Cragside
The DCI Ryan Mysteries, Book 6
Failed to add items
Sorry, we are unable to add the item because your shopping cart is already at capacity.
Add to basket failed.
Please try again later
Add to wishlist failed.
Please try again later
Remove from wishlist failed.
Please try again later
Adding to library failed
Please try again
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Get 30 days of Standard free
£5.99/mo after trial. Cancel monthly.
Cragside
Narrated by:
Jonathan Keeble
Buy Now for £12.83
-
Narrated by:
-
Jonathan Keeble
-
By:
-
LJ Ross
From the number one international best-selling author of Holy Island.
Are you afraid of the dark?
After his climactic battle with notorious serial killer The Hacker, DCI Ryan is spending the summer with his fiancée within the grounds of Cragside, a spectacular Bavarian-style mansion surrounded by acres of woodland.
When they are invited to attend the staff summer party - a Victorian murder mystery evening - it's all a joke until the lights go out and an elderly man is found dead. It looks like an unfortunate accident but, as the dead man's life begins to unfold, Ryan and his team of detectives realise that all is not as it appears.
When a second body is found, terror grips the close-knit community, and Ryan must uncover the killer who walks among them before they strike again....
Murder and mystery are peppered with romance and humour in this fast-paced crime whodunit set amidst the spectacular Northumbrian landscape.
©2017 LJ Ross (P)2017 Audible, Ltd
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1
Continue the series
Critic reviews
"LJ Ross is the queen of Kindle." ( Sunday Telegraph)
"A literary phenomenon." ( Evening Chronicle)
"LJ Ross keeps company with the best mystery writers." ( The Times)
Very enjoyable
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Can’t wait for the next one!
Love this series and this book
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Self-evidently I am a fan of LJ Ross' DCI Ryan series of books because otherwise I am unlikely to have made it as far as Book 6. The characters are likable and (mostly) convincing. DCI Ryan is a little too close to Inspector Lynley in some areas (boy from posh background goes on to be become brooding, somewhat moody, murder detective with help from working class sidekick) but nonetheless there is something appealing about his no nonsense approach and almost puritanical devotion to 'doing the right thing'. The remainder of his team are likeable, loyal, interesting and share a passion for the takeaway food which is provided on a regular basis by Ryan’s fiancée.
This is the first book that I have consumed in 'audible format' and I am afraid that is what spoiled it for me. If only Jonathan Keeble had stuck with (what I assume is) his natural reading voice throughout it would have been fine. Indeed, his voice has gravitas, is easy to listen to and is well suited to this genre. Unfortunately, and for reasons only known to himself, he attempted to bring the story to life with the use of authentic ‘Geordie’ accents. Well, I say Geordie accents but that's only because the book kept telling me that is what they are. In reality, they were about as close to authentic 'Geordie' as Myra Hindley was to winning a child-minding award; in other words, not very close at all. Even worse than that, he tried to adopt a female 'Geordie' voice for the appropriate characters which simply exacerbated the pain. Seemingly unaware of his vocal limitations, the narrator bravely (or blindly?) ploughed on and attempted different accents for different characters; although, in truth, these seemed to be largely interchangeable. At one point, I'm fairly sure that DCI Ryan himself uttered a sentence or two in 'Geordie’ before reverting to his original dulcet (and overtly Southern Counties) tone a few pages later. Just when I thought Mr Keeble had done his worst, he weighed in with an attempted Irish accent for Detective Inspector Denise Mackenzie. This was the point at which I nearly cried and I genuinely couldn't tell if it was supposed to be Northern or Southern Irish because it was so far away from either. If I appear to be labouring the point then I am because, for me, these ‘crimes against regional accents’ took some of the enjoyment away from the story. So much so, that I reverted to finishing the book on my Kindle but even then, the comedy accents haunted me until the bitter end.
Putting aside the questionable accents. the book was enjoyable and helped me to pass a few happy hours in my garden. It was certainly less edgy and dark then the previous books and had a slight flavour of Agatha Christie meets Midsomer Murders about it; right down to the big house in the country. The murders were fewer and less grisly than I have grown to expect from LJ Ross and the plot was far from watertight. Nonetheless, it was, as ever, fast paced, full of interesting details and characters and vividly written. I enjoyed it and would recommend it but only in Kindle or paper format rather than audio. I am sorry Mr Keeble but, having lived in Newcastle for a while, I just couldn't get over that aspect.
Agatha Christie meets Midsomer Murders
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Just fabulous as expected
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
enjoyable listen
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.