The Corner Shop

By: Elizabeth Cadell

Narrated by: Helen Taylor

Length: 6 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's Summary

Lucille Abbey runs her London secretarial agency with utmost efficiency. When, therefore, a certain Professor Hallam rejects three girls sent by her to apply for the post of his secretary and they each pronounce him “impossible”, Lucille herself sets out to interview the Professor at his home in Hampshire. He is, she finds, eccentric—even impossible; but he represents a challenge and, what is more, an excuse to delay what promises to be a trying holiday in Paris. She stays on to tame and to organize him—a less formidable task than she had imagined; in fact, she grows fond of him. But the atmosphere is somewhat disturbed first by the arrival of a debonair French art expert in search of paintings left to the Professor by his mother, and the next by a hysterical girl on the track of her runaway fiancé. The paintings have unaccountably disappeared; the mystery is still unsolved by the time Lucille’s work for the Professor comes to an end and she has to set off for Paris. At her aunt’s shop in the Rue des Dames, the arrival there of the indomitable art expert, the hysterical girl, the Professor, and a persistent suitor to boot, throw Lucille’s normally orderly life into complete upheaval.

*Note, these titles contain the original, unabridged, text exactly as the author first wrote it. Many later editions of Elizabeth Cadell's works were heavily abridged or changed. We hope you enjoy the re-issue of these timeless books. Watch for more to come in the near future!

©1966, 2016 Elizabeth Cadell (P)2016 Janet Reynolds

Another lovely recording of a favorite author/sto

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

As a longtime fan of Cadell, I always recommend the books, but the recording of the book adds a new level to the experience. Narrator does a great job of bringing the story to life.

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

I did want to and have re-listened.

Any additional comments?

If you love gentle listens with great characters and writing, try Cadell. :-)

The corner shop

Light hearted, entertaining - feel good story - I am so happy that E Cadell's books are in audible - more titles please.

Why isn't this book a series?

Without an ounce of hyperbole, this book was sensational!! When it ended, I nearly cried. There wasn't another book to give me another way back into this world and these people, and that is a bad thing.

Lucille and Professor Hallam were a joy to get to know. Her want of order and his total disregard of said was so well-written, and heartwarming, and funny. The exchange they had in the shop, then the car, and on to the restaurant was hysterical. I don't know when I have enjoyed an exchange so much.

I can't say enough about how phenominal the narration is. The book is incredible and the narration kept pace.

There was a wonderful twist at the end that solved the variety of mysteries taking place throughout. All of the characters were so fun (well, except for the aunt) that I seriously hated for this listen to end.

Best of Cadell on audible

Of this author's three books available on audible (arrange for more, please!), i enjoyed this one the most. You'll want to pay close attention as you listen since there is little "filler". A definite recommend.

Good fun, as long as you remember 1960's

I received a free review copy of this audio book, at my request, and am voluntarily leaving this unbiased review.

A charming little book, that is a cross between "A shop around the corner"/"you've got mail" and a Hardy Boys book.

I got this book in the comedy category, and while it is light hearted and fun, I wouldn't consider it a comedy. Having said that, audible considers it a mystery thriller. It is neither of these categories, but somewhere in between.

This book seems to have been written in the 60's and while it is progressive in some ways, it is outdated in others. The main character is late 20's and running a business. Not bad for a woman in the 60's. On the other hand all the women in the book are more concerned with getting married than basically anything else. So while that is likely true of the time, it probably won't ring true for women today.

Aside from that, the book doesn't really give too much away about what it's about. It feels more like a series of odd and extremely coincidental events, leading to the ending. I was, at times, confused about where the book was ultimately heading. This wasn't a bad thing, as too many books are predictable to the point of being pointless to read, but as this book was never clear of its true motive, it was refreshing.

The characters were not overly complex, but not 1 dimensional either. Well, the main character wasn't at least. The secondary characters were more or less just there on her journey, either to further it or add complexity.

The settings, of a rural house in England and a store in Paris were more of a back drop and didn't play much into the story, other than to convince the main character of what she really wanted.

The mystery wasn't all that complex, and a few questions by the main character would have unraveled the whole thing earlier, but in the end the mystery wasn't what the story was about. It was about the characters' journey to who she was to become, and the mystery was just a stepping stone to that.

***minor spoilers***
The love story was a bit trite, and didn't feel all that natural, but again a product of the time. It was a bit like a Big Bang Theory where Penny hooked up with Sheldon. In a time where women had to marry, the main character didn't need a man, until a odd man like her father showed her some interest and she falls in love. Not terrible, just wouldn't work today.

The voice narration by Helen Taylor, was not bad. Her speaking style is a little ridgid, but she did separate voices for separate characters and her male voices weren't terrible, though not quite convincing.

All in all, a fun little book as long as you take it as a romance mystery from the 1960's and not something from the 2020's. It was fun and interesting, but not too deep. It kept me guessing what the book was going to do next, even if the mystery wasn't all that complex. It was good fun.

Pure corn

Having read other books by this author, I was confident that The Corner Shop would be a satisfying read. But the story was rambling, loose, and sometimes tedious, the characters irritatingly ill-defined. This is a favorite author of mine, but I regret the time I spent listening to this particular book of hers.

Mystery, Romance & Humor

This one is set back I believe in the early to mid 1900's in England and France- not during war time. A young divorced woman finds herself stuck helping a professor who seems to be more then a bit lost in the world of social conventions. While helping him she finds herself puzzled by a mystery of his deceased mother's missing paintings. The story has some very out going and entertaining characters that enter the scenery and really liven up the story. I found myself laughing out loud several times. It was a very clean read and the narrator did a great job. My only complaint was the narrator was a bit slower then I like but I found it did help to speed it up to 1.25.—I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

thoroughly enjoyable

This was a good one. I am a fan of the narrator Helen Taylor (and, in the interest of full disclosure we have met in person and I like her) and she never disappoints.

I don't know exactly when this book is set but it sounds like the 50s or 60s. There is a curmudgeonly professor and an independent business woman ... and it works.

I got a promotional credit for this book (I think).

Disappointing

I don’t know what else to say. I was disappointed. I wanted to see change come about in the characters. I needed more depth to the characters both in their personalities and their motivations. The ending was just dull. The storyteller was fine. Not the way I would have read it though. The French accent of the French art dealer was hard to listen to, but so few nail that accent.

I don't usually listen to romance books, but

I did enjoy this one, I laughed in some sections of the book and even was into it and gasped when something went wrong for the main character.It's a really good listen, narration was very good. Give it a try.
I was given this free review copy audio book at my request and have voluntarily left this review

Very enjoyable

The story kept me engaged throughout, I liked the main characters and there development and the mystery that ran through the story was also interesting and a well developed storyline. The narrator was also excellent. Would definitely listen to more by the writer.