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  • 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
  • 4.3 out of 5 stars (1,344 ratings)

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A Quiet Life in the Country

By: T E Kinsey
Narrated by: Elizabeth Knowelden
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Summary

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...

As Lady Hardcastle and Flo delve deeper into rural rivalries and resentment, they uncover a web of intrigue that extends far beyond the village. With almost no one free from suspicion, they can be certain of only one fact: there is no such thing as a quiet life in the country.

Revised edition: This edition of A Quiet Life In The Country includes editorial revisions.

©2016 T E Kinsey (P)2016 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.
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What listeners say about A Quiet Life in the Country

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

Enjoyable

I enjoyed this book. It was very witty and easy to follow. I look forward to the next book.

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

Made me chuckle

The book is light hearted and reminded me a little of Miss Marple. Very easy listening and the characters of Flo, Mrs Hardcastle and the Inspector are very warming .

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

easylisten

light hearted story well read probably a bit too easy going and quaint for me but enjoyed

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

Delightful .

l
Lighthearted, intriguing,, old fashioned _ and not a 4 letter word
in sight. Thoroughly enjoyed this book as a change from modern hard hitting crime stories. Shall look for more.
The reader gave life to every character, and her voice suited the genre and the period.

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

Wonderful narration and great stories!

I am hooked with these books, they are great! The stories are fabulous. The narrator is fantastic and make my journey to and from work bearable.

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

Good performance and story but very long winded.

Only finished it to see who the murderer was. Lots of unnecessary dialogue and description.

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

A good listen

I enjoyed this book. Maybe heard some more in depth but it was a delight
The narrator was excellent and I was able to picture all the characters in my mind.
It most certainly held my attention but was able to close and go back a few times and still keep up.
I would recommend this light and different book

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

A really good start

This was a really good start to a series I have enjoyed reading since the start. I certainly look forward to more.

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

Brilliant narration, fun book

I’m rather partial to period cozy mystery books, so this was a delight to listen to. The narrator is fantastic, making me feel like I was indeed in the English countryside among the posh and the below stairs folk. I liked the storyline and Ms Knowelden’s narration so much that I went ahead and bought 3 more books from this series.

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

Recommended to those looking for something clean.

I bought this because it came up on Audible's Daily Deal for £1.99. I had never heard of the Author or the book before. I was glad I bought it. This is a lovely, light-hearted "innocent" story. It is perfect for listening to with small children in the room. There is no sex, no graphic and gory violence and no expletives - a thing that is becoming harder and hard to find in modern books and causes those of us with small children and grandchildren no end of difficulties as you scramble to press the "off" button to protect those little ears from things that are inappropriate for them. Kudos and many thanks to the author in this matter! It would be so helpful if Audible would include an indication of these things in the descriptions.... but I digress.

Anyway, the only thing that lets this recording down slightly is that the narrator overacts it a little bit and turns the characters into caricatures. Also she misses the meaning of some of what she is reading (perhaps she loses concentration?) and gives the incorrect intonation and phrasing. I have listened to a great number of audiobooks, and her performance is by no means bad, nor does it spoil the enjoyment of the story, but it could be a little better.

All in all I think it was £1.99 well spent and I am going to purchase the other two books that are currently available in Audible's store. Highly recommended.

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