The Ducal Detective

Ducal Detective Mysteries, Book 1

By: Sarah E. Burr

Narrated by: Melissa Green

Length: 3 hrs and 32 mins

Publisher's Summary

Before the Court of Mystery, Duchess Jacqueline Arienta Xavier reigned as the Ducal Detective.  

Murder is a royal affair in this enchanting prequel series by Sarah E. Burr. 

In this captivating novella introducing the realm of virtues, Jacqueline Arienta Xavier is the newly crowned Duchess of Saphire after her parents' carriage is found overturned on their way to a knights' tournament. While at first the tragedy is deemed an accident, the Duchess discovers a sinister plot in the heart of her own duchy. She must use her fearless curiosity, with help from unsuspecting friends, to unmask the culprit before the traitor comes for her head.

Discover for yourself how the duchess rose to power in the Ducal Detective Mysteries:

• The Ducal Detective
• A Feast Most Foul
• A Voyage of Vengeance
• A Summit in Shadow
• Throne of Threats

The duchess's story continues in the Court of Mystery novels:

• Paradise Plagued
• Burdened Bloodline
• Sovereign Sieged

©2017 Sarah Burr (P)2019 Sarah Burr

Fun quick read!

Narration is well done, good differentiations between characters and read at an easy to listen pace.

Story: a solid mystery with plenty of intrigue and twists. Add in a rising Royal and budding romance and you’ve got the gist of this first novel.

Parents: nothing to be concerned about, suitable for any YA reader!

Can’t wait for the next book!

—I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Enjoyable

I received this book for free. I am voluntarily posting this review and all opinions expressed herein are my own.

This is the first book in the series Ducal Detective Mysteries. It centers around the MC Jax whose parents have recently died in a carriage accident and Jax has inherited the role of ruling the duchy. There's a lot of things to like about this story. First is the MC Jax. She is grieving her parents' death while having to learn her role as a leader. In the midst of all this, she learns that her parents' death was not an accident. Second, I liked that the MC assumed the role of investigating whether her parents were murdered. Third, there are a bunch of little mentions in world building such as the color of your eyes determining class status or the existence of unicorns.

On the down side, while the MC is the most developed, likeable and interesting character, there are several characters who are underdeveloped and Victoria's reaction to them is not quite understandable or relatable. For example, the main advisor to the kingdom is treated very negatively by Victoria in their few interactions for reasons which are pretty much unknown. I am hoping that the characters will be developed in future stories in this series. I also felt the ending/resolution to her parents' deaths was a bit quick and not completely developed in the story.

However, I found this initial story/introduction to this world to be engaging and the MC likeable enough that I am interested in following this series. I am interested in how the possible romantic relationship develops for Jax and what possible role the Captain of the Guard plays with this relationship. I also look forward to seeing how Jax develops as a ruler.

As to the narrator, while I found her voice to be pleasant overall, I found her delivery to be a bit flat and slow.

Enjoyable

Quick enjoyable listen. Great narration and the story sets up for the rest of the series

Flawed, but engaging nonetheless

This book was slow getting started, as we were treated to a lot of information up front about the social/political environment of the setting; although much of it seemed unnecessary, I suspect it will come into play more in later books in the series. Because my attention was not (yet) fully engaged, I noticed little things I might not have otherwise. For instance, although the fantasy setting employs much of the trappings of medieval Europe, the use of 20th-century words, such as when a character is "knackered" (1971) and a tavern is described as "upscale" (1966), felt jarring. Even Jax's name--an acronym created from her initials, her full name being Jacqueline Arienta Xavier--pulled me out of the story every time it was mentioned, since acronyms date only to 1940.

Then, too, certain words were used incorrectly, such as when Jax studied something "profusely." I'll admit, I looked it up to make sure I was not doing the author an injustice, and my instincts were correct: my dictionary defines profuse as "pouring forth liberally" or "exhibiting great abundance"; in other words, an indication of quantity, not depth. You can study something "closely," or "intently," but not "profusely." There was also imagery that seemed...odd. The one that sticks in my mind is "Dark circles hung from her eye sockets." Eww! Gross!

And yet...in spite of its flaws, once the doctor revealed that her parents had not died of natural causes, the book became very engrossing. Best of all, I thought I saw where the author was going, but...she surprised me! In a mystery, that's always a good thing! I thought Jax's apparent(?) love interest wasn't quite up to her weight--I preferred the captain of the guard--but he was a younger son of whom not much was expected, unlike Jax, who was groomed from childhood to rule the duchy someday, It should be interesting to see if/how he matures into an equal partner for her, or if the author has a surprise or two up her sleeve there, as well.

As for the narrator, I thought she was well-chosen for this book. There's always a question of how a narrator will voice characters of the opposite sex, and I thought she was wise not to indicate male speakers simply by a lower/deeper pitch, but by conveying some aspect of personality: for instance, strength for the captain of the guard, and fussiness for the doctor.

All in all, a strong 3.5 stars, which I've rounded up to 4.

Quite enjoyable

Nice little novella. I enjoyed hearing the virtues of the realm as well as those of Jacqueline. I enjoy a strong heroin who know what and how she wants to handle things. The story line was intriguing and I enjoyed how the plot unfolded. Anxiously waiting to be able to hear the up coming sequels.
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Breath of fresh air

I really enjoyed listening to this short book. It’s not typically the genre that I listen to but I still found myself wondering if Jax was going to solve the mystery surrounding her parents’ death. I’m excited to read on.

Loved it!!!

There are few things more fun to listen to than a strong female who can handle her business. This is very much our heroine. Jacqueline Arienta Xavier is a newly crowned duchy and once she finds out that her parents were murdered, it's on. She was determined and steadfast and without any hand-wringing or angst, went about finding the truth. Loved it!!!

This is a prequel and I will now delve into the other books in this series since I need more!

The narrator was a great choice! Green embodied the strength at the core of the main character while still spinning a great mystery.

A fun listen. Can't wait to listen to the next b

Narration was great. I would listen to Melissa Green again.

The mystery is well done. I will listen to book two!

Outstanding Story and Narration

Sarah E. Burr weaves an interesting and exciting mystery in the first book of this series which is sensationally and thoughtfully narrated by Melissa Green. This first book is a great introduction to the main characters and leaves me wanting to go straight into Book 2. The combination of the story and the narration are perfect companions and I can't wait to see what's next.

Well done whodunit.

The story was intriguing. I thoroughly enjoyed the way the author wound the world building into the narrative. the narrator brings the characters to life and allows you to follow the story without much effort.

Great book

I Enjoyed this audio book very much from start to finish great story line too

Different type of detective book

Enjoyed this book laying out the foundations for the series, a good twist at the end

Review

Easy listening and enjoyable. Perfect narration and lunchtime listening. Jax is a formidable Duche in training