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  • Songbird

  • Kings Lake Investigation Series, Book 1
  • Written by: Peter Grainger
  • Narrated by: Gildart Jackson
  • Length: 15 hrs and 56 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (231 ratings)

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Songbird cover art

Songbird

Written by: Peter Grainger
Narrated by: Gildart Jackson
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Publisher's Summary

"He saw a bare arm first, the hand palm up with fingers curled inwards. Then he stopped and took a few breaths. He could hear the two constables making arrangements before they separated, one saying he'd bring the other some tape from the car, and then it was just the summer morning quiet again."

Detective Sergeant Chris Waters got the call at 05.29 that July morning. This is it, said DCI Reeve, you'll be first there, it's all yours, you're the crime scene manager. Suddenly, after months of waiting and wondering, Waters finds himself in at the deep end, and alone at the scene of a puzzling murder.

As the investigation proceeds, the detectives at Kings Lake Central find themselves visiting familiar places and talking to some familiar faces, while old enmities reappear in the incident room. Before this is over, Chris Waters will need to make a career-changing decision, and another member of the CID team will find herself facing an unexpected challenge. And Smith? Gone but not forgotten? Surely, he would say, you cannot write me off with a worn-out cliche like that....

©2019 Peter Grainger (P)2019 Tantor

What listeners say about Songbird

Average Customer Ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    139
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    15
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Performance
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    47
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Story
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    133
  • 4 Stars
    54
  • 3 Stars
    19
  • 2 Stars
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    8

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Spectacular

I read this the first one and it is awesome. I have read all the other books with the whole group and cried at the last one, however I cried for happy at this one……I won’t spoil it but it is great news…..the mystery is great, the characters hold you like friends and family, you will totally enjoy this.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Solid police procedural series with excellent narration

Started with DC Smith series and pleased to continue with this one. Very well written and excellent character development. Narration was great - can make or break a book for me and this narrator did an excellent job.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Impressive writing and performance.

Peter Grainger is a new author for me, but it's easy to see people are more than satisfied with his police procedural novels. I felt a bit in the dark for perhaps the first couple of hours. The time spent at the crime scene was, well, it was unusual for a reader or listener such as myself. Having heard the whole novel, I can better appreciate why: The cast of characters is perhaps a bit crowded. But you soon realize that there are no superfluous characters. I really found DS Waters a likable and interesting guy, and I definitely want to follow his career. From what I gather, he must be in Grainger's DC Smith series of books, and I may have to get one of those next time I purchase a novel by Grainger. Gildart Jackson was sensational in his reading. Male or female, he brought those characters to life. He is a pro.
Some bothers: Yes, it is a bit of a long book, and my attention did flag more than a few times, but I never felt I was missing out on something of great significance. No spoilers, but once it became evident who truly was the guilty party, I began to hope for a good twist or some eye opening reason for the crime. It doesn't occur.
The audio itself is nicely produced except for some amateur distractions - such as the narrator turning the pages of his script. And, believe it or not, a police siren is "Audible" in the background at 7:20 of chapter 41. Come on!

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Not my favourite

I am a huge fan of the DC Smith series so I was hopeful that Songbird would lead into another enjoyable series. Overall, this book did not have the charm and humour that the DC Smith books have.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Kept my attention

I love a good procedural but sometimes they do drone on. Not this one.

My attention was held from the first to the last and I’ve downloaded the next.

Highly recommend.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
  • glo
  • 2024-01-28

The narrator is phenomenal . Thepathothogist, made me think of James Robertson Justice, immediately.

I like the continuation of the characters. Peter Grainger is a great story teller. smith, waters , Butler thhey are all great.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Interesting story, great performance

A very King's Lake story, full of new stars and old friends. The performance is spot on and the writing is as crisp and lively as ever. Can't wait for the next one!

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Narrators

Couldn’t get past the narration long enough to get into the story. Couldn’t stay with the story line

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Good story

New to this author and the series. Overall a good listen, the production quality and narration were good. The story didn't grab me at first and felt like a long slog to get through it, but started to come together after a while. I wound up enjoying the deliberate interweaving of the case itself and the office politics and the characters' psychology even though it felt a bit overdone at first. That whole subplot about the girlfriend moving away and the ex girlfriend getting in contact seemed to have the potential for a more interesting development or resolution but turned out to be just filler. But at the end of the day, glad I picked it up.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Entertaining

I thought the story itself had too many details - yet those same details appeared later as vital clues. The plot was not difficult to figure out, it is the unwinding that creates interest and anticipation. There are a lot of characters with some depth that could have been better represented in the performance, but overall it was enjoyable.

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