The Blue Demon
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Get 3 months for £0.99/mo
The Blue Demon
Buy Now for £12.99
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Narrated by:
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Saul Reichlin
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By:
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David Hewson
About this listen
Twenty years ago, a mysterious group called the Blue Demon committed a series of bizarre and ritualistic crimes evoking the legacy of the lost race of the Etruscans, and leaving in their wake a group of dead students, a murdered couple, a cryptic message and a kidnapped child.
Now, the leaders of the G8 are descending on Rome for a summit at the Quirinale Palace. But when a politician is found ritually murdered, seemingly by a strange young man dressed as an Etruscan god, detective Nic Costa suspects that the old case was never really solved. The Blue Demon appear to have returned - and planning, under the leadership of the fanatical Andrea Petrakis, to unleash a devastating sequence of attacks on the city. As Costa and his team start to dig deeper into the past, they find that there are still too many unanswered questions – and much more to the history of the Blue Demon than anyone wants to admit.
©2010 David Hewson (P)2010 WF Howes LtdListeners also enjoyed...
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
Not sure. I found it hard to get into it as the opening makes it seem as though it is going to a bit mystical. It does take a long time to settle down into what it is, which is a crime novel with a bit of terrorism and a lot of Italian politics. The unfamiliar political background makes it hard going at times but it is worth persevering.My main criticism is that the main policeman, the Nic Costa of the headline, is a bit lacklustre and the others in the team are not very vivid either. This may be because this is one of a series and the character development has been done in earlier books but it is a fault as the book should probably be able to stand in its own.
I do not feel drawn enough to the characters or the setting to rush to buy others in the series.
Have you listened to any of Saul Reichlin’s other performances? How does this one compare?
I haven't heard him before but would be happy to listen to him again.Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?
Not a moment so much as a character. The man the police are after is very vividly drawn and I found his story moving despite the horrific nature of his actions.
Worth persevering
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The plot however was much darker than previous books, which have not flinched from strong subjects. I haven't read around the publication of this book so don't know what further plans Hewson has for this series. His books never follow a fixed formula although each character has developed along the line as they work through their strengths and try to avoid their weaknesses.
If you haven't read any of the Rome series, although each book stands on its own, they are best read in sequence especially ahead of this one. Narration was good and thoughtful, juggling the many characters clearly, including the women, so often the downfall of a male reader.
The text is nicely broken up so that you can easily find your place if like me, your MP3 player seems to lack a bookmark. I occasionally needed to go back as Hewson's spare writing style doesn't spell out every single thing, leaving facts to come together at the end. This series has been a class act. I just hope that this is not the end.
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