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  • The Hanging Club

  • By: Tony Parsons
  • Narrated by: Colin Mace
  • Length: 8 hrs and 2 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (1,803 ratings)
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The Hanging Club cover art

The Hanging Club

By: Tony Parsons
Narrated by: Colin Mace
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Summary

A band of vigilante executioners roam London's hot summer nights, abducting evil men and hanging them. Sentenced to death is the gang member who abused vulnerable girls, the wealthy drunk driver who mowed down a child and the hate preacher calling for the murder of British troops.

As the bodies pile up and riots explode all over the sweltering city, DC Max Wolfe embarks on his most dangerous investigation yet: hunting a gang of killers whom many believe to be heroes....

©2016 Ian Fleming Publications Limited (P)2016 W F Howes Ltd

Critic reviews

"This is brilliant stuff." (Peter James)

What listeners say about The Hanging Club

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Good story undermined by poor research

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

No. I have been a fan of Tony Parsons’ ‘Max Wolfe’ novels and downloaded this as soon as it was available. It is unfortunately the weakest. It’s pretty short and has distinct signs of padding - the purpose of various venues and organisations is repeatedly described and the full address of West End Central nick seems to be given every time it is mentioned. The book also seems to have been sponsored by Apple - there are repeated mentions of Apple computers (kit the Met police don’t actually use) and there is even a character called Wozniak - and Bar Italia in Soho, which is constantly raved about. This may be thought unnoticeable by the author but its about as attractive as being forced to watch ads while viewing catch-up TV. But the real annoyances for me are the repeated inaccurate descriptions of aspects of the criminal justice system in England & Wales. One could contend that the very premise of the book (and I will avoid spoilers) - that defendants are dealt with so leniently that a group of vigilantes is inspired to take punishments into their own hands - is flawed, given that sentences are now governed by guidelines issued by the Sentencing Council and lenient sentences can be appealed by the Attorney-General. But I accept that that ‘flaw’ is there for dramatic purposes. There are however other relentless errors which suggest a lack of research and don’t serve any purpose other that to emphasise the author’s lack of familiarity with the system. English law has no concept of ‘involuntary manslaughter’. iIs a wholly American concept AFAIK. The crime described at the start of the book would actually amount to murder and only seems to be described as manslaughter to avoid the mandatory life sentence. A defence lawyer can’t rely on self-defence as a point of mitigation after its been rejected as a defence. Young Offenders Institutions are for people aged 18-20 not for under 18s. There is no leave to appeal hearing before a Crown Court judge and the idea that a judge would address an appellant directly at such a hearing is utterly ridiculous. People being interviewed by the police do not have their blood pressure monitored and my mind boggles as to how this might be done in practice. Etc, etc. Does this matter? I think it does. First getting it right would not alter the story itself and, secondly, getting it so regularly wrong assumes an ignorant readership and an irritating unwillingness on the part of the author to do proper preparatory research.

What about Colin Mace’s performance did you like?

Pitch perfect.

Do you think The Hanging Club needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

Yes. The series is generally good though this book was the weakest

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35 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Very poor - spoiler alert!

Very disappointing, will not read another of his.
Frustratingly bad police work didn't follow any of the obvious leads. Just waited for the next thing to happen to the main character.
Didn't believe in the relationship briefly formed, or the coincidence with his friend and the bailiff.
His daughter was always conveniently away when ever he needed to do something or got caught up in something and never mentioned his injuries.
Despite been targeted by the criminals he is given none of the protection offered to the other characters.
And Tony must be sponsored by BMW given how many times BMW X5 was mentioned, and how many DC's drive one of those anyway?

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23 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Very enjoyable

If you could sum up The Hanging Club in three words, what would they be?

Interesting, unmelodramatic, engaging

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Hanging Club?

When the lead character goes into the back rooms of the Old Bailey

Which scene did you most enjoy?

Can't say without spoiling the story

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes

Any additional comments?

Bought this one because I really enjoyed the first one. I enjoyed the first one more just because it was really good to find a new (to me) author that could write well. I found the characters three dimensional & sympathetic & the author only fell for one of the usual cliches and I can't say what that is without spoiling it for other listeners.

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16 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

The stereotypes club

Raised on a remote island without any connection to the outside world except for endless editions of The Daily Mail, this is Tony's brave attempt at writing a story about what he thinks the world must be like.

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14 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Fabulous Book

Looking forward to the others in the series. Loved his previous books but was unsure that he would be as good a good crime writer. How wrong I was.

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11 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Have gone through the Max Wolfe books in rapid succession

Murder mystery, crime etc are not genres I've ever read before but I loved these three books.

Colin Mace's narration is easy on the ear and fits in perfectly with the carrier - I've now downloaded another book based on him narrating it.

I'm looking forward to the next one and hope Mr Mace continues as the voice of Max Wolfe

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great stuff!

Any additional comments?

I loved every minute of this book. It was a great tale, well told. Never rambling, it romped along, making it difficult to put down. This is my first by this author. I now look forward to listening to/reading the previous two in the series.

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Gripping !!!

Author was very brave to write about this subject. From start to finish. I couldn't put it down.

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant!!

Colin Mace is fantastic narrator for Wolfe, tough cop with a soft side. Great story, with pace and characters you wanted to know more about, and all with the backdrop of the history and underbelly of London city. Each book gets better and I can't wait till the next!

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Every bit as good as the previous one!!

Loved the story, characters and the narration, this is the 2nd max Wolfe book I've listened to and they're both well worth the listen - definitely recommend !!

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6 people found this helpful