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The Spoilt Kill

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The Spoilt Kill

By: Mary Kelly
Narrated by: David Thorpe
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1950s Staffordshire. Within the clay tanks at the pottery company Shentall's, a body has been found. Amid cries of industrial espionage and sabotage of this leader of the pottery industry, there is a case of bitter murder to solve for Inspector Hedley Nicholson.

Kelly's mystery won the CWA Gold Dagger Award in 1961 for its impeccable sense of place and detail, and for the emotional weight of its central crime. The novel is part of a shift from the cosiness of crime novels before to mysteries characterised by their psychological interest and affecting realism. An influential classic.

©1961 Estate of Mary Kelly (P)2021 Soundings Mystery Private Investigators Traditional Detectives
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I tend to listen to all British Library Crime Classics but this one sounded quite dull. I am very glad I gave it a chance however. very much character based with the death etc being a secondary consideration. David Thorpe did a good job as narrator as usual.

Not what I expected

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I think some people will really like this and think it’s real and gritty. I found it tedious and self indulgent. It showed impressive innovation really - its ’”aren’t I clever for portraying how rubbish life is” approach feels a bit before it’s time.

Tedious histrionics

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