Listen free for 30 days
-
The Woodcutter
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 16 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged Audiobook
- Categories: Mystery, Thriller & Suspense, Thriller & Suspense
Add to basket failed.
Add to wishlist failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Listen with a free trial
Buy Now for £24.99
No valid payment method on file.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
Singing the Sadness
- Joe Sixsmith Series, Book 4
- By: Reginald Hill
- Narrated by: Christian Rodska
- Length: 9 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This, the 4th novel in Hill's series about Joe Sixsmith, finds the black, balding detective caught up in a tangled web of politics, hatred and scandal in a small Welsh town where arson and child abuse go hand in hand.
-
-
Enjoyable
- By A. Foley on 02-12-15
-
The Stranger House
- By: Reginald Hill
- Narrated by: Gordon Griffin
- Length: 16 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For years, the Stranger House has stood in the village of Illthwaite, offering refuge to travellers. People like Sam, a brilliant young mathematician, who believes that anything that can't be explained by maths isn't worth explaining. And Miguel, a historian running from a priests' seminary, who sees ghosts. Sam is an experienced young woman, Miguel a 26-year-old virgin.
-
-
Good listen in the end
- By Lucy C. on 04-07-11
-
The Invisible Ones
- By: Stef Penney
- Narrated by: Dan Stevens
- Length: 11 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Small-time private investigator Ray Lovell veers between paralysis and delirium in a hospital bed. But before the accident that landed him there, he had promised to find Rose Janko. Rose was married to the charismatic son of a travelling gypsy family, Ivo Janko. When Ray starts to investigate her disappearance he's surprised that her family are so hostile towards him.
-
-
An excellent story, narrated well
- By Helen on 25-10-12
-
The Various Haunts of Men
- Simon Serrailler 1
- By: Susan Hill
- Narrated by: Steven Pacey
- Length: 14 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A woman vanishes in the fog up on "the Hill", an area locally known for its tranquillity and peace. The police are not alarmed; people usually disappear for their own reasons. But when a young girl, an old man, and even a dog disappear, no one can deny that something untoward is happening in this quiet cathedral town.
-
-
An unusual way to start a series
- By Linda on 27-06-14
-
The Distant Echo
- By: Val McDermid
- Narrated by: Tom Cotcher
- Length: 14 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On a freezing morning four drunken students stumble upon the body of a woman in the snow. Rosie has been raped, stabbed and left for dead in a cemetery. The only suspects are the four young men now stained with her blood. Twenty-five years later the police mount a cold-case review of Rosie’s unsolved murder, and the four are still suspects. But when two of them die in suspicious circumstances, it seems that someone is pursuing their own brand of justice....
-
-
Absorbing story with good characters
- By Janet on 07-03-17
-
Who Guards a Prince
- By: Reginald Hill
- Narrated by: Ian Redford
- Length: 8 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Who would sever a tongue from a living mouth? Or kill a pathetic, homeless old man? Or frighten a young doctor into silence? The questions are piling up, and Doug McHarg can't stop asking them - especially when he's warned off by both his boss in the local police and by Scotland Yard. The pattern that emerges is of a powerful organisation with links to the throne and the White House. And all that stands against them is McHarg: a discontented copper with nothing to lose.
-
-
Another super Hill book
- By Diane on 03-11-10
-
Singing the Sadness
- Joe Sixsmith Series, Book 4
- By: Reginald Hill
- Narrated by: Christian Rodska
- Length: 9 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This, the 4th novel in Hill's series about Joe Sixsmith, finds the black, balding detective caught up in a tangled web of politics, hatred and scandal in a small Welsh town where arson and child abuse go hand in hand.
-
-
Enjoyable
- By A. Foley on 02-12-15
-
The Stranger House
- By: Reginald Hill
- Narrated by: Gordon Griffin
- Length: 16 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For years, the Stranger House has stood in the village of Illthwaite, offering refuge to travellers. People like Sam, a brilliant young mathematician, who believes that anything that can't be explained by maths isn't worth explaining. And Miguel, a historian running from a priests' seminary, who sees ghosts. Sam is an experienced young woman, Miguel a 26-year-old virgin.
