01-21

Narrators were both bad. The male voices had very little to distinguish them & the accents were dreadful. The female voice was so soft I had to change the volume every time she was speaking. The story was interesting initially but almost science fiction like eventually and the ending was not convincing. This is not a patch on the author’s subsequent work.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!