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Title: The Tiger's Prey

Author: Wilbur Smith, Tom Harper

Narrator: Mike Grady

Format: Unabridged

Length: 15 hrs and 16 mins

Language: English

Release date: 09-07-17

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Limited

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 6 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

The Malabar coast is full of dangers: greedy tradesmen, fearless pirates, and men full of vengeance. But for a Courtney, the greatest danger might just be his own family....

Francis Courtney flees the comfort of his Devonshire estate when his stepfather's gambling debts leave him penniless and at risk. He sails to South Africa with revenge and fortune on his mind: his uncle Tom Courtney killed his father, and Francis intends to avenge his death and make his fortune in the process. However, upon his arrival in Cape Town, he uncovers a truth that leaves him overwhelmed and disoriented.

Christopher Courtney sets out to make his own way in the world, giving up his privileged position as the son of the Governor of Bombay. The perils and betrayals on his journey carve a fierce warrior out of him, but they also harden his soul and lead him to greater violence and treachery. As the lives of these two Courtney men intertwine, the sins of the fathers will forever alter the lives of a younger generation.

The Tiger's Prey takes listeners on an epic journey from the southernmost point of Africa, through the perilous waters of the Arabian Sea, to the lush Indian coastline. It is an incredible and breathless tale of intrigue and family betrayal from one of the world's greatest storytellers.

Members Reviews:

Inconclusive, rushed ending leaving readers flat

The story progresses with minute lengthy detail in parts, but concluded in a flurry open-ended.

Rip roaring stuff

Enjoyed the whole story, well written and drew me into the tale, I have read all the Courtney tales so had all the background. Did not however think some of the graphic language used to describe the various love elements added anything to the story. I didnt need to know about the mechanics of the lovemaking, not very Wilbur Smith in that respect.

Good adventure story

Good intriguing story but too much head hopping for my taste with thoughts from different characters changing from one paragraph to the next. Well read.

Superb

Back to glory with masterful storytelling and a wonderful, gripping tale! Loved it all. Great teamwork.

Wilbur Smith never fails!

What did you like most about The Tiger's Prey?

A great book where Smith brings back the Courtney family covering Africa and India a great read!

What did you like best about this story?

The way it leaves you waiting with baited breath for the sequel

What does Mike Grady bring to the story that you wouldnt experience if you had only read the book?

He gives the characters real personalities

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Title: The Blood Card

Subtitle: The Magic Men Mysteries, Book 3

Author: Elly Griffiths

Narrator: James Langton

Format: Unabridged

Length: 8 hrs and 44 mins

Language: English

Release date: 09-05-17

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 11 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

In the third Magic Men mystery, the first partially set in America, a threat of mass violence looms over Elizabeth II's coronation. Can DI Edgar Stephens and Max Mephisto crack the case and save the crown?

Elizabeth II's coronation is looming, but DI Edgar Stephens is busy investigating the death of a local fortune-teller. Meanwhile, his old pal, the magician Max Mephisto, is rehearsing for his television debut, a Coronation Day variety show. But upon hearing that their wartime commander, Colonel Cartwright, has been found dead in his flat, the two men join forces to find out what happened.

While Max is stuck in rehearsals, Edgar finds himself heading to New York, hot on the trail of a mesmerist he's sure has valuable information for them - and his trusty sergeant, Emma, investigates some important leads at home. As the clock ticks down to Coronation Day, the team must scramble to keep Max's small-screen debut from ending in a dangerously explosive finale.

Members Reviews:

Elly Griffiths does it again.

Despite does a good job of portraying post war England and the changes that came in the late 40's and early 50's. She was true to her characters. The narration was top notch as always.

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Title: Séance Infernale

Subtitle: A Novel

Author: Jonathan Skariton

Narrator: MacLeod Andrews

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 15 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-29-17

Publisher: Random House Audio

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 3 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

An extraordinary debut novel - dark, fast-paced, thrilling - set in contemporary and 19th-century Europe, the United States, and Scotland, involving the true inventor of moving pictures, his lost film made in Edinburgh in 1888, and a shocking series of crimes terrorizing the city in present time.

The time: 2002. The city: Los Angeles.

Alex Whitman, movie memorabilia dealer who can find anything, is hired by an eccentric film collector to locate what could be the first film ever made, Séance Infernale. Its creator, Augustin Sekuler, is considered by those who know about movies to be the true inventor of motion pictures - not the Lumiére brothers nor Thomas Edison.

