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Except the Dying
- A Murdoch Mystery, Book 1
- Narrated by: David Marantz
- Length: 8 hrs and 11 mins
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Under the Dragon's Tail
- Written by: Maureen Jennings
- Narrated by: David Marantz
- Length: 6 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Women rich and poor come to her, desperate and in dire need of help – and discretion. Dolly Merishaw is a midwife and an abortionist in Victorian Toronto, but although she keeps quiet about her clients’ condition, her contempt for them and her greed leaves every one of them resentful and angry. So it comes as no surprise to Detective William Murdoch when this malicious woman is murdered. What is a shock, though, is that a week later a young boy is found dead in Dolly’s squalid kitchen.
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Reasons for Liking this Book on one of Detective Murdock’s Mysteries
- By Jo-Anne Schindler on 2021-07-28
Written by: Maureen Jennings
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Let Loose the Dogs
- A Murdoch Mystery, Book 4
- Written by: Maureen Jennings
- Narrated by: David Marantz
- Length: 11 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
In Let Loose the Dogs, Murdoch’s life and work overlap tragically. His sister, who long ago fled to a convent to escape their abusive father, is on her deathbed. Meanwhile, Harry Murdoch, the father whom Murdoch long ago shut out of his life, has been charged with murder and calls on his estranged son to prove his innocence. But, knowing his father, what is Murdoch to believe?
Written by: Maureen Jennings
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Poor Tom Is Cold
- Written by: Maureen Jennings
- Narrated by: David Marantz
- Length: 9 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
In this, his third adventure, the lovable detective William Murdoch becomes involved with the apparent suicide of Constable Oliver Wicken, a man who was the sole support of his mother and invalid sister. But further investigation by Detective Murdoch takes him far afield, and he begins to suspect that the Eakin family, whose house adjoins the one where Wicken died, is more involved with the case than they admit. Here, once again, Maureen Jennings brings the period vividly to life.
Written by: Maureen Jennings
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Night's Child
- A Murdoch Mystery, Book 5
- Written by: Maureen Jennings
- Narrated by: David Marantz
- Length: 8 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
After thirteen-year-old Agnes Fisher faints at school, her teacher, the young and still idealistic Amy Slade, is shocked to discover in the girl’s desk two stereoscopic photographs. One is of a dead baby in its cradle, and on the back Agnes has scrawled a terrible message. Worse, the other photograph is of Agnes in a pose captioned “What Mr. Newly Wed Really Wants.”
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A peek into the seedy side of Victorian Toronto
- By Amazon Customer on 2022-07-19
Written by: Maureen Jennings
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Vices of My Blood
- A Murdoch Mystery, Book 6
- Written by: Maureen Jennings
- Narrated by: David Marantz
- Length: 10 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
In his forties, the Reverend Charles Howard still cut an impressive figure. A married Presbyterian minister in Toronto’s east end, Howard was popular with the congregation that elected him, especially with the ladies, and most particularly with Miss Sarah Dignam. Respected in the community, Howard, as Visitor for the House of Industry, sat in judgment on the poor, assessing their applications for the workhouse. But now Howard is dead, stabbed and brutally beaten by someone he invited into his office.
Written by: Maureen Jennings
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Dead Ground in Between
- Written by: Maureen Jennings
- Narrated by: Roger Clark
- Length: 8 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
It's late 1942; World War II is still raging. Detective Inspector Tom Tyler is settling into his placement in Ludlow, Shropshire, a small town jammed with people sent there by the conflict. On the outskirts is an Italian PoW camp. Tyler's job is both to keep the peace and to enforce wartime regulations. Then a troubled old man goes missing in a winter storm. The next day his body is discovered in a secret hideout supposedly known to very few. It soon becomes clear that a crime has been committed, and there is no shortage of suspects.
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Spellbinding
- By Amazon Customer on 2022-07-12
Written by: Maureen Jennings
-
Under the Dragon's Tail
- Written by: Maureen Jennings
- Narrated by: David Marantz
- Length: 6 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Women rich and poor come to her, desperate and in dire need of help – and discretion. Dolly Merishaw is a midwife and an abortionist in Victorian Toronto, but although she keeps quiet about her clients’ condition, her contempt for them and her greed leaves every one of them resentful and angry. So it comes as no surprise to Detective William Murdoch when this malicious woman is murdered. What is a shock, though, is that a week later a young boy is found dead in Dolly’s squalid kitchen.
