Hardcastle's Actress
Hardcastle Series
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Prime members: New to Audible?Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Hardcastle's Actress
Buy for $16.36
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
David Thorpe
-
By:
-
Graham Ison
About this listen
The new Detective Inspector Hardcastle mystery - When the body of actress Victoria Hart is found in the early hours of Christmas Day, Hardcastle and Marriotts investigations lead them to the Beaux Belles revue, where a scantily clad Victoria persuaded young men to enlist with the promise of a kiss. It seems the alluring actress had many admirers, and when the recruiting sergeant is found dead, a link to the army can no longer be ignored....
©2007 Graham Ison (P)2013 Audible LtdListeners also enjoyed...
-
Hardcastle's Airmen
- Hardcastle Series
- By: Graham Ison
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 8 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 113
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 100
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 101
In February 1915, the Great War is still raging on the Western Front, but in Westminster, at the centre of Hardcastle's bailiwick, a policeman is shot dead. At first, Hardcastle believes the murderer to have been a disturbed burglar. But as enquiries continue, attention focuses on an antiquarian bookseller, a struggling artist, a reporter, officers of the Royal Flying Corps, both in England and in France, and the activities of Isabel Plowman, the wife of one of them and the lover of others.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Most Entertaining and Funny Mystery Series
- By Judith A. Weller on 04-18-14
By: Graham Ison
-
Drumfire
- Brock and Poole Series
- By: Graham Ison
- Narrated by: Damian Lynch
- Length: 6 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 11
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 10
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 10
The new and unusual case for Detectives Brock and Poole - One Saturday night, a masked gunman walks into a jazz club and murders the drummer. Very soon, Detective Chief Inspector Brock and Detective Sergeant Poole find themselves taking an interest in the guests at a party in Surrey's stockbroker belt, which leads them to look again at a five-year-old robbery and to interview a dozen or so armed robbers. The killer is eventually arrested, but not before numerous extra-marital affairs come to light and a bullion van is attacked...
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Good read!
- By MolllyT on 03-05-22
By: Graham Ison
-
Murder at the Ritz
- By: Jim Eldridge
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 10 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 71
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 62
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 61
August, 1940. On the streets of London, locals watch with growing concern as German fighter planes plague the city’s skyline. But inside the famous Ritz Hotel, the cream of society continues to enjoy all the glamour and comfort that money can buy during wartime - until an anonymous man is discovered with his throat slashed open. Detective Chief Inspector Coburg is called in to investigate, ably assisted by his trusty colleague, Sergeant Lampson.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Mixed feelings
- By John S. on 08-02-21
By: Jim Eldridge
-
The Blitz Detective
- By: Mike Hollow
- Narrated by: Simon Mattacks
- Length: 8 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 26
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 22
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 22
September, 1940. The sun is shining, and in the midst of the good weather Londoners could be mistaken for forgetting their country was at war - until the familiar wail of the air-raid sirens heralds an enemy attack. The Blitz has started, and normal life has abruptly ended - but crime has not. That night a man's body is discovered in an unmarked van in the back streets of West Ham. When Detective Inspector John Jago is called to the scene, he recognises the victim: local justice of the peace Charles Villiers. The death looks suspicious, but then a German bomb obliterates all evidence.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
My new favorite detective
- By Janet on 02-11-22
By: Mike Hollow
-
A Test of Wills
- By: Charles Todd
- Narrated by: Samuel Giles
- Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 1,531
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 1,342
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 1,334
Ian Rutledge returns to his career at Scotland Yard after years fighting in the First World War. Unknown to his colleagues he is still suffering from shell shock, and is burdened with the guilt of having had executed a young soldier on the battlefield for refusing to fight. A jealous colleague has learned of his secret and has managed to have Rutledge assigned to a difficult case which could spell disaster for Rutledge whatever the outcome. A retired officer has been murdered, and Rutledge goes to investigate.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Difficult to follow the narrator
- By Carol on 01-02-13
By: Charles Todd
-
The White Lady
- A Novel
- By: Jacqueline Winspear
- Narrated by: Orlagh Cassidy
- Length: 10 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 720
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 594
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 591
A reluctant ex-spy with demons of her own, Elinor finds herself facing down one of the most dangerous organized crime gangs in London, ultimately exposing corruption from Scotland Yard to the highest levels of government. The private, quiet “Miss White" as Elinor is known, lives in a village in rural Kent, England, and to her fellow villagers seems something of an enigma. Well she might, as Elinor occupies a "grace and favor" property, a rare privilege offered to faithful servants of the Crown for services to the nation.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Mystery Maven
- By Mystery Maven on 03-24-23
-
Hardcastle's Airmen
- Hardcastle Series
- By: Graham Ison
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 8 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 113
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 100
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 101
