Entertaining!

I loved the performance of this audio. It was one of the best I have listened to. I loved the story and the ending.

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A gripping read

Such a well written and exciting book, I loved every moment!!
So many twists and turns that kept me gripped till the end.
I can’t wait to read more from this author - 5 stars!!

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A gripping story

Another fab book by Catherine Steadman. I loved it! Good pace and great narration. A

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did not disappoint - captivating story

Loved her previous book, I love this one almost as much. Great story, characters and narration

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Disappointing

I've enjoyed several of Steadman's other books, but I didn't think much of this one. The plot is okay, some of it is clunky, but the characters were boring and shallow. I did, however, listen to the end, so it can't be that bad...

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Entertaining and an easy listen

Great narration and an engaging storyline. An easy listen and I would recommend this book.

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Brilliant!

Gripping all the way through with great story and unexpected twist. I highly recommend this as an audio book, the narration was really good!

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Couldn’t stop listening.

Loved this. Favourite book I have read so far this year. The story definitely keeps you on your toes and wanting more. Will definitely listen to this again.

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Pleasant Enough, If Not Wholly Intriguing Company

Mulholland Drive meets Nancy Drew though it's a lot more Carolyn Keene than David Lynch or even John le Carre (The Little Drummer Girl). Steadman seems to be aiming at a blandly intriguing narrative that emphasises plot more than character; given her actress heroine, Mia, the first person narrator, is a tourist travelling for the first time to Los Angeles, we're never provided with much context or local atmosphere as the film industry neophyte ticks appointments off of her prepared itinerary (Steadman leaves that to the location scout, apparently). If Steadman had any real interest in L.A., she would've attempted an omniscient narrator who could've provided a rich, illustrative, historical context for this wannabe sordid tale; instead we get a lot of naff mentions of the H-O-L-L-Y-W-O-O-D sign (around which her final set piece is located) which nobody who really knows L.A. has the least fascination with. (Though, to her credit, there is one mention each of a reservoir and Silver Lake so at least she's watched Chinatown, presumably.) The stock, strictly one dimensional characters are so thin they're really just "types," which makes for an easy shorthand but does little to activate the imagination; Steadman is always at pains to maintain Mia's virtue - for all we know, she may not even go to the bathroom - so complexity is completely off the cards. (It's hard to believe that a goodie-goodie like Mia could even be an actress in London, let alone L.A.) And, of course, Mia always cinches every audition, even if there's little in the way of even suggesting what drives her to pursue the work - her motivations, like everyone else's, are more like straight lines drawn to connect the dots rather than anything arising out of a character's psychological or primal motivations. Similarly, the action all sounds like stage directions, lacking any visceral detail that might actually bring it to life for the listener.

Still, Steadman gives the narration a coolness of tone that is pleasant to the ear and in regards to the film industry itself, will at least make you feel like you're peering beyond the velvet rope, if not exactly placing you in the room beyond the room. The Disappearing Act lacks the passion and curiosity required to make it seem like anything more than a side gig; it's a benign, undemanding excursion that doesn't quite earn the dark notes it tries to strike in its final pages, as it reaches for a DePalma like coda that with its tidiness and self-satisfaction reads more like Jane Austen.

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4 people found this helpful

pretty good read

quite enjoyed this book. found it hard to put down - kept me on my toes for sure.

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