I was unfamiliar with this Dickens book, but thoroughly enjoyed it. The narrator is great. Editor could have been better (several repeated lines or phrases that should have been eliminated). But the story is classic Dickens (I sure enjoy his phrasing) and the narrator's rendering has such a flow that far surpassed some other Dickens audiobooks I've heard in the past. Wegg sounded just as smarmy as he should have (rather Uriah Heep-ish) and Mr. Boffin seemed a genuine, right jolly old fellow. An enjoyable listen, and of course long enough to make friends of the characters and not feel the visit was cut unnecessarily short.

This is my favorite Dickens novel, and the narrator does it full justice - especially Fledgeby, Wegg and the Boffins. Highly enjoyable.

I can't even tell you how many times I've listened to this book. It gets better every time. The first time I actually enjoyed it much less than the subsequent listens. The characters are all flawed and yet there is something likeable about them. I really think it does boil down to characters with Dickens.

One of the three great masterpieces of Dickens's late career, along with Bleak House and Little Dorritt, superbly performed.

Simon Vance brings this classic story to life. His narration is amazing and he is able to portray such a broad range of voices that every character is distinct and enjoyable.

It is Dickens at his word-crafting finest. Every aspect of this novel is impressive. The plots and intrigues are well executed, the characters have purpose and depth, the human insights are subtle yet powerful, the scenes and stories are moving, and above it all Dickens's linguistic touch is at its best.

The reader is excellent, too. He enjoys the language, never stumbles over it, always stays in character. Perfectly executed.

Not much else to say. I'm surprised this novel isn't as well known as Dickens's other great achievements.

The summary on Audible should be rewritten, though. It gives away most of the book all at once. Don't read it if you haven't yet, just get the book and enjoy.

I tried to listen to this audiobook twice. The first time I was distracted and could not follow the story. There are a lot of characters and there is a lot going on. I gave up.

I tried again on vacation when I could concentrate and listen in long bursts. The book was great the second time.

Lastly, the narrator does a great job.

My review goes against the ecstatic judgment of the crowd. The vastly popular and nearly ubiquitous Simon Vance/Robert Whitfield (the same man) strikes me as among the most tiresome readers out there. I find this so in large part because of the generic 'extra' emotion he inserts and sometimes slathers all over the place in whatever he reads -- without sufficient sensitivity to the genuine subtleties of any text. To me it sounds like sight-reading much of the time, highly practiced, very smooth, applause-gaining quite professional sight-reading, but I want way better than that. Or at least I do not want to be distracted. If Vance/Whitfield were to read aloud that "two bridges cross the river, one to the north and one to south," his voice would rise and fall and rise, for his habit is to offer a three-act play when none is wanted. His voice is a pleased, singing voice and not a speaking one, and dulcet tones which aim to impress finally get on your, or my, nerves. A matter of taste, yes. Some people hate Fred Williams' profoundly respectful and ultimately magnificent reading of THE FORSYTE SAGA. He is a reader with no singing tones in him (few Forsytes would ever sing, anyway) and he has no tricks at all, except for deep respect and perhaps love for his text, which, I bet, he knows by heart in places. Or try Eileen Atkins's MILL ON THE FLOSS for a supremely intelligent reading that inflicts no dazzle. As far as OUR MUTUAL FRIEND, I spent $38.47 (I am not yet a subscriber) on a reading I could not endure -- and then I went to the David Timson narration (also on Audible), which is good, so good that much of the time you forget the reader completely, which is how some people like it.

At first, I felt story took long to unwind. But I stayed with it, and with the help of Wikipedia , was able to follow along .

This author’s crusade of for the poor of. England us laudable. Even though it was many years before they all closed.

He writes a wonderful story and often had me in tears. I highly recommend. Simon Vance’s narration adds a great deal to the story.

This story had so many characters that at times I became lost as to who was whom. There were some technical problems with the recording. Several (at least 4-5) times during the 21 hours of reading, there were duplicate lines read and re-read. Assuming these were narration corrections, but were not done very well.

That didn't deter this listener from enjoying listening to Mr. Vance read this story. I can't imagine a better narrator for Dickens. His multi voiced narration and British accent fit the era and language that Charles Dickens wrote in.

Listen to each character's story and how it merges into one larger story throughout the book. And you will see how they are all tied together in the end...no loose ends.