In February 1915, the Great War is still raging on the Western Front, but in Westminster, at the centre of Hardcastle's bailiwick, a policeman is shot dead. At first, Hardcastle believes the murderer to have been a disturbed burglar. But as enquiries continue, attention focuses on an antiquarian bookseller, a struggling artist, a reporter, officers of the Royal Flying Corps, both in England and in France, and the activities of Isabel Plowman, the wife of one of them and the lover of others.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Most Entertaining and Funny Mystery Series
- By Judith A. Weller on 04-18-14
By: Graham Ison
-
Drumfire
- Brock and Poole Series
- By: Graham Ison
- Narrated by: Damian Lynch
- Length: 6 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 11
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 10
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 10
The new and unusual case for Detectives Brock and Poole - One Saturday night, a masked gunman walks into a jazz club and murders the drummer. Very soon, Detective Chief Inspector Brock and Detective Sergeant Poole find themselves taking an interest in the guests at a party in Surrey's stockbroker belt, which leads them to look again at a five-year-old robbery and to interview a dozen or so armed robbers. The killer is eventually arrested, but not before numerous extra-marital affairs come to light and a bullion van is attacked...
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Good read!
- By MolllyT on 03-05-22
By: Graham Ison
-
Murder at the Ritz
- By: Jim Eldridge
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 10 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 71
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 62
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 61
August, 1940. On the streets of London, locals watch with growing concern as German fighter planes plague the city’s skyline. But inside the famous Ritz Hotel, the cream of society continues to enjoy all the glamour and comfort that money can buy during wartime - until an anonymous man is discovered with his throat slashed open. Detective Chief Inspector Coburg is called in to investigate, ably assisted by his trusty colleague, Sergeant Lampson.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Mixed feelings
- By John S. on 08-02-21
By: Jim Eldridge
-
The Blitz Detective
- By: Mike Hollow
- Narrated by: Simon Mattacks
- Length: 8 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 26
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 22
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 22
September, 1940. The sun is shining, and in the midst of the good weather Londoners could be mistaken for forgetting their country was at war - until the familiar wail of the air-raid sirens heralds an enemy attack. The Blitz has started, and normal life has abruptly ended - but crime has not. That night a man's body is discovered in an unmarked van in the back streets of West Ham. When Detective Inspector John Jago is called to the scene, he recognises the victim: local justice of the peace Charles Villiers. The death looks suspicious, but then a German bomb obliterates all evidence.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
My new favorite detective
- By Janet on 02-11-22
By: Mike Hollow
-
A Test of Wills
- By: Charles Todd
- Narrated by: Samuel Giles
- Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 1,531
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 1,342
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 1,334
Ian Rutledge returns to his career at Scotland Yard after years fighting in the First World War. Unknown to his colleagues he is still suffering from shell shock, and is burdened with the guilt of having had executed a young soldier on the battlefield for refusing to fight. A jealous colleague has learned of his secret and has managed to have Rutledge assigned to a difficult case which could spell disaster for Rutledge whatever the outcome. A retired officer has been murdered, and Rutledge goes to investigate.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Difficult to follow the narrator
- By Carol on 01-02-13
By: Charles Todd
-
The White Lady
- A Novel
- By: Jacqueline Winspear
- Narrated by: Orlagh Cassidy
- Length: 10 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 720
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 594
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 591
A reluctant ex-spy with demons of her own, Elinor finds herself facing down one of the most dangerous organized crime gangs in London, ultimately exposing corruption from Scotland Yard to the highest levels of government. The private, quiet “Miss White" as Elinor is known, lives in a village in rural Kent, England, and to her fellow villagers seems something of an enigma. Well she might, as Elinor occupies a "grace and favor" property, a rare privilege offered to faithful servants of the Crown for services to the nation.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Mystery Maven
- By Mystery Maven on 03-24-23
-
The Killings at Badger’s Drift
- Midsomer Murders Mystery, Book 1
- By: Caroline Graham
- Narrated by: John Hopkins
- Length: 8 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,611
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,432
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,427
The village of Badger's Drift is the essence of tranquillity. But when resident and well-loved spinster Miss Simpson takes a stroll in the nearby woods, she stumbles across something she was never meant to see, and there's only one way to keep her quiet. Miss Simpson's death is not suspicious, say the villagers. But Miss Lucy Bellringer refuses to rest: her friend has been murdered. She is sure of it.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
I wanted to love this series but I just don't
- By Lynch on 11-09-22
By: Caroline Graham
-
These Names Make Clues
- By: E. C.R. Lorac
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 8 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 118
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 99
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 98
Chief Inspector Macdonald has been invited to a treasure hunt party at the house of the Graham Coombe, the celebrated publisher of Murder by Mesmerism. The clues of the hunt have been devised by Coombe's thriller-writer friends, disguised on the night under literary pseudonyms. The fun comes to an abrupt end, however, when 'Samuel Pepys' is found murdered in the telephone room in bizarre circumstances.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fun story.
