Her Royal Spyness

By: Rhys Bowen

Narrated by: Katherine Kellgren

Length: 8 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's summary

Agatha Award-winning author Rhys Bowen’s charming combination of intrigue and romance blended with a touch of humor shines when performed by Audible Hall of Fame narrator Katherine Kellgren, whose deft range and impeccable accent work make it hard to believe this isn’t a multicast performance.

In this irresistible cozy set in 1930s London, Rhys Bowen introduces the lively Lady Victoria Georgiana Charlotte Eugenie—or "Georgie" for short. Despite standing 34th in line for the throne and occasionally having tea with (…and spying for!) Her Majesty the Queen, Georgie is penniless and down-on-her-luck. And just when it seems things might be looking up, she finds a body in her bathtub.

Listeners are sure to be hooked on this royally enjoyable series—and luckily for them, the collaboration between author and narrator only gets richer over the course of 12 books.

©2007 Janet Quin-Harkin (P)2010 Audible, Inc.

Happy addition to a difficult genre

I love a good mystery and am frequently disappointed. This one was very satisfying. The story is set during an interesting time in history, the early 1930s; the characters span a range of social classes due to the main character's position as a fiscally destitute minor royal whose mixed parentage includes a Cockney grandfather. She thinks out of the box which places her in situations that would be precluded by strict adherence to class code. The story contains enough plot twists to keep the reader guessing, but all the necessary clues are provided, so the conclusion is logical.
The narrator does a fantastic job with the voices and accents.

Delightful little mystery

I bought this book on a whim. The idea of a down-and-out royal trying to make a living in 1930s London was interesting enough to peak my curiosity, but mixing that with a murder mystery was enough to convince me to give it a try.

The book was a worthwhile read for me if only for the portrait it paints of the 1930s class-conscious society that existed of that time in the UK. The lives of those in the upper class as well as those not in that class (NOCD - not our class darling) is presented as is with no explicit excuses or embarrasment, just as the people who lived then must have thought of it. What are most interesting, besides the interactions of the two classes, are the unconscious restrictions placed on the upper class who still, sometimes, had to make a living.

The murder mystery added some additional interest to the book although the mystery was both much clearer and easier to piece for me than Agatha Chrisie's Miss Marple books. There were sufficient red herrings thrown in and our heroine does indeed make some stupid decisions, but it is all in fun and the true culprit did not become clear to me until the last hour or so of the book. All in all I can say that I had a good time reading it. I do not expect to read any other books in the series but I do not regret having purchased and read this one.

Ms Kellgren's narration of the book is first class - the British, Scots and American accents sound authentic (to my ears). She spoke clearly and seemed perfectly chosen for the tone and pace of the book. I feel I can recommend this book for some fun and light reading.

Her Royal Spyness

I looked at this for several months before I bought it. I'm glad I did. It made me laugh, and I also went back and studied a litlte history out of curiosity. I have now listened to the whole (so far) series, and I have enjoyed them. The reader does a good job and handles the accents well. I will be watchign for more in the series.

This was delightful

Packed with humor, historical tit-bits, upper English stiff-lipped tradition and some ingenuity.... a great read, if you need to give your mind a rest, but just not quite enough of a rest to figure out who the bad guy is... Go for it, this was delightful... Narration? Superb!!!

Entertaining and a wonderful narrator

I loved listening to this so much I bought the next two in the series. The narrator creates vivid individual voices for all the characters. The writer created a realistic fictional branch of the royal family and populated it with great characters. The other characters, such as Belinda, are delicious. I didn't give the book a 5 a couple of reasons but mainly because the "spyness" part of the title doesn't make sense, based on Georgianna's minimal snooping on the Prince.

Cute

Cute with a mildly amusing story line. Interesting take on royal interactions and the society's changing attitudes on women leading into modern times.

Very light

I was looking for something light but not this light. Hoping for some noir, some humor or at least some attitude, but with a feminine twist. Did not get any of that. What kept me going was Katherine Kellgren’s narration, which is always brilliant. This is only somewhat entertaining. At least the romance angle was low key and I was glad it never degraded to cheap thrills. I will not be continuing in this series.

Very fun book

I'd never heard of these books before, but figured I'd give them a try. Totally enjoyable! Fun story line, and the reader is excellent. I love the accents. This is a great series if you're looking for light listening with a bit of excitement. And I find the description of 1932 England fascinating.

I'm addicted. I need more. Please.

This is the first novel in a series. After I finished this one, I ate, er, read the rest of them like potato chips in a bag. Now the bag is empty and I'm still hungry. How fast can she write these things? Is there any way we could help her write them faster? I can see our plucky heroine and her dashing Irish suitor taking us up all the way to WWII and its aftermath. Maybe their children could spy for the Queen in the swinging sixties. Please let it be so!

Delightful listening experience!

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

Yes! The story is entertaining, the plot flows well, and the narrator does a fantastic job!

What does Katherine Kellgren bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

She brings personality to the individual characters! Makes me want to know them.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Made me laugh at times, shudder at others.

Any additional comments?

Have enjoyed all books in series thus far!