The Listening House

De: Mabel Seeley

Narrado por: Robin Miles

Down and out in the Depression, Gwynne Dacres moves into a seedy and sinister boarding house, where she exposes deadly secrets in this classic mystery by Mabel Seeley

After losing her copywriting job, young Gwynne Dacres seeks a place to live when she stumbles upon Mrs. Garr's old boarding house. Despite the gruff landlady and an assortment of shifty tenants, Gwynne rents a room for herself. She spends her first few nights at 593 Trent Street tensely awake, the house creaking and groaning as if listening to everything that happens behind its closed doors.

A chain of chilling events leads to the gruesome discovery of a mutilated body in the basement kitchen, dead of unknown circumstances. Was it an accident or murder? Under the red-black brick façade of the old house on Trent Street, Gwynne uncovers a myriad of secrets, blackmail, corruption, and clues of a wicked past. As she closes in on the truth, the cold, pale hands of death reach for Gwynne in the night....

©1943 Mabel Seeley (P)2021 Penguin Audio

Reseñas de la Crítica

“What a find! I’m so happy to have discovered Mabel Seeley. You will love her feisty heroine and the delightful cast of characters who live in the mysterious Listening House. I changed my mind a dozen times about who I thought the killer was, but I was wrong every time!” (Victoria Thompson, USA Today best-selling author of Murder on Wall Street)

"Like her tenacious heroine, Seeley’s writing showcases intelligence and a razor-sharp wit. This exceptional reissue is certain to win Seeley a whole new generation of fans." (Publishers Weekly, starred review)

"The Listening House is a corking good mystery abuzz with bon mots, snappy comebacks and sexual tension, calling to mind the best screwball comedies of the 1930s. With her novels, Seeley introduced early examples of self-reliant female sleuths, and Gwynne is a paragon: she more than matches wits with the men working the case." (Shelf Awareness)

Dark and yet amusing classic mystery

Mabel Seeley (1903-1991, I looked her up) crafted a mystery that is sometimes amusing, has complex characters, and will keep you guessing until the last page. This was originally published in 1938 (yes, Audible has the wrong publication date), so she couldn't be as explicit as a modern author, even if she had wanted to be. She crafted a lot of meaning with suggestion and atmosphere. All of the clues were there, but there was soooo much going on that you will probably miss at least some of them. The characters were explored as the story progresses, and there is the kind of humor you get from an author who understands people well. Some of the attitudes are dated, but then the book was written over 85 years ago (so don't have a fit over a few first-aid practices that would make the Red Cross cringe). The reader was very good, but there are several minor pronunciation errors, which suggests to me that the production people weren't being as careful as they might have been. Overall, it's a great listen, and well worth a credit.