The Tales of Max Carrados

By: Ernest Bramah

Narrated by: Stephen Fry

Exclusive audio collection. Eleven Max Carrados stories - narrated by national treasure Stephen Fry.

Max Carrados featured in a series of mystery stories that first appeared in 1914. Carrados featured alongside Sherlock Holmes in The Strand magazine, in which they both had top billing. The character often boasted how being blind meant his other senses were heightened.

• 'The Coin of Dionysus'
• 'The Game Played in the Dark'
• 'The Holloway Road Flat Tragedy'
• 'The Curious Circumstances of the Two Left Shoes'
• 'The Secret of Headlam Height'
• 'The Mystery of the Vanished Crown'
• 'The Ingenious Mind of Mr Rigby Lacksome'
• 'The Strange Case of Cyril Bycourt'
• 'The Crime at the House in Culver Street'
• 'The Bunch of Violets'
• 'The Missing Witness Sensation'

Public Domain (P)2016 Audible, Ltd

Critic reviews

"[Narrator Stephen] Fry gives Max a perfect plummy voice and has equal fun with colorful supporting characters and ne'er-do-wells. His lovely mix of realistic conversation and pacing, as well as the occasional slow wink, encourages listeners to succumb in pleasure." ( AudioFile)

Stephen Fry + great material

Any additional comments?

Stephen Fry adds to the Holmes-like hero and conundrums a stageful of character voices.

What a delight

Blindness hasn’t slowed down Mr Carrados, in life or sleuthing. A delightful stack of adventures.

Old Fashioned Sleuth Story

Stephen Fry is the perfect voice for this old fashioned mystery series.
Fairly entertaining story.

Narration

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

The writer, yes, not the performer.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Not really.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

It was all him and very little Bramah or Carrados.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Not really

Any additional comments?

The problem with most “celebrity” narrators, is that they induce so much drama into a performance to the extent of obscuring the very work they are narrating. In this particular instance, it was almost all Stephen Frey and very littlle Ernest Bramah or Max Carrados. Couldn’t complete this, half way, I had to call it quits.

Charming Early 20th Century Stories

This collection of stories, written in the early 1900's, is charming and highly engaging IF the listener is ready to give the book undivided attention. The stories are populated with interesting characters and unusual crimes presented as rather dense logic puzzles. Once I adjusted my expectations to fit the style and time period I really enjoyed my time with the charming Max Carrados. Stephen Fry's narration is perfection in this setting.

If you are looking for a plot with lots of action, sustained character development and stories which let the reader anticipate 'who dun it', then I don't recommend this book.