Very very good

I love these Manon Bradshaw stories, although this is only the second. Do read in order or you may get confused. She is so believable. The murder is not centre to the story, all the characters with their own issues, stories revolve around it. Hope there will be another story soon. Good narration.

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2 people found this helpful

Beautiful characterisations.

Loved this book. Perfect. Surpassed presumed innocent, which was brilliant too. Such well drawn characters that actually matter. So engaging, had me struggling to turn audio off. Particularly loved Birdie and want to hear more from her.
Locations well suited to various capers. Lived at seven sisters so the jaunt in West Green Road was an unexpected thrill.
Beautifully read as ever by Juanita.
Thank you.

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2 people found this helpful

No less than fantastic

I love the plots and I love the characters of Susie Steiners imagination. To top the enjoyment is the narration by Juanita McMahon. Just fantastic! The only drawback is that there is only one more book for me to listen to. I cross my fingers for many more to come. Thank You Susie Steiner!

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A brilliant sequel to Missing Presumed.

Susie Steiner has created a totally believable cast of characters. Another superbly written enjoyable mystery!

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2 people found this helpful

OK listen

this was a ok book not a great story, a bit too light for me no real meat

would not want to listen to more my the auther

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A rather stereotyped female detective

This could have been so much better, but has the feel of chick lit crossed with police procedural. There is way to much about motherhood and every cliché about the messy life of fictional detectives. Fellow officers bend the rules in a way that defies credibility in order to accommodate the heroine. There is just enough about it to hold the interest, but it's rather forgettable.

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5 people found this helpful

Improving…

I was unsure about this series, after listening to the first book. I thought it was not a hugely engaging story and the narrator was terrible; however…

This story was, I found, well put together, interesting and genuinely exciting. The (same) narrator seems to have upped her game. Still some slightly dodgy voice characterisations and some odd pronunciation errors (maybe that’s down to producer/director, who should have picked up on them?) but way better than the previous one.

So: I’m looking forward to listening to the next title in the series.

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Can't fault it

Just "read" it. You won't regret it. She's a clever, observant, subtle writer and her narrator is gifted. I couldn't put it down.

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4 people found this helpful

Loved it!

I devoured this, the second in the series of DI Manon Bradshaw. I nearly gave it a miss because one reviewer said that, unlike the first, this was pure chic lit. It really isn’t at all. It is a really good crime story, and here the character development is excellent. I feel I know the richly drawn characters of Manon, Davey, Mark and I love Birdie, who sadly will probably only feature in this book. I hope not, she is a warm, funny and intelligent character. I am very much looking forward to the next in the series.

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2 people found this helpful

More focused on the characters than the crime

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Susie Steiner's Manon books are among the very best of character focused whodunnits: in fact their focus is not really on who did it at all but about what is going on in the lives of the people who are affected by the crime, and with a focus, of course, on the life of Manon Bradshaw, the main character. Susie Steiner is interested in the inner lives of her characters and also in their atypical relationships with other people. I think that Susie Steiner has said that she is an admirer of the novels of Elizabeth Strout and indeed one can see this reflected in the kinds of quirky relationships that people have with each other in Susie Steiner's books, e.g. Manon's adoption of Fly, Manon choosing to have a baby by artificial insemination, Birdie's relationship with Saskia, Manon's relationship with Mark Talbot: the latter two are important relationships that are formed in the novel simply because the characters come into contact with each other and like each other: just like real life. Like Strout, Steiner is also excellent in finding wit and humour in the little domestic details of every day life.

The narration of this book by Juanita McMahon is excellent: the pace of the narration is just right.

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