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  • The Blackhouse

  • Written by: Peter May
  • Narrated by: Peter Forbes
  • Length: 12 hrs and 20 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (202 ratings)

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The Blackhouse cover art

The Blackhouse

Written by: Peter May
Narrated by: Peter Forbes
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Publisher's Summary

From acclaimed author and dramatist Peter May comes the Barry award-winning The Blackhouse, the first book in the Lewis Trilogy - a riveting mystery series set on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland's Outer Hebrides.

When a grisly murder occurs on the Isle of Lewis that bears similarities to a brutal killing on the mainland, Edinburgh detective and native islander Fin Macleod is dispatched to the Outer Hebrides to investigate, embarking at the same time on a voyage into his own troubled past.

As Fin reconnects with the people and places of his tortured childhood, the desolate but beautiful island and its ancient customs once again begin to assert their grip on his psyche. Every step toward solving the case brings Fin closer to a dangerous confrontation with the dark events of the past that shaped - and nearly destroyed - his life.

©2013 Peter May (P)2018 Hachette Audio

What the critics say

"A gripping plot, pitch-perfect characterization, and an appropriately bleak setting drive this outstanding series debut." (Connie Fletcher, Booklist, starred review)

"A thriller with an intensity that never slackens, chilling and igneous at the same time, like the great country that serves as its setting. A masterpiece indeed." (L'Humanite)

"Abundant local color... matches Macleod's tormented emotional landscape. The struggles of such multidimensional characters... add depth." (Publishers Weekly, starred review)

What listeners say about The Blackhouse

Average Customer Ratings
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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great mystery and drama!

Really refreshing story about island life in Scotland, with a great back story. Loved the performance as well. Can’t say enough good things about this book. I bet they’ll be making it into a movie.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
  • DJS
  • 2023-04-07

A well narrated and intriguing story

First time audible for this author - definitely plan to complete the series.

As well as a clever detective plot with intriguing twists and turns, the storyline provides a very interesting geographic and historical backdrop of the Hebrides.

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1 person found this helpful

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

Superb

Loved the coming of age sequences as well as the mystery story. The gannet hunt was well told with realism and sensitivity.

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

Hard to put down

This kept me in suspense till the very end. Lots of interesting characters. well written.

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

Excellent book

I really enjoyed this story and the manner it was presented. It almost was a bit depressing at times but a good story regardless. Narrator did a good job as well.

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1 person found this helpful

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

Performance makes it special

The plot line is not especially exciting or original however the descriptions and characters are well developed and reveal much about life on a remote Scottish island.

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

Excellent Offering

The central investigation in this purported Crime Thriller [an Isle of Lewis (outer Hebrides) man violently murdered in a fashion nearly identical to a mainland murder] is actually just a plot device to get detective Fionagh/Finlay "Fin" MacLeod back to his childhood home. Peter May does an excellent job exploring Fin's past and incorporating childhood friends, family, rivals, and loves to present an intriguing pantheon of suspects - but the mystery feels peripheral to the character development. This is quite clearly an establishment novel for May's Trilogy.
That said, the vocabulary/prose is capable, the alternating perspective technique (First- Person to Third-person - and back again) works nicely, and the descriptions of life on the isolated island feel palpably realistic (excellent setting establishment).. this is a creditable novel.

The outstanding performance from Peter Forbes doubtless improves my rating of the book. His natural Scottish Brogue and spot-on Gaelic pronunciations contribute to the authentic feel of the story - making up for some of the deficiencies in the writing. Given a choice between a text copy of the book or this audio recording, take this one any day of the week and twice on Sunday.

I admit to having mixed feelings about this 8.5/10 star Audiobook. The quality writing and great performance make the book easily worth a download - but the lack of resolution of many, many plot-threads at the end of the book makes purchasing further books in 'The Lewis Trilogy' feel almost mandatory. Audible deciding to include Book One in the series as a 'Plus' option approaches the manipulative: presenting a book that acts as more of a "tease" than an entertaining distraction.
Provided you are willing to endure a ton of compulsion to spend some Credits (which you may or may not be able to resist), this biographical exposition disguised as a police procedural is captivating - can recommend.

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

Peter May delivers

An interesting mystery with a number of twists and turns. Enjoyed the book and the ending came as a complete surprise.
I was and still am a comitted Peter May fan. Great writing...good stories...interesting characters and always a twist and turn to keep you guessing!

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2 people found this helpful

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

Prepare to be blown away

I can’t say anything about this book except that it is a stunning piece of fiction, so well written and plotted. Not your usual police procedural at all. The narration was superb. Highly recommend it.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Kc
  • 2019-10-06

Spellbinding

Listening to this book kept me on the edge of my seat from the minute chapter 1 started. The descriptions were rich, the characters were well rounded and well detailed - life like almost.

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