Very clever plot means you keep listening

The characters in this story were not wildly interesting to me but the plotting was brilliant & there were also a few moments when the writer showed great insight. Some of the voices are annoying, the endless eating of smoked salmon & drinking of champagne plus references to make up & clothes is mildly tedious but it is worth persisting & overall an enjoyable distraction on a long drive or while doing a dull but mindless task

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9 people found this helpful

There's been a murder!

i have to say this has been one of my most entertaining reads in 2018, it's an absolute cracking mystery. As some other reviewers have stated it is written very much in golden age of crime a la Christie and set in a country house (lodge). There are a group of long time friends who met at Oxford and are now in their thirties who spend each New Year together. Emma and Mark, Miranda and Julien, Samira and Giles alongside baby Priya (6 months old), gay couple Nick and Bo plus Katie are the friends plus 3 staff Dougie, Heather and Ian. As the story progress we learn about each character and the dark secrets they keep. The friends aren't the only paying guests at the lodge there is also two Icelanders named Invar and Gudrun.

A guest goes missing and a body is found but it isn't revealed till later on who is murdered. The suspense keeps building up until we learn who by whom in the last few chapters.

The action takes place during a snow blizzard and which leaves the lodge cut off and to try and travel in the freezing rural conditions would certainly be dangerous in its self! Never mind stay at a lodge where there's been a murder! The description of the Scottish landscape was a joy and I was totally immersed...so much so I could almost feel the snow beneath my feet as I walked the dog through the woods whilst listening!

This novel is excellent, although the main characters are really unlikable, it held my attention right through. The author managed to keep me guessing as to who was laying dead and why. The twists kept coming and coming. Each chapter is told from the POV of the main female characters and Dougie the gamekeeper which I really liked.

Any way this book is worth a credit of anybody's money and certainly a re read/listen.

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7 people found this helpful

Good story but very slow

Good story and narration is very good. However didn’t really get going until about 3/4 of the way through, nearly gave up on it a couple of times.

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2 people found this helpful

Loved it! Loved the narration ...

Each voice gave a clear image of the character they were reading from the story

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1 person found this helpful

Gripping

I couldn’t stop listening - the story was full of suspense and tragedy. You must listen to this.

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Not for me

This novel was a case of too much telling and not enough showing. For this reason I could not stay with it.

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Really enjoyable

I couldn’t wait to finish this book and work out all the plot twists! The story line was very well thought out and I loved Miranda’s character. I can’t wait to read more from the series.

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Couldn’t put down!

Absolutely loved this, so much so I finished listening to in under a week! Lots of twists and turns and brilliantly narrated. I also live in Scotland so I could associate even more with. Fantastically thrilling.

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Go straight to The Guest List unless in a sale!

Lucy Foley's next mystery The Guest List is far better. Wish I'd read this first as I would have enjoyed it more and not had such high expectations!

Her multiple narrators gimmick works well, there is real tension and suspense but nowhere near as polished as her other whodunit. However it's worth a listen just for the refreshing style and atmosphere with tints of romance if you are an avid audible listener. If you are more picky though, just go for The Guest List as it's far better in every way.

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Great listen

I really enjoyed this book. It was gripping throughout. Made even better by the collection of narrators.

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