-
-
Good listen in the end
- By Lucy C. on 04-07-11
-
The Invisible Ones
- By: Stef Penney
- Narrated by: Dan Stevens
- Length: 11 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Small-time private investigator Ray Lovell veers between paralysis and delirium in a hospital bed. But before the accident that landed him there, he had promised to find Rose Janko. Rose was married to the charismatic son of a travelling gypsy family, Ivo Janko. When Ray starts to investigate her disappearance he's surprised that her family are so hostile towards him.
-
-
An excellent story, narrated well
- By Helen on 25-10-12
-
The Various Haunts of Men
- Simon Serrailler 1
- By: Susan Hill
- Narrated by: Steven Pacey
- Length: 14 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A woman vanishes in the fog up on "the Hill", an area locally known for its tranquillity and peace. The police are not alarmed; people usually disappear for their own reasons. But when a young girl, an old man, and even a dog disappear, no one can deny that something untoward is happening in this quiet cathedral town.
-
-
An unusual way to start a series
- By Linda on 27-06-14
-
The Distant Echo
- By: Val McDermid
- Narrated by: Tom Cotcher
- Length: 14 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On a freezing morning four drunken students stumble upon the body of a woman in the snow. Rosie has been raped, stabbed and left for dead in a cemetery. The only suspects are the four young men now stained with her blood. Twenty-five years later the police mount a cold-case review of Rosie’s unsolved murder, and the four are still suspects. But when two of them die in suspicious circumstances, it seems that someone is pursuing their own brand of justice....
-
-
Absorbing story with good characters
- By Janet on 07-03-17
-
Who Guards a Prince
- By: Reginald Hill
- Narrated by: Ian Redford
- Length: 8 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Who would sever a tongue from a living mouth? Or kill a pathetic, homeless old man? Or frighten a young doctor into silence? The questions are piling up, and Doug McHarg can't stop asking them - especially when he's warned off by both his boss in the local police and by Scotland Yard. The pattern that emerges is of a powerful organisation with links to the throne and the White House. And all that stands against them is McHarg: a discontented copper with nothing to lose.
-
-
Another super Hill book
- By Diane on 03-11-10
-
The Death of Remembrance
- By: Denzil Meyrick
- Narrated by: David Monteath
- Length: 10 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the present, an old fisherman is found dead by the shoreline and a stranger with a mission moves into a shabby Kinloch flat/ Meanwhile, D.C.I. Jim Daley is trying to help Brian Scott stay sober, and the good people of Kinloch are still mourning the death of one of their own. As past and present collide, Daley finds himself face to face with old friends and foes. Memories can only last as long as those who keep them, and ghosts will not be silenced.
-
-
Shadows from the past and murder in the present
- By Vicuña on 03-06-22
-
A Tapping at My Door
- By: David Jackson
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the best-selling author of Cry Baby, the beginning of a brilliant and gripping police procedural series set in Liverpool, perfect for fans of Peter James and Mark Billingham. A woman at home in Liverpool is disturbed by a persistent tapping at her back door. She's disturbed to discover the culprit is a raven and tries to shoo it away. Which is when the killer strikes. DS Nathan Cody, still bearing the scars of an undercover mission that went horrifyingly wrong, is put on the case.
-
-
For me a good new author found
- By Linda on 14-08-16
-
Broadland
- British Detective Tanner Murder Mystery Series, Book 1
- By: David Blake
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 6 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When a girl’s body is found strangled, raped, and horrifically mutilated by a boat’s propeller, deep in the heart of the Norfolk Broads, newly arrived Detective Inspector John Tanner is asked to assist with the investigation. At first, all the evidence points to a man who had a multi-million-pound reason to kill her. But when an alibi is produced from an unexpected source, and another body appears at the base of a slipway, Tanner finds himself turning to local girl Detective Constable Jenny Evans for help.
-
-
Broadland
- By Daisy on 13-09-19
-
Child 44
- By: Tom Rob Smith
- Narrated by: Steven Pacey
- Length: 14 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
MGB officer Leo is a man who never questions the Party Line. He arrests whomever he is told to arrest. He dismisses the horrific death of a young boy because he is told to, because he believes the Party stance that there can be no murder in Communist Russia. Leo is the perfect soldier of the regime. But suddenly his confidence that everything he does serves a great good is shaken. He is forced to watch a man he knows to be innocent be brutally tortured. And then he is told to arrest his own wife.