- By peter on 03-12-22
By: E. C.R. Lorac
-
Alison Larkin Presents: The Secret Adversary, Murder on the Links, and The Mysterious Affair at Styles
- By: Agatha Christie
- Narrated by: Alison Larkin, James Warwick
- Length: 24 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 36
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 32
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 32
Three critically acclaimed recordings are joined together in this dazzling Agatha Christie Triple Bill, read by award-winning narrators Alison Larkin and James Warwick, star of the Partners in Crime TV series on Masterpiece Theater.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Pitch perfect narration of Agatha Christie!
- By Mary Katherine Worth on 10-18-19
By: Agatha Christie
-
A Quiet Life in the Country
- A Lady Hardcastle Mystery, Book 1
- By: T E Kinsey
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Knowelden
- Length: 7 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 8,374
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 7,406
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 7,388
Lady Emily Hardcastle is an eccentric widow with a secret past. Florence Armstrong, her maid and confidante, is an expert in martial arts. The year is 1908 and they've just moved from London to the country, hoping for a quiet life. But it is not long before Lady Hardcastle is forced out of her self-imposed retirement. There's a dead body in the woods, and the police are on the wrong scent. Lady Hardcastle makes some enquiries of her own, and it seems she knows a surprising amount about crime investigation...
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
excellent!
- By J.L. on 02-27-17
By: T E Kinsey
-
Smallbone Deceased
- By: Michael Gilbert
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 8 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 176
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 144
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 142
Horniman, Birley and Craine is a highly respected legal firm with clients reaching to the highest in the land. When a deed box in the office is opened to reveal a corpse, the threat of scandal promises to wreak havoc on the firm's reputation - especially as the murder looks like an inside job. The partners and staff of the firm keep a watchful and suspicious eye on their colleagues, as Inspector Hazlerigg sets out to solve the mystery of who Mr Smallbone was - and why he had to die.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Pretty Much Perfect
- By John on 12-16-19
By: Michael Gilbert
-
Surfeit of Suspects
- By: George Bellairs
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 6 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 86
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 74
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 72
Following a mysterious explosion, the offices of Excelsior Joinery Company are no more; the three directors are killed and the peace of a quiet town in Surrey lies in ruins. When the supposed cause of an ignited gas leak is dismissed and the presence of dynamite revealed, Superintendent Littlejohn of Scotland Yard is summoned to the scene. But beneath the sleepy veneer of Evingden lies a hotbed of deep-seated grievances. Confounding Littlejohn's investigation is an impressive cast of suspicious persons, each concealing their own ax to grind.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Wonderful
- By Ms Peach on 11-09-19
By: George Bellairs
-
The White Priory Murders
- By: Carter Dickson
- Narrated by: John Telfer
- Length: 8 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 46
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 38
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 38
James Bennett, nephew of Sir Henry Merrivale (the cantankerous yet genius sleuth), has been invited to stay at White Priory for Christmas, among the retinue of the glamorous Hollywood actress Marcia Tait. Her producer, her lover, her playwright and her agent are all here along with the haughty master of the estate, Canifes and his daughter. So many suspects they become when Marcia Tait is found dead on Christmas morning in the lakeside pavilion, having been left there alone the night before and with a distinct lack of footprints in the snow to reveal any possible killer.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
More, please.
