The Secret Rooms: A True Gothic Mystery

By: Catherine Bailey

Narrated by: Stephen Rashbrook

Length: 15 hrs

Publisher's summary

In April 1940, the ninth Duke of Rutland died in mysterious circumstances in one of the rooms of his family estate, Belvoir Castle. The mystery surrounding these rooms holds the key to a tragic story that is played out on the brutal battlefields of the Western Front and in the exclusive salons of Mayfair and Belgravia in the dying years of la belle époque. Uncovered is a dark and disturbing period in the history of the Rutland family, and one which they were determined to keep hidden for over 60 years. Sixty years on, The Secret Rooms is the true story of family secrets and one man’s determination to keep the past hidden at any cost.

©2012 Catherine Bailey (P)2012 Audible Ltd

Critic reviews

"Reads like the best kind of mystery story. It is a tale of mistresses and heirlooms, cowardice and connivance, and a deeply dysfunctional family...gripping." ( Sunday Times)

"Astonishing...jaw-dropping...It would spoil the book if I revealed the whole works, suffice it to say...what a family." ( Sunday Telegraph)

Northanger Abbey comes to live

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

The performance was in the spirit of the book but the book was so slight that the mysterious reading was just silly.

What was most disappointing about Catherine Bailey’s story?

There was nothing at its core. There was no story and no secret. It was like Northanger Abbey without the wit. The author made up a mystery about a frankly very unpleasant and unappealing aristocrat. There was nothing interesting about him except his title.

What does Stephen Rashbrook bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I learned how the English pronounce Belvoir, Drogheda and Buccleuch.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from The Secret Rooms: A True Gothic Mystery?

I wouldn't have written the book! It wasn't substantive in any way.

Very Disappointing

What disappointed you about The Secret Rooms: A True Gothic Mystery?

Frankly, it was boring. There was no great secret involved and the one secret that interested me was never explained. And there was nothing gothic about it. It's just the story of a dysfunctional aristocratic family told mostly through letters.

What do you think your next listen will be?

Something truly gothic, not like this.

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

The narrator was fine.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

None--unless the listener is an avid fan of World War I history.

Any additional comments?

I seriously wanted my money back on this one. It was a waste of money and time. I kept waiting for something to happen and it didn't. There was nothing very mysterious about the story and certainly nothing gothic about it.

ANTI-CLIMATIC MESS OF MINUTAIE

Without spoiling the end, this is not much of a mystery. Nor is the underlying subject of any real interest. The author takes a small kernel in the lives of a family and tries to make it into a full-length book. She would have done better to have written a fictional novel based loosely on a true story. This is a hot mess of minutiae and repetition mixed with a large dose of speculation. I can't understand why anyone would put this much time in researching absolutely nothing! The narrator reads like he is really building up to a great surprise ending. Since nothing was happening hour after hour, he put me to sleep quicker than Ambien! The minor trivia learned in this book would fit in a Snapple Tea bottle cap!

armistice day

Does the idea of listening logs, military records, aristocratic letters, and daily diary entries appeal to you? Then listen to this book

Just a war story

Seemed like a bunch of stuff about the world wars. Not sure why it’s gothic.

NOT IMPRESSED

This was written in such a boring way that it ruined any interest there might have been.