Sekuler was to present to the world in 1890 his greatest new invention, the first of its kind - a moving picture machine. He had boarded a train headed from Dijon to Paris but never arrived at Gare de Lyons station. He and his moving picture machine vanished, never to be heard from again, his claim in history as the inventor of the moving image vanishing with him.

When Whitman tracks down what could be fragments of Sekuler's famously lost film, questions are raised - about Sekuler, about what happened to him and to his invention, and about the film itself.

In this riveting story of suspense, the search for the answers lead to curious riddles that may (or may not) shed light on Sekuler's darkest secret locked away for more than a century, riddles that set in motion a frantic hunt taking Whitman from Los Angeles and Paris to Geneva and finally to Sekuler's ancient labyrinthine city of Edinburgh, where the stakes become ratcheted up as the film's riddles lead to a darker, far more dangerous mystery.

Critic Reviews:

"A post-millennial gothic ripsnorter [that] blends old-fashioned suspense and up-to-the-minute sadism in the dark streets and even darker underbelly of Edinburgh... An intricately designed thriller... This debut novel resembles a series of trap doors springing open and shut and open again... Its basic premise fascinates, and its fog-shrouded intrigue keeps your head in the game." (Kirkus Reviews)

"Séance Infernal is a menacing Gothic nightmare, a love letter to the dawn of cinema, to the ghost-ridden city of Edinburgh, and to the golden age of pulp fiction. There are subterranean tunnels and immolations; there's knife play and gunfire, alchemy and patent theft. It's a whipsaw ride, but always good, giddy fun." (Scott Smith, author of A Simple Plan and The Ruins)

Members Reviews:

Great premise, poor execution

As others have said, it's a great premise for a suspense/mystery, but the execution was really off here.

Part of it is not the author's fault. Whoever wrote the jacket copy was skilled but misleading. The write up leads one to expect a Hitchcockian suspense when it's actually a very gritty, forensics-heavy crime thriller.

The writing is jerky and very confusing at times. I don't know if scenes are supposed to be surreal in their sudden entrances and exits of random characters, but I think there's a reason for the old adage of allowing only ONE coincidence per book. This story is filled with so many completely implausible and unbelievable coincidences, I didn't even know where I was or who was whom half the time.

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Title: Mrs. Jeffries Reveals Her Art

Subtitle: Mrs. Jeffries Mysteries, Book 12

Author: Emily Brightwell

Narrator: Lindy Nettleton

Format: Unabridged

Length: 7 hrs and 19 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-08-17

Publisher: Tantor Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 31 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

An artist's model never shows up at Neville Grant's house...or so he claims. But when one of Mr. Grant's houseguests suddenly dies, the Inspector and Mrs. Jeffries have to work double-time to find both the missing model and the killer!

Members Reviews:

love these stories!

These books are amazing! the story lines keep you guess until the end with all the twists and turns. the narration brings it to life! She does fantastic wotk!

What happened to the girl who never came out?

How the persons who work for the inspector helped solve the case.

Who took the missing girl?

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Title: Sherlock Holmes and the Scarlet Thread of Murder

Author: Luke Kuhns

Narrator: Joff Manning

Format: Unabridged

Length: 7 hrs and 51 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-07-17

Publisher: MX Publishing

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 19 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

"A Case in Three": Three seemingly separate crimes, three detectives. A mysterious stalker is on the loose in London known only as the Goblin Man and his sights are set on a wealthy businessman, David Daniels. A horrific explosion rips through Whitechapel Underground Station and the prime suspect is a Jewish anarchist. And a Mrs. Clara Edwards is searching for her missing lover, Philias Jackson. What connects these three? It's a dangerous and complex game that connects Sherlock Holmes, Investigator Martin Hewitt, and former Ripper investigator and head of H Division Edmund Reid.

"The Great American Adventure": In 1888 Mr. Sherlock Holmes was beat by Irene Adler AKA the Woman. After her marriage she left London. Two years later her husband, Godfrey Norton, is found dead in his New York office after apparently committing suicide. Irene Adler doesn't believe he would do that. She goes to the one person who will help: Sherlock Holmes. Holmes and Watson head to America where they dive into the mysterious life of Godfrey Norton to learn how and why he died.

Members Reviews:

Sherlock with a Twist

I thought I was getting a real Sherlock Holmes book in a modern version, so at first I was a little confused, but I kept listening and decided and that I was enjoying it! This is a very entertaining mystery in a similar style of the original.

The narrator, Joff Manning, was simply fantastic, great character voices, inflections, pauses, etc. Id like to listen to more books narrated by him.

I received this audio-book free for an honest review by the author, narrator, or publisher. Thank you!!!

