Calliope

This is an old, light-weight ACD Sherlock Holmes story, good but not great. I didn't like the narration, though, and would not choose this narrator again.

This is the second book in the series, and the second I've enjoyed, and it won't be my last. The more of Walt Longmire I get, the more I like him, especially as brought to life by George Guidall. There's actually a whole lot of good characters here, and I'm looking forward to more from them.

Linwood Barclay has a good knack for creating characters, and his writing (and Buck Schirner's narration) do bring them to life. It's a good story, complicated enough to be interesting but straightforward enough to be understandable and I loved it all......until the final sentence in the last minute. Still, in spite of the ending, it was an enjoyable listen adn well worth the time and money. I'm sure it won't be my last book of his.

I was worried because the last installment in the series didn't live up to the good fun I'd experienced with the first and (to a lesser extent) the second book, but this one redeemed the series and author in my mind. What really sets these books apart is the fun and sense of humour, and there's no shortage of that in this story of murder in an isolated castle in Transylvania. Yes, it's still a murder mystery, but with novice maids, aristocratic bed-hopping, and imaginings of vampires, it's so much more.

This detective story is about 35 years old, and the dated language from the late 70s waters down a good mystery with good characters, making it almost seem like a cliche. Sadly, while it might have made it a better novel when it was published, it means that it doesn't stand up as well over time. The winning piece in the package is the performance, a narrator who brings a really believable voice to Chief Edward X. Delaney - but it's not enough to bring the audiobook above a 3 out of 5.

Walt Longmire is a character I fell in love with almost immediately, brought alive by narrator George Guidall. I loved the characters, the environment, and the narration. The actual story (mystery) was good, and it certainly left me wanting more.

I still love the character and the narration, but the aviation parts (and character) were reaching, I thought. I hope the next in the series is better, or I'll probably stop - which would be a shame.

This is a classic science fiction story from a classic (but often overlooked) science fiction writer. It's got an intriguing ending and a great finish, though it can get a wee bit plodding in the middle. Still a great story, though.

This review was mistakenly posted elsewhere (for The Clocks), but it correctly applies to Spider's Web: "This is a particularly lightweight mystery, pleasant but not really interesting or compelling. Hugh Fraser narrated it well, however, and I won't hesitate to download another book with him as a reader."

This is a particularly lightweight mystery, pleasant but not really interesting or compelling. Hugh Fraser narrated it well, however, and I won't hesitate to download another book with him as a reader.

I wish the Sample had been from the meat of the book, not just the beginning, because I would hopefully have known how much I didn't like Laural Merlignton's narration. She is, IMO, particularly bad at quoted voices - all her male characters sound somewhat constipated and all her female characters sound like 11 year old girls who are about to cry. I think it ruined what was otherwise a good retelling of an interesting true crime story.