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Hopjoy Was Here

A Flaxborough Mystery, Book 3

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Hopjoy Was Here

By: Colin Watson
Narrated by: Simon Shepherd
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About this listen

The gripping sight of four burly policemen manhandling a bath down the front path of a respectable villa isn't one the residents of Flaxborough see every day.

Net curtains twitch furiously, and neighbours have observations to make to Chief Inspector Purbright and Sergeant Love about the inhabitants of 14, Beatrice Avenue. Nice Gordon Periam, the mild-mannered tobacconist, and his rather less nice (in fact a bit of a bounder) lodger Brian Hopjoy had apparently shared the house amicably.

But now neither man is to be found, and something very disagreeable seems to be lurking in the drains....

Then a couple of government spooks turn up, one with an eye for the ladies - the drama is acquiring overtones of a Bond movie!

Witty and a little wicked, Colin Watson's tales offer a mordantly entertaining cast of characters and laugh-out-loud wordplay.

©2018 Colin Watson (P)2019 Audible, Ltd Detective Fiction Mystery Police Procedural Traditional Detectives Witty
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I like all of Colin Watson’s books and this is a good performance of a slightly complex story. My only real criticism is that Miss Teatime does not appear in this one. By far my favourite character!

Secret service in Flaxborough..

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Another wonderful Purbright story beautifully performed. The performance seems to capture the very slightly off kilter nature of the story..just teetering on the edge of the absurd. Thanks to all involved.

Sheer delight

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I've been a fan on Mr Watson since the 1970s. The stories are clearly set in a different era but still display a warmth and humour that transcends the years. Mr Shepherd catching the tone just right. Mr Watson's writing is subtle, quiet and un-obtrusiveness but is full of partially hidden sex and violence. He is the understated English garden party version of Raymond Chandler, with a similar gift for descriptions - "[he had] eyes that looked like boiled eggs shoved into an open wound." " Mr. Shepherd reads this sublime writing perfectly. I look forward to more editions.

Excellent version

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Excellent performance. Engaging story. My one criticism is that it was over long in parts.

Most enjoyable

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