-
-
Reasons for Liking this Book on one of Detective Murdock’s Mysteries
- By Jo-Anne Schindler on 2021-07-28
Written by: Maureen Jennings
-
Let Loose the Dogs
- A Murdoch Mystery, Book 4
- Written by: Maureen Jennings
- Narrated by: David Marantz
- Length: 11 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Let Loose the Dogs, Murdoch’s life and work overlap tragically. His sister, who long ago fled to a convent to escape their abusive father, is on her deathbed. Meanwhile, Harry Murdoch, the father whom Murdoch long ago shut out of his life, has been charged with murder and calls on his estranged son to prove his innocence. But, knowing his father, what is Murdoch to believe?
Written by: Maureen Jennings
-
Poor Tom Is Cold
- Written by: Maureen Jennings
- Narrated by: David Marantz
- Length: 9 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this, his third adventure, the lovable detective William Murdoch becomes involved with the apparent suicide of Constable Oliver Wicken, a man who was the sole support of his mother and invalid sister. But further investigation by Detective Murdoch takes him far afield, and he begins to suspect that the Eakin family, whose house adjoins the one where Wicken died, is more involved with the case than they admit. Here, once again, Maureen Jennings brings the period vividly to life.
Written by: Maureen Jennings
-
Night's Child
- A Murdoch Mystery, Book 5
- Written by: Maureen Jennings
- Narrated by: David Marantz
- Length: 8 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
After thirteen-year-old Agnes Fisher faints at school, her teacher, the young and still idealistic Amy Slade, is shocked to discover in the girl’s desk two stereoscopic photographs. One is of a dead baby in its cradle, and on the back Agnes has scrawled a terrible message. Worse, the other photograph is of Agnes in a pose captioned “What Mr. Newly Wed Really Wants.”
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A peek into the seedy side of Victorian Toronto
- By Amazon Customer on 2022-07-19
Written by: Maureen Jennings
-
Vices of My Blood
- A Murdoch Mystery, Book 6
- Written by: Maureen Jennings
- Narrated by: David Marantz
- Length: 10 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In his forties, the Reverend Charles Howard still cut an impressive figure. A married Presbyterian minister in Toronto’s east end, Howard was popular with the congregation that elected him, especially with the ladies, and most particularly with Miss Sarah Dignam. Respected in the community, Howard, as Visitor for the House of Industry, sat in judgment on the poor, assessing their applications for the workhouse. But now Howard is dead, stabbed and brutally beaten by someone he invited into his office.
Written by: Maureen Jennings
-
Dead Ground in Between
- Written by: Maureen Jennings
- Narrated by: Roger Clark
- Length: 8 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It's late 1942; World War II is still raging. Detective Inspector Tom Tyler is settling into his placement in Ludlow, Shropshire, a small town jammed with people sent there by the conflict. On the outskirts is an Italian PoW camp. Tyler's job is both to keep the peace and to enforce wartime regulations. Then a troubled old man goes missing in a winter storm. The next day his body is discovered in a secret hideout supposedly known to very few. It soon becomes clear that a crime has been committed, and there is no shortage of suspects.
-
-
Spellbinding
- By Amazon Customer on 2022-07-12
Written by: Maureen Jennings
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A Journeyman to Grief
- A Murdoch Mystery, Book 7
- Written by: Maureen Jennings
- Narrated by: David Marantz
- Length: 9 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
In 1858, a young woman on her honeymoon is forcibly abducted and taken across the border from Canada and sold into slavery. Thirty-eight years later, Detective Murdoch is working on a murder case that will take all of his resourcefulness to solve. The owner of one of Toronto’s livery stables has been found dead. He has been horsewhipped and left hanging from his wrists in his tack room, and his wife claims that a considerable sum of money has been stolen.
Written by: Maureen Jennings
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Beware This Boy
- Written by: Maureen Jennings
- Narrated by: Roger Clark
- Length: 9 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
November, 1940. Tom Tyler, Detective Inspector of the small Shropshire town of Whitchurch, is a troubled man. The preceding summer had been a dark one for Britain, and even darker for Tom's own family and personal life. So he jumps at the opportunity to help out in the nearby city of Birmingham, where an explosion in a munitions factory has killed or badly injured several of the young women who have taken on dangerous work in support of the war effort.
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Great story, not so great narrator.
- By Mrs. G on 2022-05-24
Written by: Maureen Jennings
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No Known Grave
- Written by: Maureen Jennings
- Narrated by: Roger Clark
- Length: 9 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
It's summer, 1942, and after a tough couple of years, DI Tom Tyler is making a fresh start in Ludlow, Shropshire. On the outskirts of town, St. Anne's Convalescent Hospital, staffed by nursing sisters who are Anglican nuns, has been established in an old manor house to help victims of the war to recover. After a horrifying double murder is discovered on the grounds, Tyler must figure out how the crime could have occurred in such a secluded and presumably impenetrable place.