- By Mildred Witte on 02-27-23
By: Carter Dickson
-
Murder in an English Village
- By: Jessica Ellicott
- Narrated by: Barbara Rosenblat
- Length: 9 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 5,211
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 4,741
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 4,716
The year is 1920: Flying in the face of convention, legendary American adventuress Beryl Helliwell never fails to surprise and shock. The last thing her adoring public would expect is that she craves some peace and quiet. The humdrum hamlet of Walmsley Parva in the English countryside seems just the ticket. And, honestly, until America comes to its senses and repeals Prohibition, Beryl has no intention of returning stateside and subjecting herself to bathtub gin.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Must read Historical Mystery
- By Victoria J. Mejia-Gewe on 02-20-18
By: Jessica Ellicott
-
A Traitor in Whitehall
- A Mystery
- By: Julia Kelly
- Narrated by: Marisa Calin
- Length: 9 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 69
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 65
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 65
1940, England: Evelyne Redfern, known as “The Parisian Orphan” as a child, is working on the line at a munitions factory in wartime London. When Mr. Fletcher, one of her father’s old friends, spots Evelyne on a night out, Evelyne finds herself plunged into the world of Prime Minister Winston Churchill’s cabinet war rooms. However, shortly after she settles into her new role as a secretary, one of the girls at work is murdered, and Evelyne must use all of her amateur sleuthing expertise to find the killer.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Okay, but needed help
- By Olivia Street on 11-20-24
By: Julia Kelly
-
The Secret of Chimneys
- By: Agatha Christie
- Narrated by: Charles Armstrong
- Length: 6 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 76
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 69
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 68
This mystery novel follows Anthony Cade, a man who unknowingly finds himself in the middle of an international conspiracy and a murder investigation after accepting a simple delivery job from an old friend. As Cade slowly begins to realize his predicament has potentially put him in danger, he begins his own investigation into the strange series of events just as Inspector Battle of Scotland Yard begins the main, official investigation.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Give it half an hour and then it's lots of fun listening!
- By Avid Listener on 02-20-21
By: Agatha Christie
-
The Sherlock Holmes Collection
- By: Arthur Conan Doyle
- Narrated by: Stephen Scalon
- Length: 67 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 164
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 148
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 147
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, who first appeared in publication in 1887. He is the creation of Scottish born author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. A brilliant London-based detective, Holmes is famous for his intellectual prowess, and is renowned for his skillful use of deductive reasoning (somewhat mistakenly - see inductive reasoning) and astute observation to solve difficult cases.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Scalon's narration is superior to Fry's
- By Sau Cheung on 09-06-19
-
A Third Class Murder
- A Cozy 1930s Mystery Set in an English Village
- By: Hugh Morrison
- Narrated by: Charles Johnston
- Length: 5 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 92
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 83
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 83
England, 1930. An antiques dealer is found robbed and murdered in a third class train compartment on a remote Suffolk branch line. The police believe they know who the killer is, and an arrest is soon made. A passenger on the same train, the Reverend Lucian Shaw, country parson and former army chaplain, is concerned that the police have the wrong man and begins an investigation of his own. Before long, Shaw is drawn into a web of intrigue, deceit, and murder which lurks beneath the surface of a seemingly peaceful country parish.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
disappointing
- By Ijw on 01-31-22
By: Hugh Morrison
Editorial reviews
David Thorpe’s silky smooth British lilt adds a sense of authenticity to Graham Ison’s fifth Inspector Hardcastle mystery, which transports the listener to 1914 England as the titular detective and his beleaguered partner, Marriott, unexpectedly become mired in a web of military intrigue as they investigate the mysterious death of a seductive Beaux Hall revue performer.
Thorpe brilliantly captures Hardcastle's trademark surliness as well as his and Marriott’s witty, rapid-fire exchanges in this distinctively British throwback mystery.
Related to this topic
-
Quick Curtain
- By: Alan Melville
- Narrated by: Ben Allen
- Length: 6 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 91
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 77
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 77
When Douglas B. Douglas - leading light of the London theatre - premiers his new musical extravaganza, Blue Music, he is sure the packed house will be dazzled by the performance. What he couldn't predict is the death of his star, Brandon Baker, onstage in the middle of act two. Soon another member of the cast is found dead, and it seems to be a straightforward case of murder followed by suicide.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Loved it - very funny and very clever!
