A Going Concern

By: Catherine Aird

Narrated by: Derek Perkins

Length: 4 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's Summary

A bizarre clause in an elderly woman's will exposes a dirty secret - and a murder - in this "intricate, witty, and thoroughly delightful" mystery (Publishers Weekly).

It was an odd request, but when Octavia Garamond passed away, she left explicit instructions in her will: The police must be present at her funeral, and the coroner should be exceptionally thorough when examining her body. 

Amelia Kennerly is perplexed to find herself the sole executor of her great-aunt's will, as she barely knew her. Further questions arise when the local parson, Mr. Fournier, is anything but happy to conduct Octavia's service. Then someone breaks into Octavia's home and tears the house apart. It seems the old lady's words may have been eerily prescient: "Hell is empty, and all the devils are here." 

From a winner of crime fiction's prestigious Diamond Dagger, this twisting mystery featuring Detective Inspector C. D. Sloan of the Berebury CID is "a literate, surprising treat" (Publishers Weekly).

©1993 Catherine Aird (P)2019 Blackstone Publishing

good listen until last few unsatisfying chapters

I was enjoying the mystery in this book but it ended with a serious whimper. The solution was confusing and one of the major mysteries in the story was solved in one sentence. The author could have added more detail and investigation. The reason why the deceased character gave her niece a puzzle to solve was never explained.

Wonderful

A very enjoyable, well-written mystery with an intriguing plot and characters...an excellent listening experience.

Unimpressed.

Used my credit by accident. The story was really boring. The reader did not come alive or give the characters their own personalities. I was really ready for it to be over.

It smells of the lamp...and hot air.

Aird lards what could have been a novelette with so many literary references and attempts at wit that dialog becomes an exercise of the reader's endurance. Her constant references are particularly necessary or enriching. She seems to think she's being quite erudite, yet at other times she over-explains the obvious. It's hard to assess just whom she imagined as her audience. She also sadly invokes cliches as conversational payoffs. Nothing inherently wrong with the kernel of the story, but it was over-played. After the tediously burdened dialog, there weren't any surprises in the denouement. It would have been much improved by brevity.

The narrater was fine.

where's the ending?

I had to listen to the last couple chapters twice to realize I had in fact finished the book.

A Going Concern

An audio book mystery that I read and enjoyed. It felt unfinished but it was a decent story.

Witty & gripping!

The author was brilliant, & came up with an intriguing plot, with a great ability of creating characters who seem real.

Catherine Aird mystery writer who gives us so much.

Catherine Aird researches her novels with so much depth of knowledge. Her characters are drawn with human frailties and strengths, but always wit complex depths. I came to her novels only this past year, and I have been an avid fan ever since. If you enjoy mysteries with real clues and real people, may I recommend her Detective Sloan novels.