The Various Haunts of Men

A Simon Serrailler Mystery, Book 1

By: Susan Hill

Narrated by: Steven Pacey

Length: 14 hrs and 44 mins

Publisher's summary

A woman vanishes in the fog up on "the Hill", an area locally known for its tranquility and peace. The police are not alarmed; people usually disappear for their own reasons. But when a young girl, an old man, and even a dog disappear, no one can deny that something untoward is happening in this quiet town.

Young policewoman Freya Graffham is assigned to the case; she's new to the job, compassionate, inquisitive, and dedicated. She and the enigmatic detective Chief Inspector Simon Serrailler have the task of unraveling the mystery behind this gruesome sequence of events.

©2004 Susan Hill (P)2011 AudioGo

Why do we have so many psychos?!!!!

An interesting first read. I struggled with the first few chapters and everything fell into place and it became a very good read. I did not detect any great brilliance on the part of the main character Simon Serrailer and hopefully his brilliance will emerge in future books in the series. Strangely I found D.S.Graffham and the killer more interesting than Serrailer. I was not prepared for the books ending and it took me by surprise. Overall it was a very good first book. I look forward to the next book in the series.

Nice summer mystery

First time experience with Susan Hill. I'm usually not a big mystery fan, but this story had solid, believable characters and an interesting plot. Either I missed them or there were not the usual hints thrown in along the way as to the possible identity of the serial killer. Still a fun listen,

Great story

A bit meandering to start, this turned out to be an interesting book with fantastic range of voices performed by the reader.

I have mixed feelings.

I have mixed feelings. The narrator was excellent. The story was well written but it was horribly sad and it seemed so pointless in the end.

Great Book…Not So Great of an Ending

Enjoyed the book, the wrap up leaves me wondering too much…just END it properly, I felt like a few pieces were left hanging.

Engaging and Puzzling at The Same Time

Would you consider the audio edition of The Various Haunts of Men to be better than the print version?

Yes, the audio version is much better. More Entertaining

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I enjoyed listening to this book a bit each day. That way I could think about what was going on, and what the characters were doing. It keep me engaged through the entire book. And, the reader is excellent.

Any additional comments?

Without giving anything away..the plot is very unexpected and surprising. I was not prepared for the ending. For a mystery, this is very entertaining!

Kept my interest

I am a fan of Susan Hills storytelling skill. I don't know why I didn't love this book as much as Mist in the Mirror and The Small Hand. Probably because it didn't have the supernatural element.
I do think I will get the next in the series though. I'm such an Agatha Christie fan it's sad when you've exhausted the Audible library of her stories.

Narration Great, Writing Good, Plot Heartbreaking.

I found Hill did an excellent job setting the ground for a series of mysteries featuring interesting and diverse recurring professional and family characters..I also loved her creation of the small cathedral town, a sad and splendid demi Paradise Lost. This particular first mystery did not come together for me as a mystery. PLOT SPOILER: the character I found most wistfully compelling and heroic will not be around in future books. The plot element that makes this a certainty I judged to be emotionally manipulative, heartbreaking, and beneath Hill's amazing talents. Hence one star for "story".

Mildly interesting

Interesting by the end. With out the description of the storyline ahead of time I would have been extremely confused and perhaps not finished.

Difficult

So many characters and stories that at times it’s difficult to follow the characters and when it comes together finally it ends too quickly