- By Elizabeth A. Tierney on 05-30-16
By: Alan Melville
-
These Names Make Clues
- By: E. C.R. Lorac
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 8 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 118
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 99
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 98
Chief Inspector Macdonald has been invited to a treasure hunt party at the house of the Graham Coombe, the celebrated publisher of Murder by Mesmerism. The clues of the hunt have been devised by Coombe's thriller-writer friends, disguised on the night under literary pseudonyms. The fun comes to an abrupt end, however, when 'Samuel Pepys' is found murdered in the telephone room in bizarre circumstances.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fun story.
- By peter on 03-12-22
By: E. C.R. Lorac
-
The Barrakee Mystery
- By: Arthur W. Upfield
- Narrated by: Peter Hosking
- Length: 8 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 144
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 134
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 132
Why was the redoubtable King Henry, an aborigine from Western Australia, killed during a thunderstorm in New South Wales? What was the feud that led to murder after nineteen long years had passed? And who was the woman who saw the murder and kept silent? This first story of Inspector Napoleon Bonaparte, the half-aborigine detective, takes him to a sheep station in the Darling River bush country where he encounters those problems he understands so well... mixed blood and divided loyalties.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Story from another time....
- By VtAdrienne on 06-15-15
-
The Case of the Demented Spiv
- The Inspector Littlejohn Mysteries, Book 2
- By: George Bellairs
- Narrated by: Antony Ferguson
- Length: 5 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 83
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 74
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 74
It's a rainy, uneventful evening in the Oddfellows' Arms until a man bursts into the pub, clearly unstable, and ranting about a body in Fennings' Mill. The police investigate and stumble upon a body-the face smeared with theatrical make-up and a false mustache pasted neatly over the lip. Once the national news descends, Inspector Faddiman calls in Inspector Littlejohn to help him uncover the dark, hidden secrets in this quiet, provincial town. Soon it becomes clear that a lot of people can't, and won't tell the truth.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Delightful
- By Ms Peach on 06-02-19
By: George Bellairs
-
The Cornish Coast Murder
- By: John Bude
- Narrated by: Ben Allen
- Length: 8 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 223
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 193
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 194
The reverend Dodd, vicar of the quiet Cornish village of Boscawen, spends his evenings reading detective stories by the fireside - but heaven forbid that the shadow of any real crime should ever fall across his seaside parish. But the vicar's peace is shattered one stormy night when Julius Tregarthan, an ill-tempered magistrate, is found at his house in Boscawen with a bullet through his head. The local police inspector is baffled by the lack of clues.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
A Good Old Fashioned Who Done It
- By C. Rosser on 05-12-16
By: John Bude
-
Surfeit of Suspects
- By: George Bellairs
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 6 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 86
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 74
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 72
Following a mysterious explosion, the offices of Excelsior Joinery Company are no more; the three directors are killed and the peace of a quiet town in Surrey lies in ruins. When the supposed cause of an ignited gas leak is dismissed and the presence of dynamite revealed, Superintendent Littlejohn of Scotland Yard is summoned to the scene. But beneath the sleepy veneer of Evingden lies a hotbed of deep-seated grievances. Confounding Littlejohn's investigation is an impressive cast of suspicious persons, each concealing their own ax to grind.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Wonderful
- By Ms Peach on 11-09-19
By: George Bellairs
-
Quick Curtain
- By: Alan Melville
- Narrated by: Ben Allen
- Length: 6 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 91
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 77
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 77
When Douglas B. Douglas - leading light of the London theatre - premiers his new musical extravaganza, Blue Music, he is sure the packed house will be dazzled by the performance. What he couldn't predict is the death of his star, Brandon Baker, onstage in the middle of act two. Soon another member of the cast is found dead, and it seems to be a straightforward case of murder followed by suicide.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Loved it - very funny and very clever!