If you found this review helpful would you please take a moment to click yes below, thanks!

Interesting plots, rushed ending, skilled narrator

Would you listen to Sherlock Holmes and the Scarlet Thread of Murder again? Why?

These are three relatively short stories giving a beloved character some new adventures. I particularly liked the style of the first story which weaves the tales of Sherlock Holmes, another detective I'd never heard of, and DI Edmund Reid (a real person and main character in the series, Ripper Street). Though the style was well done, the ending seemed a bit rushed and I would have liked more explanation and not just sped through the main action scenes at the end.

The other concern I had was that Sherlock Holmes did not have the idetic memory for which he is famous in Conan Doyle's works. This Holmes, while he made outstanding deductions, had to re-read things and look things up that he'd read in the past. The Holmes of the original works would not have had to do so.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

The speed with which the the endings of the first two stories was handled felt like the author was on the edge of his seat and couldn't wait to tell us what happened, and so it felt rushed and not handled with the same care that the rest of the stories had been.

Any additional comments?

The reader did an excellent job of making all the 6 main characters in the first story distinct (which could not have been an easy task). I would listen to other audiobooks he records. I was impressed with his handling of the character of the characters. Their personalities truly came through in his performance.

I was provided a free copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Sherlock wonderful

I am a huge fan of Sherlock Holmes.

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Title: Beauty Like the Night

Subtitle: The Spymaster Series, Book 6

Author: Joanna Bourne

Narrator: Kirsten Potter

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 39 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-01-17

Publisher: Tantor Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 56 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

Severine de Cabrillac, orphan of the French Revolution and sometime British intelligence agent, has tried to leave spying behind her. Now she devotes herself to investigating crimes in London and finding justice for the wrongly accused.

Raoul Deverney, an enigmatic half-Spaniard with enough secrets to earn even a spy's respect, is at her door demanding help. She's the only one who can find the killer of his long-estranged wife and rescue her missing 12-year-old daughter.

Severine reluctantly agrees to aid him, even though she knows the growing attraction between them makes it more than unwise. Their desperate search for the girl unleashes treason and murder...and offers a last chance for two strong, wounded people to find love.

Members Reviews:

Heartwarming romance.

Adored this story, from characters to the plot, but the romance of it just shines through and through. Oh, and let us not forget the action! Theres a lot of it and all of it is very exciting and nail biting.

I had the pleasure to read this story as an ARC and also listen to it on my Audible. Both were equally impressive.

I highly recommend you either listen to it or read it. Youll love it!

Melanie for b2b

Wow! Great story with an equally great narration!

Joanna Bourne is extremely talented. This was the first time I've listed to one of her novels and Kirsten Potter, the narrator, was mesmerizing.

Kirsten Potter can't do accents

Any additional comments?

I really enjoy Joanna Bourne's spy/romance novels; her characters are interesting and she writes good but not overly convoluted plots. They are quick, fun reads.

However, I am really mad at myself that I again bought her book on audio; I should have remembered that these are books that I can't easily listen to again because the reader is so very bad at accents. Her main fake accent is what might be called standard British, only it's not. I am American, but I am constantly wincing at how badly Ms. Potter pronounces both the English dialogue as well as her pseudo French accent. She is actually a decent narrator although she tends to read very similarly from book to book. But I am really annoyed by readers who don't have the skill or the ear to do well by the material. This is bad enough that I'm warning other listeners off of it.

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Title: The Hand of Justice

Subtitle: The Tenth Chronicle of Matthew Bartholomew

Author: Susanna Gregory

Narrator: David Thorpe

Format: Unabridged

Length: 19 hrs and 6 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-20-17

Publisher: Hachette Audio UK

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 11 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

In Cambridge, 1355, the colleges of the fledgling university are as much at odds with each other as they are with the ordinary townfolk.

This tension has recently been heightened by the return of two well-born murderers after receiving the King's pardon, showing no remorse but ready to confront those who helped convict them. And in the midst of this, Bartholomew the physician is called to the local mill to examine two corpses. It is almost a relief to be able to turn his back on the fractious town, but as always in Cambridge nothing is disconnected.

Members Reviews:

Good story

Good story but the narration was exhausting. I felt that the narrator was stretching his voice. It was not relaxed and rounded but strained and pitchy. It didn't flow.

He wasn't the worst narrator I've heard.

Love stories set in the Middle Ages and the characters are well drawn.