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Very enjoyable listen.
- By Annette Little on 2023-01-06
Written by: Maureen Jennings
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Does Your Mother Know?
- Written by: Maureen Jennings
- Narrated by: Caroline Shaffer
- Length: 9 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Christine Morris has been sent to Edinburgh to attend a conference on the latest in police methodology. There she is tracked down by the Northern Constabulary, Stornoway, Outer Hebrides, who inform her that her estranged mother has been involved in a vehicular homicide and has gone missing. Reluctantly, Christine agrees to fly up to Stornoway, where her mother was last seen. Her arrival is followed by the suspicious death of one of the islanders.
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Great writing!
- By Amazon Customer on 2022-12-21
Written by: Maureen Jennings
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Shipwreck
- Good Reads
- Written by: Maureen Jennings
- Narrated by: Charles Leggett
- Length: 1 hr and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Story
On a cold winter morning in 1873, a crowd gathers on the shore of a Nova Scotia fishing village. A stormy sea has thrown a ship onto the rocks. The villagers work bravely to save the ship's crew. But many die. When young Will Murdoch and the local priest examine the bodies, they discover gold and diamonds. They suspect that the shipwreck was not responsible for all of the deaths. With the priest's help, Will - who grows up to be a famous detective - solves his first mystery.
Written by: Maureen Jennings
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Hidden Depths
- Written by: Ann Cleeves
- Narrated by: Janine Birkett
- Length: 10 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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A hot summer on the Northumberland coast and Julie Armstrong arrives home from a night out to find her son strangled, laid out in a bath of water and covered with wildflowers. This stylised murder scene has Inspector Vera Stanhope intrigued. But then another body is discovered in a rock pool, the corpse again strewn with flowers. Vera must work quickly to find this killer who is making art out of death. As local residents are forced to share their deepest, darkest secrets, the killer watches, waits and plans to prepare another beautiful, watery grave....
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Hidden Depths
- By Louise on 2020-09-03
Written by: Ann Cleeves
Publisher's Summary
In the cold Toronto winter of 1895, the naked body of a servant girl is found frozen in a deserted laneway. The young victim was pregnant when she died. Detective William Murdoch soon discovers that many of those connected with the girl's life have secrets to hide. Was her death on attempt to cover up a scandal in one of the city's influential families?
What the critics say
"Turn-of-the-century Toronto makes an evocative setting for murder in Except the Dying, a skillful first novel that is interesting both for its historical accuracy and its fully realized characters." (Amazon.com review)
Featured Article: Nine Cozy Mystery Series Perfect for Audiobook Fans
It's time to curl up with a cozy mystery! Or, since we're talking audiobooks, it may be time to (cracking knuckles) get some chores done while we listen to one of the most pleasurable genres around. These are my top eight cozy mystery authors, whose series I always enjoy and always prefer to experience in audio. I like to feel cozied up with the character, as we—yes, we!—solve the crime together, and the best way to do that is to listen to the character.
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What listeners say about Except the Dying
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Sara
- 2022-12-23
Chapters out of sync
Slow moving story
Chapters we're not matched up properly.
Very different feel compared to the TV show
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- Melissa Rose
- 2021-09-06
Slow burn
Okay, so, this is technically a reread, however, as a fan of Murdoch Mysteries, I thought that it was about time that I returned to the series of novels that started it all. Sadly, Except the Dying was not as good as I had remembered.
First off, if you are coming to this series hoping for a similar experience to the television series, you are barking up the wrong tree. Book Murdoch is a lot more gritty, and a lot less PG (lots of swearing and sexual innuendos).
As for the actual mystery, I found this novel a bit of a slow burn; I was approximately three-quarters of the way through the book when I started getting interested in what was happening.
In terms of narration, David Marantz was mediocre and rather monotone. I found myself rewinding several times because I had started to tune out his voice and missed part of the plot. Although to be fair, Marantz's voice did sound remarkably like the television Murdoch.
Overall, Except the Dying was an average mystery; It wasn't the worst I have read, but it was also not the best. I will probably continue with the series, though, as I remember the books do get better.
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- Jo-Anne Schindler
- 2021-02-15
Several plots...
I liked trying to solve the mystery with Mr. Murdock.
I gave it a rating of four because I don’t appreciate the subject of prostitution.
The performance was great!