- By Elizabeth A. Tierney on 05-30-16
By: Alan Melville
-
These Names Make Clues
- By: E. C.R. Lorac
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 8 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 118
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 99
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 98
Chief Inspector Macdonald has been invited to a treasure hunt party at the house of the Graham Coombe, the celebrated publisher of Murder by Mesmerism. The clues of the hunt have been devised by Coombe's thriller-writer friends, disguised on the night under literary pseudonyms. The fun comes to an abrupt end, however, when 'Samuel Pepys' is found murdered in the telephone room in bizarre circumstances.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fun story.
- By peter on 03-12-22
By: E. C.R. Lorac
-
The Barrakee Mystery
- By: Arthur W. Upfield
- Narrated by: Peter Hosking
- Length: 8 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 144
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 134
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 132
Why was the redoubtable King Henry, an aborigine from Western Australia, killed during a thunderstorm in New South Wales? What was the feud that led to murder after nineteen long years had passed? And who was the woman who saw the murder and kept silent? This first story of Inspector Napoleon Bonaparte, the half-aborigine detective, takes him to a sheep station in the Darling River bush country where he encounters those problems he understands so well... mixed blood and divided loyalties.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Story from another time....
- By VtAdrienne on 06-15-15
-
The Case of the Demented Spiv
- The Inspector Littlejohn Mysteries, Book 2
- By: George Bellairs
- Narrated by: Antony Ferguson
- Length: 5 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 83
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 74
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 74
It's a rainy, uneventful evening in the Oddfellows' Arms until a man bursts into the pub, clearly unstable, and ranting about a body in Fennings' Mill. The police investigate and stumble upon a body-the face smeared with theatrical make-up and a false mustache pasted neatly over the lip. Once the national news descends, Inspector Faddiman calls in Inspector Littlejohn to help him uncover the dark, hidden secrets in this quiet, provincial town. Soon it becomes clear that a lot of people can't, and won't tell the truth.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Delightful
- By Ms Peach on 06-02-19
By: George Bellairs
-
The Cornish Coast Murder
- By: John Bude
- Narrated by: Ben Allen
- Length: 8 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 223
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 193
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 194
The reverend Dodd, vicar of the quiet Cornish village of Boscawen, spends his evenings reading detective stories by the fireside - but heaven forbid that the shadow of any real crime should ever fall across his seaside parish. But the vicar's peace is shattered one stormy night when Julius Tregarthan, an ill-tempered magistrate, is found at his house in Boscawen with a bullet through his head. The local police inspector is baffled by the lack of clues.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
A Good Old Fashioned Who Done It
- By C. Rosser on 05-12-16
By: John Bude
-
Surfeit of Suspects
- By: George Bellairs
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 6 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 86
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 74
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 72
Following a mysterious explosion, the offices of Excelsior Joinery Company are no more; the three directors are killed and the peace of a quiet town in Surrey lies in ruins. When the supposed cause of an ignited gas leak is dismissed and the presence of dynamite revealed, Superintendent Littlejohn of Scotland Yard is summoned to the scene. But beneath the sleepy veneer of Evingden lies a hotbed of deep-seated grievances. Confounding Littlejohn's investigation is an impressive cast of suspicious persons, each concealing their own ax to grind.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Wonderful
- By Ms Peach on 11-09-19
By: George Bellairs
-
Death Makes a Prophet
- By: John Bude
- Narrated by: Gordon Griffin
- Length: 8 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 47
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 42
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 42
Welworth Garden City in the 1940s is a forward-thinking town where free spirits find a home - vegetarians, socialists, and an array of exotic religious groups. Chief among these are the Children of Osiris, led by the eccentric High Prophet, Eustace K. Mildmann. The cult is a seething hotbed of petty resentment, jealousy and dark secrets - which eventually lead to murder. The stage is set for one of Inspector Meredith's most bizarre and exacting cases.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fine story good writing
- By peter on 06-28-22
By: John Bude
-
Prince of Spies
- The Richard Prince Thrillers, Book 1
- By: Alex Gerlis
- Narrated by: Rupert Bush
- Length: 10 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 247
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 220
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 219
1942: a German spy comes ashore on a desolate stretch of Lincolnshire beach. But he is hunted down by a young detective, Richard Prince. The secret services have need of a man like him.... In occupied Europe, Denmark is a hotbed of problems for British intelligence. Rumours of a war-ending weapon being developed by the Germans are rife. Sent to Copenhagen, Prince is soon caught in a deadly game of cat and mouse. Dodging Gestapo agents, SS muscle and the danger of betrayal, his survival - and the war effort - hangs in the balance.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
An excellent story, however...
