• Land of Shadows

  • Detective Elouise Norton, Book 1
  • By: Rachel Howzell Hall
  • Narrated by: Je Nie Fleming
  • Length: 10 hrs and 11 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (451 ratings)

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Land of Shadows  By  cover art

Land of Shadows

By: Rachel Howzell Hall
Narrated by: Je Nie Fleming
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Publisher's summary

"A fresh voice in crime fiction. Fast, funny, heartbreaking and wise.... Elouise Norton is the best new character you'll meet this year." (Lee Child, New York Times best-selling author, on Rachel Howzell Hall's Land of Shadows)

Along the ever-changing border of gentrifying Los Angeles, 17-year-old Monique Darson is found dead at a condominium construction site, hanging in the closet of an unfinished unit. Homicide Detective Elouise "Lou" Norton's new partner, Colin Taggert, fresh from the comparatively bucolic Colorado Springs police department, assumes it's a teenage suicide. Lou isn't buying the easy explanation.

For one thing, the condo site is owned by Napoleon Crase, a self-made millionaire...and the man who may have murdered Lou's missing sister, Tori, 30 years ago. As Lou investigates the death of Monique Darson, she uncovers undeniable links between the two cases. But her department is skeptical.

Lou is convinced that when she solves Monique's case she will finally bring her lost sister home. But as she gets closer to the truth, she also gets closer to a violent killer. After all this time, can he be brought to justice...before Lou becomes his next victim?

©2014 Rachel Howzell Hall (P)2019 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

“A fresh voice in crime fiction. Fast, funny, heartbreaking and wise...Elouise Norton is the best new character you'll meet this year.” —Lee Child, New York Times bestselling author

“Spellbinding. Gritty. Original, complex, profound, and riveting. This is a voice you have never heard--and will be unable to forget. Prepare to be blown away.” —Hank Phillippi Ryan, Anthony, Agatha, and Mary Higgins Clark Award–winning author

“A hard-hitting tale of a modern, complex Los Angeles. Well-written and deftly paced…a story that stays with you after the last page is read.” —Gary Phillips, author of Warlord of Willow Ridge

Featured Article: Best Mystery Series—Listens That'll Take You Right to the Crime Scene


While a standalone mystery is great when you're in the mood for a one-and-done, sometimes you want to feed your craving with an entire mystery series—knowing there's a world and characters you can keep coming back to for the satisfaction of solving crimes. With audiobooks, you get the added bonus of sinking deeper into the setting, clues, and suspects as the story is performed for you, so you'll feel like you're alongside detectives, ready to bust a case.

What listeners say about Land of Shadows

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Gritty. real, sad and balanced

Started with the print book, ended with the audio book, and both are stunning. Stunning, as in extremely impressive; staggering.
Not a "fun" book; but isn't out of bounds with torture or the whole "superhero" schtick. Not my usual cup of tea, but an amazing book, and the narrator was spot-on perfect; did the accents seamlessly. I'll be looking for book two.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Good book - distracting narration

I liked the book enough to continue with the series. The story is solid (if a bit formulaic), and gripping. The narration, however, leaves much to be desired. Was considering not continuing with the series because of it. I don't know if it's the producer's fault, but the narrator repeatedly and distractingly puts the wrong emphasis on phrases.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Good Book and Characters

I liked the plot, it had many surprises. I will try to read other sequels. The reader did s good job with the different characters.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great narrator!

This was my first Audible and I really enjoyed it. I recommend it to someone that likes crime and a woman as the main character.!

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars
  • KO
  • 05-22-21

Narrative

The narrator should have pronounced the Lt’s as Rodriguez, not in an over pronounced Hispanic accent. It was quite disconcerting

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9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Great mix of characters!

I enjoyed the book. There's a good mix of characters and the narrator did a good job with most of them. The story kept me guessing up to the very end. I look forward to reading more from this author!

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Tough Cop

Complicated inquiry. Female detective caught up in a crime twisted through two families. Good writing. Good narration. Rough story for me to listen to. Thus only three stars. Author deserves more.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great story and narration

Looking forward to listening/reading more about Lou and her team. Some dialogue is funny. Will listen to this story again I am sure.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Nicely done.

Well developed story, interesting and a nice build. Enjoyable, most definitely worth the read. Nicely done.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

I’m hooked

Was looking for a couple of good detective authors and stumbled on Hall. Loved the first one. And the performance by Fleming kept me engaged on the story.

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2 people found this helpful