Silent in the Grave

By: Deanna Raybourn

Narrated by: Ellen Archer

Length: 12 hrs and 54 mins

Publisher's summary

Let the wicked be ashamed, and let them be silent in the grave.

These ominous words, slashed from the pages of a book of Psalms, are the last threat that the darling of London society, Sir Edward Grey, receives from his killer. Before he can show them to Nicholas Brisbane, the private inquiry agent he has retained for his protection, Sir Edward collapses and dies at his London home, in the presence of his wife, Julia, and a roomful of dinner guests.

Prepared to accept that Edward's death was due to a long-standing physical infirmity, Julia is outraged when Brisbane visits and suggests that Sir Edward has been murdered. It is a reaction she comes to regret when she discovers the damning paper for herself, and realizes the truth.

Determined to bring her husband's murderer to justice, Julia engages the enigmatic Brisbane to help her investigate Edward's demise. Dismissing his warnings that the investigation will be difficult, if not impossible, Julia presses forward, following a trail of clues that lead her to even more unpleasant truths, and ever closer to a killer who waits expectantly for her arrival.

©2007 Deanna Raybourn (P)2007 Audible, Inc.
All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A. All characters in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

Critic reviews

"Riveting." (Bookreporter.com)
"Fans of British historical thrillers will welcome Raybourn's perfectly executed debut." (Publishers Weekly)

loved it!

loved it! couldnt stop listening, ened up finishing it in 3 days! great great great

Extremely Enjoyable

I always know a story is good when I find reasons to listen- yardwork, housework, driving, swimming- any excuse to keep listening.

An excellent mystery

I loved this book! The narration was excellent and the story was interesting and attention-grabbing. There were some flaws, but the plot, setting, and character development made up for some of the annoyances. I did eventually have a strong suspicion who the villain was but there were so many unexpected developments that even having guessed the culprit, I was captivated. The heroine was of the TSTL variety so much of the time that I wanted to slap her, but I was even able to overlook that because the rest of the writing and plot twists overshadowed her moments of idiocy. I can’t wait to listen to the next book in the series.

it was much better than the end that in the beginn

the ending was really good I kind of like the characters but it was extremely slow in the beginning too many details

great story and narration

I really enjoyed this story and have now listened to all that audible has to offer in the series. But more than that, I could listen to this narrator read the manual on my dishwasher.

story ruined by author's soapbox

would have thoroughly enjoyed great murder mystery if authored had stuck to entertainment and kept her not so subtle diatribe re social issues to herself.

Good mystery

Very good story, well crafted, with interesting and amusing characters.
Several mispronounced words detract from the performance, but not enough to totally spoil it.

great listen

this was a great book to listen too. the narration was very well done. I'm looking forward t9 the next book in the series.

A delightful tale

I thoroughly enjoyed this story and the narrator was wonderful. I must remember to look up Ellen Archer for other books she has narrated and other books by Diana Raybourn.
The plot is delicious. The characters intriguing! I wonder if the story could just go on with the two main people?

Not crazy about the conclusion

Good writing, some well-drawn characters (mostly!), and I thought the narrator was way better than others I’ve heard here on Audible.
The rising tension between the two main characters was interesting but it really slowed things down—apparent the author is trying to extend that suspense & work it into upcoming stories, but this story really dragged through the middle.
**SPOILERS and COMPLAINTS
I found the solution to how Edward was being poisoned pretty gross. Grateful the author did not go into a lot of salacious detail with that whole side of things.
I don’t like inconsistent characterization, though. One main character gives her a bad feeling at the beginning, is “menacing” several times yet turns out to be a love interest. Yet she has no bad feelings about the villain, completely blindsided. In mysteries when a villain is presented one way and then when unmasked is suddenly a completely different person—not good writing. The villain was such a sweetheart and then with almost zero warning has turned into this sinister monster at the end, for no good reason.
Plus, it seems unlikely that TWO raging illicit love affairs have been going on under this woman’s roof for years, couple sleeping in separate bedrooms, and yet NOBODY has a clue? Or suspicion? With all those servants? Seems unlikely.
I don’t like how the author wrapped this up.