The Cuckoo's Cry

An Audible Original Novella

By: Caroline Overington

Narrated by: Aimee Horne

Length: 4 hrs and 43 mins

Publisher's Summary

On the eve of the global lockdown, Don Barlow opens the door of his old beachside cottage to find a pretty girl with pink-tipped hair, claiming to have nowhere to go. 

He allows her entry, and so begins a mystery set in unprecedented times: with the virus raging outside their home, the girl cannot be asked to leave, but what does he risk by having her stay?

©2020 Caroline Overington (P)2020 Audible Australia Pty Ltd.

Slow burning Aussie suspense in the time of COVID

One of the things I like about the mystery/suspense genre is the age equality in main characters. Action, romance, and horror tend to star young, fit adults in their 20s and 30s, or 40s tops. Here, Don Barlow is a 70s retiree hunkering down in his beachside Australian pad during COVID-19. Nice to see that old folks can star in good fiction too. (I say that with love from the mid-century mark).

Riding out COVID in the U.S., I found the Australian treatment of it interesting. The writing really brought the culture and the characters alive and I learned some new terms, like budgies (Speedos style swimsuits) and milos (chocolate malted drinks). I very much enjoyed the narrator’s Australian voice. Several of the month’s free Audible selections feature outstanding female narrators capable of great range in voicing genders, ages, and accents. Bravo.

As the title suggests, the central mystery is whether the 19 year old appearing at his door is really who she claims to be. The suspense builds gradually, with enough twists along the way to make me doubt my predictions. I did bump the speed to 1.3x, but this was a nice simmering suspense.

Mild touching on topics of crime, violence, and teen pregnancy, but not in any graphic or profane way.

A Multi-faceted Exploration of "Social Isolation"

I didn't expect to see a deep family drama exploring the many types of social isolation in the Covid19 era published quite so soon! The Cuckoo's Cry is a moving revelation of family secrets and personal tragedies within the confines of class, sex, and social mores. The characters are appealing and finely drawn. The plot grabs your attention and doesn't let go. I laughed and cried--sometimes at the same time. All this in an absorbing drama running under five hours. Bravo!

(P.S. Thanks, too, for the new, softer female voice instead of Audible's former explosive tagline at the end!)

A good story.

I did not expect the ending. Liked the narration by all the different characters. A good story.

The best Audible Original I’ve listened to so far!

I loved the story and the performance. Not trite or predictable. It kept me listening. I like this author.

Nice mystery

I had to give a review for this audible original. It was quite a pleasant surprise to listen to this one. A well written story with great personalities and a few twists and turns. An enjoyable 4 hour escape.

Captivating

A sweet but melancholy story of family, old loves, anger and endearment. A story line we all know from some other time.

Great little story to pass the time!

Enjoyed the story for a lazy afternoon. I would welcome another book by this author. Predictable but good!

Didn’t expect that ending!

Was properly impressed, and not just in for a free audible book. It was really good and for a moment when I thought it was gonna be predictable, I was totally wrong

Character driven mystery...

...in which some of the characters are drawn better than others.

I like the narrator's voice and, overall, this book is enjoyable if you're in the mood for a short suspense/mystery novel (one that won't give you nightmares).

Even though I didn't find the end very compelling, I do think there's some food for thought throughout the book especially in the family dynamic.

Interesting listen but

but there are gaps that aren't explained if they were meant to enhance the story - like why mother and father state the same child was born in two d
different years.