- By A Happy Sort Of OCD on 03-23-22
By: Alex Gerlis
-
The Groote Park Murder
- Detective Club Crime Classics
- By: Freeman Wills Crofts
- Narrated by: Crawford Logan
- Length: 8 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 58
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 47
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 47
When a signalman discovers a mutilated body inside a railway tunnel near Groote Park, it seems to be a straightforward case of a man struck by a passing train. But Inspector Vandam of the Middeldorp police isn’t satisfied that Albert Smith’s death was accidental, and he sets out to prove foul play in a baffling mystery which crosses continents from deepest South Africa to the wilds of northern Scotland, where an almost identical crime appears to have been perpetrated.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
The Soundest Builder of Them All
- By John on 07-22-19
-
Pietr the Latvian
- Inspector Maigret, Book 1
- By: Georges Simenon, David Bellos - translator
- Narrated by: Gareth Armstrong
- Length: 3 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall3.5 out of 5 stars 894
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 788
-
Story3.5 out of 5 stars 787
The first audiobook which appeared in Georges Simenon's famous Maigret series, in a gripping new translation by David Bellos.Inevitably Maigret was a hostile presence in the Majestic. He constituted a kind of foreign body that the hotel's atmosphere could not assimilate. Not that he looked like a cartoon policeman. He didn't have a moustache and he didn't wear heavy boots. His clothes were well cut and made of fairly light worsted. He shaved every day and looked after his hands. But his frame was proletarian. He was a big, bony man.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Long live Maigret
- By Adeliese Baumann on 11-19-14
By: Georges Simenon, and others
-
The Christmas Card Crime
- And Other Stories
- By: Martin Edwards
- Narrated by: Gordon Griffin, Anne Dover
- Length: 7 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 99
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 87
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 88
A Christmas party is punctuated by a gunshot under a policeman’s watchful eye. A jewel heist is planned amidst the glitz and glamour of Oxford Street’s Christmas shopping. And lost in a snowstorm, a man finds a motive for murder.... This collection of mysteries explores the darker side of the festive season, from unexplained disturbances in the fresh snow to the darkness that lurks beneath the sparkling decorations.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Aahhh... Just The Right Blend Of Mystery, Murder And Christmas.!!
- By John on 12-04-18
By: Martin Edwards
-
River of Darkness
- By: Rennie Airth
- Narrated by: Christopher Kay
- Length: 13 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 479
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 409
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 406
In 1921, the bloodied bodies of Colonel Fletcher, his wife and two staff are found in a manor house in Surrey. The police have put the murders down to a violent robbery, but Detective Inspector Madden from Scotland Yard has his own suspicions. In the meantime the killer is plotting his second strike.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
New Mystery Written in 1920's Style-What A Thrill!
- By Nancy J on 06-27-12
By: Rennie Airth
What listeners say about Hardcastle's Actress
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall3 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story1 out of 5 stars
- Milton
- 05-11-14
Ploddingly predictable
I want to like this series. I started with Hardcastle's Burglar. I wish I had saved my money on this one. I just do not think the author likes women. So far I have listened to four of this series, and the mystery always seems to revolve around whores. If you start with that premise you can soon figure "who dunnit"
The performance however; is always spectacular . How the actor keeps track of the varied characters mystifies me.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall3 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story3 out of 5 stars
- connie
- 12-30-13
good setting idea but novel didn't gel
I thought Hardcastle might be a binge series for me, but I couldn't become engaged with this instalment. I like the early WWI English setting, I like the attempt at slice-of-working-class-life, and even the central mystery was OK - - but the recipe didn't cook for me. The author repeatedly tries to interpret FOR the reader very simple dialogue and actions--- without these interruptions and some extraneous and drawn out details of weeks spent travelling from Hardcastle's home station to the scene of crime area(s) and back, I might have found this a quietly satisfying whodunnit, albeit with thin characterization. I chose this instalment because it is the first in chronological order (rather than order written), and I'd expect the author to know his craft better. It's a series I want to like, but unless there are some good reader reviews for other novels, I won't be downloading more. The WWI setting earned it a third star from me.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
13 people found this helpful