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Title: A Grave Celebration

Subtitle: Lady of Ashes Book 6

Author: Christine Trent

Narrator: Marnye Young

Format: Unabridged

Length: 11 hrs and 42 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-13-17

Publisher: Twopence Press, LLC

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 16 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

Violet Harper and her husband Sam are attending the long-anticipated opening of Egypt's new Suez Canal. The canal is the mastermind of the brilliant French engineer, Ferdinand de Lesseps. Fireworks, galas, and canal cruises are all part of the planned festivities at ports along the way. Tensions abound across the various European delegations in attendance. The Prussians, Dutch, French, British, Austrians, and Russians all have political grievances against each other, made worse by internal struggles inside Egypt itself.

All of this animosity is forgotten, though, in the midst of clinking glasses and deafening cheers. That is, until a seemingly innocent Egyptian is found stabbed during an evening of fireworks.

To keep the grisly affair out of the international newspapers, de Lesseps and the Egyptian viceroy, Isma'il Pasha, insist that there be no investigation, but Violet is determined to make a quiet inquiry. Who may have wanted the man dead? Or, rather, who didn't have hatred for the French, whose total mastery of the Suez Canal meant they would be controlling canal shipping for the foreseeable future? Was the man the simple victim of a local criminal? Or is someone conducting a vendetta against the great man de Lesseps himself?

When a delegate's servant is also found murdered, it becomes obvious that there are evil forces among the revelers, who will stop at nothing to keep Violet from discovering the truth.

Members Reviews:

I love a good mystery

Full disclosure, I started with this book and not with the first book in the series. It took me a few chapters to really dive into the characters, but the narration by Marnye Young really helped bring the characters to life and establish whos who. I enjoyed the plot, and will likely go back and read/listen to the other books in the series.

Grave dissapointment

Interesting facts looking for a story.Too convoluted,non believable and erratic plot Not her best.

New narrator ruins the book

The new narrator's sing-song accent and bizarre cadence is distracting, making this volume almost impossible to listen to. The first 30 minutes, I wasn't even sure if I had purchased a book in the same series. Really disappointing.

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Title: Sidney Chambers and the Persistence of Love

Author: James Runcie

Narrator: Peter Wickham

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 37 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-01-17

Publisher: Isis Publishing Ltd

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 20 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

It is May 1971 and Archdeacon Sidney Chambers is walking in a bluebell wood with his daughter Anna and their ageing Labrador, Byron, when they stumble upon a body.

Thrust into another murder investigation, Sidney discovers a world of hippies and psychedelic plants, where permissive behaviour seems to hide something darker. This is the first of many disturbing secrets that Sidney unearths: a celebrated photographer is accused of rape; a priceless religious text vanishes from a Cambridge college; and Sidney's own nephew goes missing.

Endeavouring to fit his clerical duties in around the demands of sleuthing, Sidney continues to reflect on the divine mysteries of love, life and faith, while wrestling with the earthly problems of parish scandals, the challenges of parenthood, and a great loss.

Members Reviews:

The Persistence of Love

...the stories in this collection are beautifully observed and the reader reaches into the heart of each one

World of faith and doubt

James Runcie gets better with each book both as a story teller and as a man committed to his faith yet unafraid of asking question to explore the faith, beliefs or philosophy of his characters that I think most people ask either to themselves or ask of others.

The stories may not be long but they are dense as a Christmas cake. If you have read the previous books many of these characters are a renewed sighting or a continuation of these peoples lives, even if it is a fleeting glance. So it is in the readers' lives too.

If you are in your more mellow years this is a book to savour after dinner in your favourite chair, perhaps with a good whisky as Sidney would do.

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Title: Suffer the Little Children: The Chronicles of Christoval Alvarez, Volume 5

Author: Ann Swinfen

Narrator: Jan Cramer

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10 hrs and 21 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-29-17

Publisher: Ann Swinfen

Ratings: 5 of 5 out of 12 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

In Elizabethan London, no child is safe. Children are misused and exploited by parents, masters, strangers, and society at large. Even the children of the rich are in danger. When a five-year-old heiress to great estates is kidnapped, Christoval Alvarez, the players of James Burbage's company, and a disreputable group of child beggars all become involved in the search. At Seething Lane, matters are approaching a crisis. Sir Francis Walsingham is dying and, as Thomas Phelippes struggles to hold the intelligence service together, he receives information that another attack on the Queen is planned. The identity of the assassin is unknown, but Phelippes does know the place and the date - Whitehall Palace on the day of the Twelfth Night Revels.

Members Reviews:

Great details

I have read all the books in this series, and each one is fresh and inventive. The details and atmosphere that the author provides make the story so much richer that you can feel the cold of an Elizabethan London winter.