Norma Harris

Not my cup of tea

Reviewed: 04-06-24

Could not find one sympathetic character with whom to identify. Steele in particular is a caricature. Judging from their language, everybody has a scatological fixation— with the possible exception of Samantha. Just couldn’t figure out why I was trying to get through it since it didn’t seem to be making me a smarter, happier, or better informed person. MacBride is an excellent narrator—I mean that sincerely.

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Good characterizations and camouflage of the villain till the end

Reviewed: 12-27-23

I have read two novels in this series and am looking forward to more. Particularly enjoyed the development in this book of the relationship between Bracken and his father and the introduction of the new boss, Cara, who interests me more than any of the other regular female characters encountered so far. A read well worth your time.

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Makes the reader work

Reviewed: 11-02-23

I almost gave up on this one early on when I realized how much of it consists of transcripts of twitter dialogue. I found it hard to distinguish between characters and make sense of what they were talking about. kept going, though, and reached a point where I could understand why the author had chosen that structure, but readers need to be prepared to work to get the full pleasure of this book. continue to love this series and the main characters.

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Good start

Reviewed: 10-26-23

I enjoyed the story and hadn’t spotted the culprit before that person was revealed, nor did I foresee the tie-in between the two crimes. I saw Price as the main protagonist rather than Pengolly. Perhaps that prevented Cavendish and Walker from coming up on my screen as much as they seem to have done on others’.

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Ready for Book Number 2

Reviewed: 10-24-23

So happy to find a new series from a writer I have followed for years. Looking forward to getting closely acquainted with the Isle of Skye and its denizens.

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1 person found this helpful

Smooth Tartan Noir

Reviewed: 09-11-23

This enjoyable series is good for readers who love crime stories set in Scotland but are bored or annoyed by the rough language and expletives that pepper many other series in the genre. Interesting plot twists and well developed characters. The author narrates some of the books, but a A Blind Eye's narrator also does a fine job.

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Great series

Reviewed: 08-28-23

I‘ve read every book in this series and always pre-order the next in line whenever it comes on the market. The main character’s thought processes are made so clear and easy to get in tune with. Interesting, believable characters and plot delivered by the perfect narrator for D C Smith.

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Always worth reading

Reviewed: 08-23-23

This is one of my all-time favorite series, and it was thrilling to discover another book continuing the story of Hero and Sebastian. Love the attention to getting the historical background right.
Wonderful characters.

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Whispering Dan

Reviewed: 08-13-23

I love this series and plan to finish it. The listening experience on this one was a bit of a challenge, as the male lead's dialogue was rendered in such a low volume whisper that I had to keep going over it to absorb all his lines. The narrator is generally great, and I particularly find her voicing of Kat Holloway fabulous, and had not noticed a problem with Daniel's voicing in previous volumes. I guess she was going for a more masculine effect, but suggest she try a different technique that doesn't sacrifice volume.

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Too much fair Doyle

Reviewed: 08-04-23

Anne Cleveland writes beautifully, but after reading t number of the Acton and Doyle books I find myself getting really tired of the presentation of Doyle. I'm not sure whether this is more attributable to the writing or the performance, but I wish there were a way to pull back a bit on Doyle's heavy b rogue and frequent references to her under education and allow the character to show more growth and change. When I purchased this book after a long hiatus from the series, I had forgotten how annoying I had begun to find her, and regretted having spent a credit this way. The other characters are fine, and the plots are interesting though it's sometimes difficult to sort out what's describing Doyle's psychic perceptions from what's apparent to others. Would keep going in the series if Doyle ceased to be a caricature.

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