A Cold Dark Place cover art

A Cold Dark Place

An Emily Kenyon Thriller, Book 1

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A Cold Dark Place

Written by: Gregg Olsen
Narrated by: Karen Peakes
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In a secluded farm house in the Pacific Northwest, a family has been slaughtered - and a teenage son has disappeared. Single mother and cop Emily Kenyon spearheads a dark hunt for a killer. But Emily's teenage daughter, Jenna, is one step ahead of her. Then another family is butchered, and another. As Emily fits the puzzle pieces together, she makes a chilling discovery: The killer is coming after her and her daughter....

Contains mature themes.

©2008 Gregg Olsen (P)2020 Tantor Crime Thrillers Detective Fiction Mystery Police Procedural Suspense Thriller Thriller & Suspense Women Sleuths Women's Fiction
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All stars
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Loved this book book good narrating and keep you on your toes Spell bounding Exciting And worth listening to

A cold dark place

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Absolutely loved this book. The characters, the storyline, the twists and turns; all made out for a wonderful read. Highly recommend.

Amazing Book!

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The story line was fast paced, detailed, and the author painted an amazing picture. The narrator did a fantastic job with an the characters. Looking forward to book #2!

Great story, keeps you thinking

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The story had some great twist and turns. characters were very relatable.

the ketchup packet situation was probably the most surprising bit of information

ketchup packets

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The characters in this Gregg Olsen Mystery-Thriller are almost shockingly authentic. Olsen writes dialogue that readers/listeners could imagine being overheard: these people are living the events and we just happen to be witnessing their trials & tribulations.
Less fortunately, Olsen's characters - from self-obsessed investigators to quibbling ex-spouses to bafflingly secretive high school students - are straight-up contemptible. If I met these people in real life, I would walk in the other direction. I couldn't really get into the plot because I could not care less what happened to any of them.

As to presentation: Reader Karen Peakes is decidedly professional with regard to diction, timbre, cadence, and pacing - and her understanding of the author's intended tone is truly commendable - but her voice-acting repertoire is disappointingly cartoonish. Her false-basso "husky" male character portrayals, for example, are often legitimately cringeworthy. This recording is "adequate" at best.

Altogether, 'A Cold Dark Place' merits 5 stars out of 10. It's a reasonable way to spend a couple of quiet afternoons if you find it in the 'Plus' catalog, but not worth a Credit.

[NOTE: I had considered listening to the next book in the 'Emily Kenyon' series of Crime Thrillers (likewise free) based on Olsen's effective hyperrealistic exposition style.. but the protagonist is so strikingly unlikeable that strong plotting/writing can't overcome my reservations. Maybe you'll have more luck?]

Not Terrible

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