The Last Serenade

Sybil Ingram, Volume 2

De: Amanda DeWees

Narrado por: Elizabeth Klett

When Sybil takes the stage again, murder plays the leading role.

In September 1873, medium and actress Sybil Ingram is looking forward to her new life as the wife of dashing violinist Roderick Brooke. But their plans for marriage are interrupted by a cry for help from Julia de Lioncourt, Roderick's former lover, who implores him to come to Paris to rescue her from a blackmailer, Danton Fournier.

When they arrive in Paris, the bewitching beauty proposes a daring plan: Sybil will take Julia's place in a new melodrama while Julia, her alibi thus secured, recovers the letters from Fournier's home. Knowing that Roderick still harbors guilt over killing Julia's husband in a duel, Sybil agrees to the plan for his sake - even though it's all too clear that Julia wants Roderick back in her bed. Moreover, the theater seems to harbor a ghostly presence that may foretell disaster for the masquerade.

Catastrophe strikes when Fournier's body is discovered stabbed through the heart. Suddenly Sybil needs an alibi. She must also find a way to prevent suspicion from falling on Roderick as well - while determining whether Julia knows more about Fournier's death than she is admitting. Can Sybil's abilities as a spirit medium help her discover the truth before the real killer stops her?

A delicious blend of supernatural mystery, gothic romance, and romantic comedy, the Sybil Ingram Victorian mysteries are perfect for listeners who love Victorian women sleuths like Anna Lee Huber's Lady Darby, Penny Richards's Lilly Long, Deanna Raybourn's Lady Julia Grey, and Elizabeth Peters's Amelia Peabody. And be sure not to miss Sybil's previous adventures in Nocturne for a Widow!

©2016 Amanda DeWees (P)2017 Amanda DeWees

Mystery Done Well

Amanda DeWees' novel is a perfect blend of mystery and soft romance. This historical fiction was engaging with little twist and turns that had me guessing to the very end. The characters were well developed and relatable and the plot pleasingly plausible. I particularly enjoyed that the main character was a strong willed, passionate, and empathetic woman. I truly enjoyed DeWees writing style and plan to listen to more in this series.

This was my second time listening to narrator Elizabeth Klett and I was thoroughly impressed. Her accents and dialects were superb. Although the writing included heavy amounts of French, and quick transitions from British, to American, to French speakers, Klett spoke it with ease and nothing was overdone. I plan to listen to more of her work.

Overall, this was a great read and I would recommend it to mystery and/or romance fans.

This audiobook was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Great Leading Lady

Sybil Ingram is lucky enough to take the stage again in the newest installment by Amanda DeWees. Sybil is a fearless female heroine who prefers to take action in every situation. Although I didn’t care for the circumstances around this little adventure for her and Roderick, I still was entertained. In real life if my fiancé’s ex-girlfriend needed help with anything, I would tell her to get lost. I did enjoy the many twists, turns, and guesses in this novel. I hope there are future stories featuring Sybil and Roderick.
Elizabeth Klett did a wonderful job with the cast of characters in this audiobook. She is definitely one of my favorite narrators.
I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher courtesy of Audiobook Blast.

3.5* - great narration of female characters

Any additional comments?

This was an interesting book. I'm not complaining about the lack of R-rated action; the author did a very good job with the light seduction scenes and the chemistry between the two main characters was well written. Indeed, the author has quite a lovely writing style and I'd certainly consider reading other books that she's written. She's quite effective at painting the setting and scenes of historical fiction, and her dialogue is well done also.

Having said that, there were times that I didn't really admire the main character (e.g., when she lost her patience at the understudy, who was upset that the main character usurped her position). I would sometimes become frustrated when she showed a backbone sometimes but knowingly let herself be taken advantage of other times. I also didn't find the motive for the France trip to be compelling (especially since the ex-mistress got away with continually provoking Roderick and Sybil for most of the story). However, since I didn't read the first book in this series, a deeper understanding of the backstory might have answered this question for me.

These are all minor things, though. There were really two main reasons why I didn't give this audiobook more stars. First, several characters in this book treated Roderick and Sybil quite shabbily after their arrival in France yet no one received their come-uppance (other than the murder victim). The ex-mistress's final fate was contrived and since she always seems to land on her feet, the ending that she received definitely does not punish her for her crimes. Second, while the narrator did a super job with the female voices in the audiobook (both Sybil and Julia were especially well done), I cringed whenever I heard Roderick's voice. Okay, I KNOW it's not easy voicing characters that are different genders than the narrator. But most narrators sound silly and fake when they do this, and that can jeopardize the reader's enjoyment of the book. I gave the narration 4 stars because of the great female voices but Roderick's voice just wasn't compelling at all. I couldn't paint him mentally as an attractive man, because of this fake male voice. In my experience listening to other audiobooks, female narrators who have alto voices do best with male characters when they drop their tones a little bit but not a lot for the male characters. Female narrators who have more soprano voices can't seem to pull off male characters when they deepen their voices substantially. It's like me pretending to be Santa Claus and booming, "Ho Ho Ho! Merrrry Christmas!" It's clear that I'm faking a male voice. And... when that fake male voice is supposed to be a romantic male lead, I can't engage with that character, and that's the time when I wish I was reading the book rather than listening to an audiobook. (This same gripe applies to male narrators who use falsetto voices for female characters.). It's tough, though. The narrator did such a great job with the female voices! I just wished she had done Roderick differently :(

I provided this honest review in exchange for a complimentary copy of the audiobook from the author, narrator, or publisher.

I was hooked right away

I don't always love a book right away, but this one had me interested from the start. It has a good initial hook that grabs you and pulls you in. There was a great female villain I loved to hate, and there were twists I didn't see coming which I enjoyed. I consider myself a sophisticated reader so I like when an author surprises me, since I like playing the game where I guess who the culprit is before all the facts are in!

The narrator, Elizabeth Klett, did a delightful narration of the many characters in this audiobook. She is a new favorite narrator of mine now, and I was compelled to purchase more books by this author and narrator so I could keep enjoying their pairing.

* I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher courtesy of Audiobook Blast in exchange for an unbiased review. *

Good strong characters

I haven't read the first book but I enjoyed this one. Good strong characters and a great mystery. A bit slow at times but overall a fun read. I'll have to get the first book now.

Not really a fan of the narrator, it was just ok.

I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.