Nicholas Freeling: Van der Valk & Castang Audiobook By Nicholas Freeling cover art

Nicholas Freeling: Van der Valk & Castang

Six BBC Radio Thrillers Featuring Piet Van der Valk & Inspector Henri Castang

Preview

Try for $0.00
Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Nicholas Freeling: Van der Valk & Castang

By: Nicholas Freeling
Narrated by: David Troughton, Ian Hogg, Sophie Thompson, Martin Jarvis, Stella Gonet, Nigel Anthony, Keith Barron, full cast
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $18.88

Buy for $18.88

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

About this listen

The collected BBC adaptations of Nicolas Freeling's best-selling thrillers - plus bonus documentary.

Acclaimed as 'the most thoroughly European of British crime writers' (Guardian), Nicolas Freeling was well known for his novels featuring Dutch sleuth Van der Valk and French policeman Henri Castang. Included in this collection are six stories showcasing both detectives, as well as a bonus programme exploring Van der Valk and his creator.

Love in Amsterdam - Martin's former lover has been murdered. He's the prime suspect, his alibi is thin and he's lying - but is he the killer? It's up to Van der Valk to find out. David Troughton reads the first novel in the Van der Valk series.

Gun Before Butter - The Dutch detective finds himself dealing with a body, an abandoned Mercedes and the beautiful daughter of a dead conductor. Ian Hogg and Sophie Thompson star in this dramatisation of Freeling's 1963 novel, the winner of France's Grand Prix de Roman Policier.

King of the Rainy Country - A handsome middle-aged millionaire and a naked girl disappear. Can Van der Valk find them? Martin Jarvis stars in this adaptation of the sixth Van der Valk novel, which received a 1967 Edgar Award for best novel.

Arlette - When her husband is shot in the street, Arlette Van der Valk takes the law into her own hands. Starring Stella Gonet as Arlette and Nigel Anthony as Piet Van der Valk.

The Nightlords - A dead man in the boot of a Rolls-Royce in Normandy threatens to disrupt Anglo-French relations. Keith Barron stars in this dramatisation of Freeling's first book featuring Henri Castang.

Not as Far as Velma - Newly-promoted Commissaire Henri Castang probes the case of a missing hotel owner, the bombing of a convent and an elusive British journalist. Starring Keith Barron as Castang.

Foreign Bodies: Netherlands - Commissaris Van Der Valk - As part of a series looking at European history through crime fiction, Mark Lawson takes a trip to Amsterdam in search of Van der Valk and asks how Freeling's fiction reflected changes in post-war Dutch society.

Text copyright © Nicolas Freeling 1962 (Love in Amsterdam), 1963 (Guns Before Butter), 1966 (The King of the Rainy Country), 1978 (The Night Lords), 1979 (The Widow), 1989 (Not as Far as Velma).

©2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd
Anthologies & Short Stories Crime Thrillers Fiction Mystery Police Procedural Thriller France Detective
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

What listeners say about Nicholas Freeling: Van der Valk & Castang

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    2
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    2
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    2
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Exploring the why of crime, not just the how

Even though these stories jump about a bit and can be confusing (too philosophical perhaps?), I enjoyed the measured and human approach of each of Freeling's detectives in this collection. His criminals are also complex, and their crimes are of the times, society, and settings they are based in... which means there is much to enjoy and ponder if you enjoy social history and a bit of psychology on the side. I really felt sympathy for everyone in these stories except perhaps the bureaucrats who are perhaps the only 'pure transgressors' in these stories!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

Good Overview of Feeling ouvre

Engaging and complex listening. Well performed.
Not much more needs adding except to fill dumb minimum.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!