The Brading Collection

Extremely well narrated by Diana Bishop, this is an enjoyable entry in the Miss Silver series, more of which seem to be now available on Audible.

Miss Silver, retired governess and private inquiry agent, is one of the more interesting 20th century British sleuths--she is a professional, not an amateur, and her investigations relay as much upon her knowledge of human behavior gleaned from years as a governess as upon her high intelligence and analytical abilities.

There is nothing frivolous here, and the emotional stakes are always high. The author plays fair, and the outcomes are not shocking, but the way in which the plots unfold with Miss Silver's assistance is really pleasurable. Unlike many more modern detective novels, the focus is not on the personal life and development of the investigator, and this means the series can be read in any order

P.S. If you are a crafter, you will enjoy Miss Silver's knitting, and the notion that a woman with pointy sticks in her hand is often underestimated, to the dismay of miscreants. If you are not a crafter, don't worry, this is not one of the dreadful, smarmy knitting-cooking-quilting-dog grooming- etc. modern series that seem to be cluttering up the bookstores lately.

As usual, I was not dissappointed. Patricia Wentworth's Miss Silver is a fabulous character and her stories entertaining.

Not at the very top of the author's game, this is nevertheless a thoroughly engaging and entertaining mystery in the tradition of Agatha Christie and Ngaio Marsh. The characters are quirky and fun, the plot has a fun twist at the end, and a nice romantic element as well. If you've downloaded and enjoyed Wentworth's other books, go ahead and get another Wetnworth fix with this one!

I enjoy Patricia Wentworth's books and believe Diana Bishop is an ideal narrator. Ms. Wentworth's main protagonist, Miss Maude Silver evokes visions of Agatha Christie's Miss Jane Marple. I always enjoy a bit of a light mystery after reading or listening to several more intense books and Ms. Wentworth's books fills that niche. The plots are usually predictable but the descriptions of the English countryside, villages or large cities are very well done and one can easily visualize Miss Silver.
If you are interested in reading books with thought provoking plots or prefer multi-layered sub-plots, then this book is not for you. Usually the "whodunit" is difficult enough to figure out but if you do, it is still pleasant reading. The Brading Collection was enjoyable and suited my mood at the time especially after reading several Minette Walters and Denise Mina books...both great but both a bit on the dark side.

I love the Miss Silver series. I listen to every one I can.

This story is no exception. The mystery was excellently done. A couple twists toward the end that I didn't see coming.

The characters (other than the recurring ones) were another stretch for Miss Wentworth. She seems to be able to capture a different cast of personalities with each successive edition.

Once again, the narrator was excellent! I never had to guess who was speaking!

I do recommend this book. It is well worth the credit!

N/A; haven't read the print version

Several well-developed suspects with reason to commit the murder--very suspenseful story

I love her voice and accent; she's very understandable

This is the best Miss Silver book I've listened to (out of 10 or 12).

This author is quite a new find for me and I am really enjoying this series.

She manages to lead you by the nose up to a point and then throw in a curve ball to knock you off your balance of thinking for a while. The characterisations are really excellent and one finds oneself either liking or disliking them as the author intends - when she throws mud at them (in the literal sense) they become less likeable. As she clears their characters, they become much more sympathetic and likeable.

A really gifted author. I am looking forward to audible publishing the rest of the series ... please!!!