Guilty

By: Laura Elliot

Narrated by: Laoisha O'Callaghan

Length: 12 hrs and 52 mins

Publisher's summary

It begins with a phone call. It ends with a missing child.

On a warm summer's morning, 13-year-old schoolgirl Constance Lawson is reported missing.

A few days later, Constance's uncle, Karl Lawson, suddenly finds himself swept up in a media frenzy created by journalist Amanda Bowe implying that he is the prime suspect.

Six years later...

Karl's life is in ruins. His marriage is over, his family destroyed. But the woman who took everything away from him is thriving. With a successful career, a husband, and a gorgeous baby boy, Amanda's world is complete. Until the day she receives a phone call, and in a heartbeat she is plunged into every mother's worst nightmare.

An utterly compelling psychological thriller that will keep you guessing to the very last minute. Perfect for fans of Louise Jensen, Claire Douglas, and Sarah Denzil's Silent Child.

©2017 Laura Elliot (P)2017 Bookouture

DON'T BUY AUDIO VERSION

Would you consider the audio edition of Guilty to be better than the print version?

Haven't read the book. I stopped listening to the audio version after 40 minutes. The reader speaks quite slowly with minimal inflection. I have listened to audio books for many years and nearly always enjoy the ride. However this reader has spoiled this experience for me and I am returning the book.

Narrator made me want to stab myself in the ear.

Really enjoyed the story. Was so confused when it initially seemed to be resolved so early on. Twists and turns were wonderful. Not a typical story!

Narrator was terrible. The American accents were an absolute joke. They were supposed to be from NY and yet they had a Southern drawl with a bit of an Irish accent thrown in. Various voices were downright creepy at times. I've never hated a narrator so much, but had to keep listening to see where the story was going!

Great story - advice to deal with narrator

I really loved the story, but the narration really bothered me at first. After a short time, I realized that the speed was strangely
slow. I changed the speed that I was listening to 1.25 and it made a huge difference. I highly recommend listening at 1.25 speed.

Was the narrator intoxicated?

I really tried to get into this book but the narration was so pathetic I could not. It was depressing to listen to.

Narrator yuk

The story was great most of the way, kind of anticlimactic at the end. However the narration was some of the worst I've ever listened to. Very little difference between characters. And if everyone in Ireland whines that much when they talk, nobody would ever want to visit that country. Sorry.
I never write reviews but had to do so this time.

A great plot. Pay back is tough

I loved this book and its narrator. Although i usually don't agree with revenge, i was so glad the book ended like it did.

A Really Great Story

Laura Elliot re-writes the hackneyed kidnap story into an edgy, psychological drama that resonates with Greek and Shakespearian themes of revenge and redemption. Yes, there's a bit of willing suspension of disbelief in some of the plot twists but oh, what a web she weaves! Laoisha O'Callaghan's beautiful, sometimes plangent, alto works perfectly for this story. Don't miss this book.

Best Read

The author is amazing a d kept me wanting to red more. The ending was priceless.

Good story. Horrible narrator!

I really enjoyed this story. However, the narrator was so terrible that it made me want to stop listening. If the story wasn’t so intriguing I would have quit listening. Do yourself a favor and listen to the sample before purchasing.... it’s terrible the entire way through! But the story is great. Buy the book.

if you can get past the narrator...

Guilty is a compelling story, I truly enjoyed this book. the problem is that I nearly returned it 4 times because the narrator is just so awful! her American accent is grating and her natural Irish accent is so slow. It took me over 2 hours before I noticed that I wasn't grinding my teeth over the performance. The storyline is very interesting. It is more gripping suspense than mystery, as, if you read the description, you know the storyline.

Good but the narration spoils it!

What made the experience of listening to Guilty the most enjoyable?

This book, in the main is well written and i enjoyed how the story flowed. however, it was in no means a page turner and it did take me a while to get involved in the storyline

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

Nothing wrong with the story as such, although not exactly realistic it had some good twists and turns. Unfortunetly, the narrator completly ruined the listen for me, The irish accent is usually a lovely soothing tone, but you could tell this narroator was faking it and it was harsh and unrealistic.

What didn’t you like about Laoisha O'Callaghan’s performance?

Nothing, she spoiled the listen for me

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It started off as an intriguing story. but then as the book went on it got more surreal! i could of had an emotional connection if it go off on such an odd tangent. Dont get me wrong i read the whole thing and it was good but i found it hard work.

Awful narrator

This book is well written and does leave a little bit of mystery at the end. it's not page turning so to speak! But is enjoyable the main and only problem is the awful narrator. The Irish accent is normally pleasant to listen to unfortunately it sounds fake and put on when listening to this book.

FANTASTIC IN EVERY WAY POSSIBLE !!!!

TWISTED!!!!! IT TURNED!!!! IT WAS BRILLIANT I RECOMMEND THI BOOK!!!!!!! through earphones!!!!!!
ITS MORE INTENSE

Brilliant read

This book not only takes you on an emotional rollercoaster, it is extremely thought provoking. Be careful what you do in life, because karma's sitting just around the corner 😊

Brilliant

I am an avid listener and I don't usually leave reviews. I could not miss the opportunity to highly recommend this book. It is the first book from this author I have purchased but it certainly won't be the last. A real page turner 5*

Missing

Constance Lawson 13 missing, Carl Lawson her uncle is hounded by the press as guilty for Constance disappearance not believed by his own brother and wife faces an attack on his character whilst grieving the loss of his niece.
Amanda Bowe the journalist behind Carl’s demise and then release suffers her own nightmare when her own son Marcus disappears

Good book… the worst narrator ever

Enjoyed this book, lots of twists and turns and a good plot. It was however narrated by the worst narrator ever. A depressing angry voice with such a thick Dublin accent that it was difficult to decipher. All accents sounded same, and the American voices were just excruciatingly bad. Whoever cast this narrator for this book must have been mad! I struggled though it but the dreadful narration really spoiled this book for me.

Good story

This was an excellent story , however the narration was awful even laughable in places . I never normally check who is doing the narrative but I will in future , so I don’t get the same person again .

Amazing read

I totally loved the storyline so original. The lessons learnt. I felt every emotion. Anger, sadness, hope, despair and disbelief. I took a few chapters to get used to the narrator accent but eventually grew to love it. If you only read one book this year - choose this one, you won’t be disappointed. Excellent 5 stars all round

Brilliant

I loved this book, twists and turns throughout, but I didn’t really enjoy the narration. When I first started listening to it I was almost tempted to give up because of the rather monotonous tone, but the story gripped me so I persevered and I’m glad I did. If you can get past the narration and get Into the story it’s well worth it. Laura Elliott is an amazing writer, this is the second book I’ve listened too (the first one has a brilliant narrator) and I’ve already downloaded a third and can’t wait to get into it.