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- Sarah
- 2016-06-09
If you like the show - don't buy
Between the engorged male parts and the naked breasts this was a horrible mystery. I got this book cause my husband and I love the television series. Light funny and a good mystery show and this book was none of that. I hated and it took everything in me to finish it. I will not get any more in the series. Horrible just horrible.
17 people found this helpful
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- connie
- 2012-06-22
Gritty not grisly; above average Victorian mystery
I am biased because I LOVED the Canadian setting -- but that could make this series of interest to other fans of the rapidly-multiplying Victorian-set mystery genre: the Toronto setting helps the listen keep some of the genre cliches at bay. The strength of the novel is its depiction of the daily grind of the poor - The author goes beyond trite description and into the chamber pots and privies. It's also the kind of police procedural that describes more scenes of tea drinking conversations than Hollywood-hopeful action.
Parts of the listen make it identifiably a first novel, but I really look forward to the rest of the series for summer listening. I am undecided about the narrator - it sounds like a site-read job, but he seems to handle some of the regional accents well and with imagination.
16 people found this helpful
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- Melissa Ramsey
- 2016-02-23
Great mystery
Loved the plot and characters, but it doesn't measure up to the CBC television show.
4 people found this helpful
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- Gail
- 2015-09-18
Detective Murdoch
I listened to this because I have watched Artful Detective, the series based on Maureen Jennings' books, during the last year. Entertaining mystery. I pictured the characters like the TV series rather than the description and got into the story, feeling like I was seeing it as it went along.
4 people found this helpful
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- ChalyceS
- 2015-07-08
Ok but not the best
The story is not the nice story I have enjoyed in the Murdoch Mysteries on the Canadian TV series. I'm more of a PG person. The narrator was choppy at times - not flowing smoothly.
3 people found this helpful
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- Kathleen
- 2012-08-27
No. 1 in the Detective Murdoch series
Detective William Murdoch is called to a deserted laneway late at night in 1895 Toronto, where the naked corpse of a servant girl was found. The autopsy showed that she was pregnant, and that she was given a shot of morphine. This led to her freezing to death after being hit on the head causing unconsciousness. The girl was soon identified by the family who hired her. She was a modest quiet girl and everyone was shocked that she was pregnant. Who was the father of her baby? Could it be the husband or the son of the household? Was she killed because she was pregnant? And where were her clothes? Then Detective Murdoch finds her clothes hidden in the latrine of the house closest to the site where she was found, and one of the two prostitutes who had stolen her clothing also witnessed a carriage picking her up. Then, that prostitute turns up dead. Detective Murdoch is convinced that the two crimes are connected andf sets out to find out what happened. A very good mystery. This is my first by Jennings but won’t be my last.
3 people found this helpful
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- Janet
- 2015-07-30
Just becoming acquainted with William Murdock
I recently discovered Murdock Mysteries, a Canadian TV show based on Jennings novels and the world she has created . This is her first. I enjoyed the story. . a little convoluted.. not crazy about the narrator though. can't decide if I will read or listen to any others .
2 people found this helpful
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- Melissa Rose
- 2020-03-02
Slow burn
Okay, so, this is technically a reread, however, as a fan of Murdoch Mysteries, I thought that it was about time that I returned to the series of novels that started it all. Sadly, Except the Dying was not as good as I had remembered.
First off, if you are coming to this series hoping for a similar experience to the television series, you are barking up the wrong tree. Book Murdoch is a lot more gritty, and a lot less PG (lots of swearing and sexual innuendos).
As for the actual mystery, I found this novel a bit of a slow burn; I was approximately three-quarters of the way through the book when I started getting interested in what was happening.
In terms of narration, David Marantz was mediocre and rather monotone. I found myself rewinding several times because I had started to tune out his voice and missed part of the plot. Although to be fair, Marantz's voice did sound remarkably like the television Murdoch.
Overall, Except the Dying was an average mystery; It wasn't the worst I have read, but it was also not the best. I will probably continue with the series, though, as I remember the books do get better.
1 person found this helpful
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- Show1
- 2020-02-07
waste of a credit
I love the Murdock mysteries on TV. The book version is not even close to being the same.
The narrative was terrible.
1 person found this helpful
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- A. Percival
- 2015-08-13
Fine story, difficult to get into
I love the TV show based on this series so I thought I'd love the books. Instead I started it three different times before I managed to get into it. I think flashing back and forth between present and recent past while obscuring the characters to maintain the mystery for me didn't translate as well to audio. There were times had I been holding a book I'd have flipped back a page or two to clear up confusion.
1 person found this helpful