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The Lantern Men

Written by: Elly Griffiths
Narrated by: Jane McDowell
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Publisher's Summary

Forensic archaeologist Ruth Galloway changed her life - until a convicted killer tells her that four of his victims were never found, drawing her back to the place she left behind.

Everything has changed for Ruth Galloway. She has a new job, home, and partner, and she is no longer North Norfolk police’s resident forensic archaeologist. That is, until convicted murderer Ivor March offers to make DCI Nelson a deal. Nelson was always sure that March killed more women than he was charged with. Now March confirms this and offers to show Nelson where the other bodies are buried - but only if Ruth will do the digging. 

Curious, but wary, Ruth agrees. March tells Ruth that he killed four more women and that their bodies are buried near a village bordering the fens, said to be haunted by the Lantern Men, mysterious figures holding lights that lure travelers to their deaths. 

Is Ivor March himself a lantern man, luring Ruth back to Norfolk? What is his plan, and why is she so crucial to it? And are the killings really over?

©2020 Elly Griffiths (P)2020 Quercus Editions Limited

What listeners say about The Lantern Men

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Good series

Very much enjoyed the series. I hope there will be more to come. Narrator excellent 👌

1 person found this helpful

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I look forward to the next book.

I have listened to the entire series. The characters are entertaining and the stories are somewhat realistic.

1 person found this helpful

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LOVED IT!!!!

oh my gosh! how long until the next book?
hurry....please! finished in 2 days !

1 person found this helpful

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So so so so bad.

I listen to many audio books through Audible. I’ve always been pleased. This was the most boring and stupid story ever. If I can save just one person the agony of listening to this, my life’s mission will be complete. AWFUL.

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How pathetic

Oh, come on. Why so sappy? Let Ruth have some dignity. Let her rescue herself, let her stop pining for her one true love like a Disney princess.
The worst American accent in Audible.
This is a borderline interesting series but this book is awful.

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  • Deb
  • 2020-07-20

I Used to Love this Series

Unfortunately the main characters are getting really tiresome. They are always dissatisfied and looking elseweher. Judy left one man for Cathbad and has a family with him. He is really great with the kids but she is clearly thinking the grass is greener. Nelson has the son he has always wanted but would prefer to stay home and watch football/soccer on a Sunday rather than take him to the park. And yet he is angry that he doesn’t get to spend more time with Kate and that Frank — who is much better with kids — is the one with Kate and Ruth. He cheated on his wife, got Ruth pregnant yet was livid when he found out that Michelle had had a relationship with a man who truly appreciated her and might be pregnant by him. He comes across as a man who wants to have his cake an eat it too but resents when the women in his life have relationships with other men. Ruth is a very successful academic but has no self-confidence and is yearning for the selfish Nelson instead of the man who puts her and her daughter first. Frank acts like a true partner, pitching in with childcare and household work; Nelson let his wife do all that. As some others have said there has been no character growth and in my opinion they have regressed. Cathbad and Frank are the most likeable characters.
As for this book I much prefer when the story involved historical digs.

14 people found this helpful

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  • Bookfan786
  • 2020-07-14

Audio Variation

I like the author, but having the audio change when someone is talking to another on a cell phone is annoying. The cell phone caller volume is much quieter. Not a good effect in a mystery book. Just annoying.

11 people found this helpful

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  • Sue Giannotta
  • 2020-07-21

Passable, narration didn't help

I'm a fan of Dr. Ruth Galloway, forensic archaeologist since her first appearance. Learning a new area through a mystery novel is very satisfying but in this episode there was only one dig and we weren't even invited along. Additionally this was an example of a current trend in mysteries where the dilemma is stated, and restated multiple times with little advance in story. This edition reminisced about prior stories and history so often that if I was a first time reader I would feel very left out. I've read most of this series and I even felt like an outsider.
The narration didn't help because the main voice was so London posh strangled it was off putting, especially since the characters and setting was in the north. And most annoying were the phone conversations. Many years ago audio engineers discovered that if you reduced the high and low frequencies you could make audio sound like an old telephone landline. That was many years ago. So the conversations today between two people with mobile phones would never sound like that. When the highs and lows are attenuated, the volume drops, so the phone calls were hard to hear, along with being grating. Give us more story, Ellie. I know you have it in you. I'm still a fan.

6 people found this helpful

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  • Beverly McGee
  • 2020-07-17

Poor Narration

This is my currently favorite mystery series. However, I have never liked the narrator. In earlier books, her portrayal of the child, Kate, was loud and obnoxious. In this book, she whispered to portray phone callers. I could hardly get my volume high enough to hear anything at all but not loud enough to fully understand what was said. Then, the next voice would blast into my ears. Very, very irritating. Otherwise it’s a pretty good book in a good series. My advice is to read rather than listen to these books.

4 people found this helpful

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  • Denise
  • 2020-08-05

Get over it.

The story was fine, no real twists. The problem I have is the ongoing Ruth/Nelson tension. So done with it. This relationship was interesting for the first few books, the chemistry was believable, there was some renewed interest around when George was born but fell flat, The stagnation of the characters kind of ruined the rest of the book. In this day and age, it's insulting that this intelligent woman can't move on (we are talking 10+ years). I was hoping this book would be the beginning of a new life for Ruth, not.

3 people found this helpful

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  • Mark D
  • 2020-07-15

Pretty good

I wouldn't say it's the best in the series but it's still pretty good.

I could have done without hearing the narrator swallowing all the time but hey it happens. The woman that does the "Thank you for being a recorded books listener" sound very depressed.

I won't go into details about the book cause the summary describes it well enough. I can also accidentally give things away.

2 people found this helpful

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  • Diane
  • 2020-07-28

Meh

The story is ok, but a little heavy on the mysticism. The narrator bothered me because there was a smacking noise when she spoke sometimes and the attempt at an American accent was pretty bad. The parts where a character was speaking through a phone were weird because it was distorted. Not sure why that choice was made?

1 person found this helpful

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  • Debbie Penn
  • 2020-07-16

My favorite series

But I did not like this book. Too many abrupt changes to take in. Ending of two character lines definitely too hurried. Too many characters. Too little Ruth, Nelson and Cathbad. 😕

1 person found this helpful

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  • Zan
  • 2022-12-30

Entertaining and surprising!

My only minor not so positive comment is when the narrator speaks for Frank, it’s a little off putting. Other than him the other voices are great, especially Ruth and Katie! I don’t want the series to end!

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  • Anonymous User
  • 2022-09-14

Good and bad

I always enjoy the characters in this series, and some of the ideas that are explored through their inner monologues. I think the narrator does an amazing job of giving voice to so many characters, but as others have mentioned, you can constantly hear her mouth making noises - like her mouth is too dry and you can hear her mouth working to switch voices. It has me literally cringing. There will always be some of this, but this is a LOT. And it’s kinda gross. I don’t blame the narrator either - this is a technical issue that comes back to sound design more than anything. The mic shouldn’t be picking that up, or if it is, it needs to be removed by the person editing the sound. It’s a real problem, and unfortunately it continues into the next book. It says something about how much I am enjoying the stories that I have put up with this so far but hopefully they fix this issue for future recordings!