The Doyle and Acton Series Continues

Publisher's Summary: Things are a bit grim at Scotland Yard this Christmas. On the heels of a nasty corruption scandal, the CID must now contend with a killer who is murdering pregnant women, so as to steal their babies. Chief Inspector Acton doesn't want Doyle anywhere near this case, of course, but she can't shake the feeling that there is more to his concern than his usual over-protectiveness - and more to this case than the usual psycho-killer.

This is Anne Cleeland's 5th book in the Doyle and Acton series of 7 (8th due out Fall 2018) and I listened to the story on Audible (8 hrs 8 minutes) narrated by Marnye Young.

DCI Kathleen Doyle and DI Michael Acton are both employed by Scotland Yard, and were married in the first installment of the series. They are an unlikely match, her with psychic abilities, and him with a vigilante approach to justice. The detective stories are not especially complex, and I enjoy them as good, quick, reads. Some characters continue throughout the series and others are short lived - they are detective/murder mysteries, after all.

This was my least favorite in the series so far, for two reasons. 1) The narrator has changed. These things happen, and I don't know why the change was made, but I liked the narrator of books 1-3 better. I read book 4 on Kindle as it had not been recorded by the time I got to it, so Marnye Young was new to me in book 5, despite recording book 4 when it was released. 2) The criminal wasn't easy to spot until the end, but it was not an exciting reveal by the time I got there.

Still, I didn't waste the 8 hours of listening time. I like the Doyle and Acton stories, and I like their individual characteristics. I will fit in the next few books as they become available on Audible. I'm looking forward to some developments in the themes that continue throughout the series.

4 people found this helpful

Each story gets better all the time!

Wonderful mystery but make sure you start from the beginning or a lot of it won’t make sense and you’ll enjoy it as much fantastic near ration and lots of intricate little plots that going to this mystery!

2 people found this helpful

Good mystery set in London

Fifth Doyle & Acton mystery in the series. Love the story. Lots of twists. And love DS Doyle but this narration is very bad. Bring back Riordan, the first of the series. She was great

1 person found this helpful

I'm still trying to adjust to the new narrator

I can't say it enough, Marnye Young is so wrong for Detective Sergeant Doyle and the result is that the performance and enjoyment of the books is so diminished. Unfortunate

Doyle and Acton

Love the story line. A real fan of British murder mysteries especially with a romance twist!

Wonderful series!

The only issue I have is one another reader expressed in that this reader’s voice grates a bit. It is choppy at times. Munoz has a better voice but Reynold’s is bit prissy. I have all these books but enjoy listening to them in Audible!

I can’t help but love’em!

These stories grew redundant 2 books back but I return to them like a favorite sweater. I swore them off when the narration changed to Marnye Young and even managed to overcome that hurtle. There’s something about Doyle and Acton I just can’t pass-up but I’d advise Anne Cleveland to find a fresh approach. I guessed the identity of the murderer the moment the character was introduced. Doyle is cute but she’s not that cute and her charm is wearing thin. The devotion of those who love her is unrealistic to say the least and should only be expected of her Section 7 husband.

Excellent series

A great addition to the Acton and Doyle series. This series should be read in sequence for maximum understanding.

I didn’t figure it out !

I am usually good at figuring out the ending only a little into the story but this had me guessing almost completely to the very end.
The story went fast and the narrators voice added to the excitement.
I hope there is a book six.