The Paris Spy

Good book spoiled by bad narrator

I pre-ordered this, as I have with all of the author's books. I'm really thinking I should read the book rather than listen to the audiobook. The narrator is poor and creates quite a distraction. I went back to read my reviews of the previous books in the series and I've said this same thing in practically ever review. Maybe one of these days I'll learn.

The story itself was not bad. I found the last third of the book was non-put-down-able. Great suspense and action. The ending is interesting.

7 of 7 people found this review helpful

Sing-Song Narration

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

I've have enjoyed the prior books in this series. I am having real problems listening to this one. The story is slow to develop with much time spent on small details while other elements in the story seem undeveloped. My mahor issue is the narration which has made this very difficult to listen to.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Her delivery does not change regardless of the events described. She has a very sing song presentation which makes it difficult to fully engage in the story.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

Probably not.

6 of 6 people found this review helpful

this narrator is horrid!

the book is a little naive but okay enough, but the narrator is awful! she is so incredibly "sing-song"-ie. It feels like a 5th grader is reading it. for the last time, get a new narrator, or I'm done with Miss Maggie Hope.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

The book was ok; the narrator was annoying

It's hard to fairly judge the book, as the narrator's thrumming rhythm became like a rumbling engine in my ears. She did a very good job with accents, foreign languages, and depicting the cast of characters. But her droning reading style almost caused me to give up a few times.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Loved this book! Love the series

I loved this book! It's as great as the rest of them in the series! I hope the story keeps going!

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

A Good Entry

This is a good entry on the series. I thought the characters were well developed and the reader is left with a complex ending. Perhaps a bit too much retrospect in the middle that could have been replaced with action....but overall, if you like the series, you will like this book.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Sadly Disappointed

What disappointed you about The Paris Spy?

I loved the rest of the series, but this one was disappointing. The main character did not appear until well into the second chapter and the story did not really get rolling for some time after that. The plot was predictable except for the ending and the narration did not contribute anything. The ending was very unsatisfactory. So, overall, after waiting for this book to come out, I was disappointed enough that I do not know if I'll read another one in this series should there be one.

What do you think your next listen will be?

Unsure

Would you be willing to try another one of Susan Duerden’s performances?

No

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Another exciting Maggie hope adventure!

I have been hooked on this author since “Princess Elizabeth’s spy” and this book certainly did not disappoint. I do, however, have an issue with the narrator, who becomes very “Sing songie”.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

I almost gave up on this one!

This book was upsetting almost from the beginning to the end. Too much fact vs fiction. Too much torturing and death of characters we’ve become attached to. On the other side, I understand this is based on reality and as such, I think it was very well written and made the listener (reader) understand how things were at that time. I probably will get the next book because I’m too involved with the whole series not too.

This book is a fun diversion!

Where does The Paris Spy rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

The Paris Spy, and all the Maggie Hope novels are fun reads with some history thrown into a lot of adventure.

What did you like best about this story?

I really enjoyed the entrance of a certain historical figure in Paris (I hesitate to give it away!).

Any additional comments?

Maggie Hope is the kind of hero that you really feel for. She grows with each experience, but is still human and fighting to be what her country needs her to be.