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A Necessary Evil
- Narrated by: Simon Bubb
- Length: 11 hrs and 12 mins
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A Necessary Evil
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Summary
The fabulously wealthy kingdom of Sambalpore: home to tigers, elephants, diamond mines and the beautiful Palace of the Sun. When the heir to the throne of Sambalpore is assassinated in Calcutta in the presence of Captain Sam Wyndham and his colleague 'Surrender-Not' Banerjee, Wyndham works to uncover the reasons behind Prince Punit's death, despite the opposition of his commanding officers. Travelling to Sambalpore, he discovers a kingdom riven with suppressed conflict. Prince Punit was a moderniser whose attitudes - and romantic relationship - may have upset the more religious elements of his country while his brother appears to be a feckless playboy. And when Annie Grant, the first woman to capture Wyndham's heart since the death of his wife, arrives in the kingdom, Wyndham knows this is going to be a case that is as challenging personally as it is professionally.
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What listeners say about A Necessary Evil
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- G. Williams
- 04-06-17
Another Great Book
Another great book, good story and great characters and just as well written as the first. Really enjoyed it and can not wait until the next one!
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Paul BROWN
- 20-02-22
Faultless
A wonderful read of an excellent and beautifully written story. I am now hooked on the entire series. Thank you India Knight the Times Columnist who prompted me to start.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 03-01-22
Another adventure
Beautifully and evocatively read this story sums up the complicated political history of the Raj. captain Wyndham seeks for the truth and justice but in old India the two are perhaps not the same.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Patsy
- 18-03-21
Great story, outstanding narration by Audible
I am so glad to have found this author! Once again Captain Wyndham and his sergeant Banerjee are involved in an intriguing murder mystery which rattles along briskly. Set in 1920s colonial India, the author skilfully weaves a compelling tale of two jarring cultures jostling along. The sights, sounds and indeed the smells of the Subcontinent are superbly depicted. Above all, the narrator is faultless, effortlessly switching from a Glaswegian artist to a haughty Maharaja. I strongly recommend this Audible version, I am already looking forward to the next one!
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- mcsmall
- 08-07-17
A Rising Man Set The Bar Too High
I loved a Rising Man , so eagerly bought this audiobook.His first novel was always going to be a hard act to follow, and so it proved to be .
All the characters from a Rising Man are there, and once again, Simon Bubb does a superb job as narrtaor, but it lacks the impact of its predecessor
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Guy Richards
- 05-06-23
A Tale of Powerful Rulers.
Thoroughly enjoyable excursion into the last days of the princely states and of the Raj.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Kent Bird Lover
- 22-04-23
Loving this series, engaging from start to finish
The second story in the series sees Sam and Surrender Not develop their partnership further as they untangle the goings-on in an independent Indian kingdom. There are lots of twists and turns against an excellently woven backdrop of the times.
Can't wait to listen to Book 3.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mr S Chakraborty
- 25-03-23
Engaging from start to finish
Loved this! The narration is first class and Simon’s voice brings the characters to life. The story is super with Sam Wyndham and Surrender-a-not’s Banerjee on their second adventure in the hunt for the murderer and plot for who would want to kill the Maharaja of Sambalpore’s son. I bought the paperback and also the audible and while I am a avid physical book reader, found myself reaching for the audible version because the narration is just so good! Highly recommended.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Zorro
- 04-03-23
Out of his comfort zone!
Moving the story to a principality that is not dominated by the English gives opportunities to deepen the individuality of 'Surrender-Not' and 'Annie' and by interaction, 'Sam'. 'Sergeant Bannerjee's' patrician background comes into amusing play in a role reversal as do his superior capabilities in many areas. Annie is a more independent character and her dual nationality and deep feelings about that are challenged. Characters are starting to 'pick sides' in this historical era and the representative of the conventionally 'dominant' team has his ambivalence towards the justifications of the British Empire extended by the experience; more and more taking mental refuge in a focus on the technical aspects of police detection. Added to this are really interesting depictions of contemporary Indian life and a very satisfying and exciting detective story. Top stuff, although I still don't understand why Colonel Dawson of Book 1 has become Major Dawson of Book 2! Great books!
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- ebg
- 26-10-22
A solid mystery with a great historical setting
I found the second in this series easier to settle into than the first and the historical setting was really interesting. The narration was fine but not riveting. Overall a satisfying listen and I'll definitely be sampling the next book soon.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- GB
- 18-10-17
Another great story
Abir spins a great yarn. It is exotic and fascinating all at once.
It is also captivating and well read. There are a few stylistic ticks that it would be churlish to harp on
For the author: Annie and Surrender Not are great characters that are under-utilised . I hope the next book gives Annie especially more space.
Other than that this is my favourite series at the moment I’m dying to read the next adventure.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 24-08-21
India investigated
I love the way Abir Mukerjee manages to tell a great mystery story while giving the reader an insight into the problems India faced in the first half of the twentieth century while looking at both sides of the equation. As a young Indian man growing up in Scotland he has the knowledge of both and he is able to tell his story to give the reader sympathy for all the Indian communities who wanted freedom from British rule but also taking us inside the British mind of the time. I love Sam Wyndham and his sidekick Surrender-not (often in a low key way the brains of the partnership). I read the first book A Rising Man and have listened to the second. I am keen to get to the third book now. This one was beautifully read. The voice of Sam was exactly how I had imagined it.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Vaidyanathan
- 03-09-18
Leaves you craving for more !
Abir Mukherjee and Simon Bubb continue the magic in their second novel of the series - this novel deals with a little bit more sophisticated plot with multiple characters coming in the fray of the classic whodunnit. The novel also portrays some of the beautiful cultural symbols of India which are still existent today (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ratha_Yatra_(Puri)). Narration is again really enjoyable. Before you read this, make sure you read the first novel since some characters are continued from the first novel.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Crescentman
- 30-09-17
Fascinating Insight...
... into early 20th century India. Well read and the characters soon become omorganisering to one. The plot is pretty good, the protagonist was guessable but that didn't spoil my enjoyment.
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