The Queen's Accomplice

By: Susan Elia MacNeal

Narrated by: Susan Duerden

Length: 10 hrs and 36 mins

Publisher's Summary

Spy and code breaker extraordinaire Maggie Hope returns to war-weary London, where she is thrust into the dangerous hunt for a monster as the New York Times best-selling mystery series for fans of Jacqueline Winspear, Charles Todd, and Anne Perry continues.

England, 1942. The Nazis' relentless Blitz may have paused, but London's nightly blackouts continue. Now, under the cover of darkness, a madman is brutally killing and mutilating young women in eerie and exact re-creations of Jack the Ripper's crimes. What's more, he's targeting women who are reporting for duty to be Winston Churchill's spies and saboteurs abroad.

The officers at MI5 quickly realize they need the help of Special Agent Maggie Hope to find the killer dubbed "the Blackout Beast". A trap is set. But once the murderer has his sights on Maggie, not even Buckingham Palace can protect the resourceful spy from her fate.

©2016 Susan Elia MacNeal (P)2016 Random House Audio

I love these books, but had to stop listening....

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

The reader is terrible!! I love these books but could not remember why I only listened to the first one and read the rest myself. I purchased the latest and listened for 5 minutes and remembered why I read the rest myself. She does great voices but the rest is so sing songy I could not take it!!

11 of 11 people found this review helpful

I really dislike the narrator

This would have warranted a higher rating but for the narration. It spoils the book which is a shame for the author's hard work.

The story itself, in spite of a few negatives, is my favorite of the series so far. It was interesting with several plot lines (not all of which were resolved) and returning characters. The plight of women at the time was laid on a bit thick. I understand the importance of highlighting what women had to endure and I'm as feminist as can be, but I think there was a bit of overkill.

There were a few "I'm going to have nightmares" tense moments. I found the final confrontation scenes confusing with the hallucinations. All that being said, I found the book entertaining. I'm not a fan of cliffhangers but it's the author's style. I'll buy the next book but maybe not the audio version.

13 of 14 people found this review helpful

For the love of GOD, please get a new narrator!

What made the experience of listening to The Queen's Accomplice the most enjoyable?

I really enjoy these books, they have excellent plots.

Would you be willing to try another one of Susan Duerden’s performances?

NO WAY!!! She is way to sing-songy (Yes, I know that it's a made up word.) I enjoy the plot and writing of these books, but the narration is horrendous.

5 of 5 people found this review helpful

Storyline and Reader

The storyline is good, but the dialogue is made worse by the reader. I like the stories, but really, the dialogue is really kind of lame.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Please get another narrator

The story was good but could have been better with another narrator. Please get get another narrator,

7 of 8 people found this review helpful

End of the line for me on this series.

I loved the setting and the story line in the early books, but with this book the extensive violence, dark tangents, and foul language has gone too far. I'm sorry to see the author chose to take a worthwhile topic of women's rights and this fascinating historic setting to a level I don't want to read. No longer recommend.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Just ok

I continue to listen to books in this series because I love historical fiction. This one hammered home the mistreatment of women in a far from subtle way which got quite old after awhile. Easy to determine who the culprit was as well. And I really dislike the speaking style of the narrator.

All that said, I will probably return for the next one because, in spite of everything, I care about the characters.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Not the best Maggie Hope.

First, the reader has an annoying sing-song deliver that absolutely detracts & actually diminishes the story in places. This story sets Maggie up as too single-handed a heroine. And it's a bloody awful story - literally- about violence against women. Quite a slog.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Sing song performance is annoying

The story is lovely. Sing - song reading is absolutely irritating. The reader's voices are on point, but the constant up and down quality makes me want to cry.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

A good entry but a bit slow to start

I enjoy the Maggie Hope series but I found this entry a bit slow to develop. The second half of the story did pick up the pace but I have come to expect a little more from the author. I did like the way the book ended and it has me looking forward to the next installment. It left off with much promise. By no means a bust and those following the series will enjoy it in the end.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Good if slightly stereotyped wartime mystery

Like the previous Maggie Hope mysteries, this is an enjoyable, easy listen. The plot smartly entwines several different strands, all set in 1940s London. As such the story is held back a little by trying to enforce its historical setting a little too much, and is certainly not the most realistic of books- but if you enjoy a good crime novel which follows the path of Agatha Christie this is probably for you.

One thing that really irritated me was the narrator's attempts at various accents. This is probably just a personal preference, but I found her attempt at a Scottish accents particularly inaccurate and annoying- and unfortunately one of the main characters is Scottish. This definitely detracted from the enjoyment of listening, though did not stop me finishing the book- so don't let that put you off unless you are particularly sensitive to accents!