A Dead Liberty

The Calleshire Chronicles, Book 12

By: Catherine Aird

Narrated by: Derek Perkins

A crime of passion, a jealous admirer, a woman who would kill before she would be spurned - it might all fit if only the primary suspect would talk in CWA Diamond Dagger winner Catherine Aird's A Dead Liberty.

Lucy Durmast waits patiently in front of the judge at her own murder trial, refusing to utter a single word. Kenneth Carline, an employee of her father's, was found poisoned to death after eating a meal that Lucy herself had prepared.

Kenneth was set to marry another, and Lucy, it seems, was jealous. But what should have been an open-and-shut case of envy-driven murder becomes complicated when primary detective Trevor Porritt suffers permanent brain damage. C. D. Sloan inherits the file - and immediately begins poking holes in what looked like an airtight case. Why has the primary suspect gone mute? What was the victim doing with antinuclear pamphlets in his car? Was Detective Porritt's run-in with the burglar an unhappy coincidence? And what part does the king of the African nation of Dlasa, a client of Lucy's father, play in all this?

When someone connected to the case dies and the son of the king of Dlasa goes missing, panic begins to spread. Can Inspector Sloan and his hapless assistant, Constable Crosby, untangle this knotted web?

©2015 Catherine Aird (P)2019 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Originally I was not fond of this book.

However, while listening to it this time, I do like it better than I did.

Good but long-winded

If you’re looking for snappy repartee, thrills and a fast pace, this isn’t your book! However, despite a sluggish pacing and lots of wordy asides, there’s a certain stolid charm to this, and all the Aird mysteries I have yet read. The main character is likable and real. The incidental descriptive details are deftly drawn, just right. The plot is interesting. And the reader does a good job, too! Enjoyable

Story very detailed, lots of introspection

This one might not appeal to all readers of Aird because it is super extra detailed on people’s internal thoughts and reflections on quotes and history, much more than her usual books. But I liked the idea of it.

Giving up on the narrator issue of reading the characters as they ought to be—you often can’t tell the difference between who is talking and, just when you think you can, the character doesn’t sound that same as last time. But I’ve had this complaint for several books running (with this narrator) and it isn’t going to change. Sigh. Why can’t we go back to the first narrator?

A. dead liberty

I enjoyed listening to this audio book. at times I was feeling bogged down with clues and speculation by the characters, but in the end it all made sense.