Mixed bag

I’ve read all the Simon Serrailler stories, usually twice. This one has been anticipated for a while and I get the impression that Susan Hill made many starts on it because there are so many disparate threads that sit uneasily together. The narration moves restlessly between various locations to feature mini stories, none of them particularly gripping.

Some important characters do inexplicable things: Cat marries the Chief Constable out of the blue with virtually no run up. What’s that all about? Simon is seriously injured at the start of the book but we’re not told much about the circumstances. A cold case review leads to an unfortunate outcome but not much detail to wrap that up either.

Part of the story features Simon on a Scottish island investigating a suspicious death - just thrown in the pot and unrelated to anything much in the overall scheme of things.

This isn’t up to the usual Susan Hill standard and, like me, you might feel a bit disappointed at the end. Only 4 stars for this one, sorry.

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1 person found this helpful

Cosy

Diverting enough, if you’ve heard enough of this series it’s like a comfy sweater. I’ve missed a few but it doesn’t matter. This one lacks tension and intrigue but the story is competent and the characters believable.

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brilliant as always

Love Susan Hill. great writer and Simon Serailer is a great character.
great reading. so easy to listen to

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Pains me to say it........disappointing

I love the Simon Serrailler books and love Susan Hill’s style of writing them. Having read and listened to the others (including the short stories) I waited eagerly for this new chapter. We left Simon in a bad state after a hellish time in the last book and I hoped for a new case to reinvigorate him but what we got was some small cases that he was and wasn’t really involved in with no follow through and no real story to tell. I can see what Susan Hill was going for but I was surprised when it ended as not enough seemed to have happened. Hopefully it was a blip and the next one will be back to form!

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Family, friends, cops and prisoners keep up the pace.

Stephen Pacey’s performance was faultless, especially his ability to depict several characters, including women and children.
Susan Hill’s story gradually unfolded but nonetheless kept a good pace so that I wanted to continue listening. There being several threads, it kept swapping venues and people but I found I could keep track of all of them.
I think this story would appeal to a wide audience but particularly to those who like police procedures, mild threat of harm and family and friends. It might not obviously be a choice for teenagers but there is no need to keep it away from them. I think I wouldn’t read it to small children but mostly because of the complexity of the story.

An enjoyable ‘read’.

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Good follow on

Felt as if it finished suddenly, as if the author suddenly decided she didn’t have anything else to add in.

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Disappointed

Not the usual standard . Weak crime story compared to the other 7 books. May it was to ease back the character into the book. Having said this I will still eagerly await the next book in the series

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Poor Narration

I really enjoyed the story and I have read all of Susan Hills books. The only thing I did not like about it was the person who was reading the story had a very gravelly voice which really spoilt my enjoyment of the book. I would recommend the book but not on Audible

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Love Scottish stories

Loved the voice. Loved his return to the island. Got a bit confused with the different story lines -- not something I'm at ease with.
However all in all q good listen.

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Disappointed

I enjoy this series,but a bit disappointed in this one. Not much happens slow moving, has a couple of mini plots. All in all enjoyable enough for treadmill walking/listening. Pleasant book well read but is slow.

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