-
-
Evocative if Slightly Preposterous
- By Karl K Djinn on 02-12-15
-
The Murder Bag
- By: Tony Parsons
- Narrated by: Colin Mace
- Length: 9 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Twenty years ago seven students became friends at their exclusive private school, Potter's Field. Now they have started dying in the most violent way imaginable. Detective Max Wolfe follows the bloody trail from the backstreets and bright lights of the city, to the darkest corners of the corridors of power. As the bodies pile up, Max finds he is fighting not only for justice, but for his own life....
-
-
Standard, but a high standard
- By Philip on 05-04-15
-
Think of a Number
- By: John Verdon
- Narrated by: Jeff Harding
- Length: 13 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It begins with a letter... The letter contains a request - think of a number, any number - and a sealed envelope. Inside the envelope is that number... When Dave Gurney, retired NYPD homicide detective, is contacted by an old college acquaintance about some startling letters he’s been receiving, it is at first little more than a diverting but sinister puzzle. Until the acquaintance is brutally killed.Suddenly Gurney finds himself in the middle of a murder investigation that makes no sense.
-
-
hangs together very well
- By G on 15-03-13
-
Northwind
- Robert Hoon Thrillers, Book 1
- By: JD Kirk
- Narrated by: Angus King
- Length: 9 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Former soldier. Ex-copper. Current man on the edge. Shunned by his old colleagues, and dividing his time between a dead-end job and the bottom of a whisky bottle, former Police Scotland detective superintendent Bob Hoon’s life is a mess. Then an old face from Hoon’s Special Forces days turns up asking for help: His teenage daughter has been missing for months, the police have drawn a blank, and he needs the kind of help that only Hoon can provide. And besides, Hoon owes him one.
-
-
Hoon is a hoot! I'm no kidding
- By Darkangel on 19-10-21
-
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
- By: Stieg Larsson
- Narrated by: Saul Reichlin
- Length: 18 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Forty years ago, Harriet Vanger disappeared from a family gathering. Her body was never found, yet her uncle is convinced it was murder - and that the killer is a member of his own family. He employs journalist Mikael Blomkvist and the tattooed, truculent computer hacker Lisbeth Salander to investigate. When the pair link Harriet's disappearance to a number of grotesque murders from forty years ago, they begin to unravel a dark and appalling family history.
-
-
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
- By MrsFiddleback on 29-05-09
-
A Game of Thrones
- Book 1 of A Song of Ice and Fire
- By: George R.R. Martin
- Narrated by: Roy Dotrice
- Length: 33 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Summers span decades. Winter can last a lifetime. And the struggle for the Iron Throne has begun. As Warden of the north, Lord Eddard Stark counts it a curse when King Robert bestows on him the office of the Hand. His honour weighs him down at court where a true man does what he will, not what he must...and a dead enemy is a thing of beauty. The old gods have no power in the south, Stark’s family is split and there is treachery at court. Worse, the vengeance-mad heir of the deposed Dragon King has grown to maturity in exile in the Free Cities. He claims the Iron Throne.
-
-
An enthralling story
- By Sally on 08-01-12
-
Black Widow
- By: Chris Brookmyre
- Narrated by: Angus King, Scarlett Mack
- Length: 14 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
There is no perfect marriage. There is no perfect murder. Diana Jager's life crumbles when her details are released on the Internet as revenge for her antisexism blog. Then she meets Peter. Within six months, they are married. Within six more, Peter is dead in a road accident - a nightmare end to their fairy-tale romance. But Peter's sister, Lucy, doesn't believe in fairy tales and tasks maverick reporter Jack Parlabane with discovering the dark truth behind the woman the media is calling 'Black Widow'.
-
-
great listen
- By N. Macdougall on 06-02-16
-
Wolf
- A Jessica James Mystery
- By: Kelly Oliver
- Narrated by: Sabrina Davies
- Length: 9 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Jessica James is broke and counting down the days until she can defend her philosophy thesis. Desperate to get out of her grubby attic digs, she and her friends break into her professor’s office…only to find her adviser dead in the tub. Scoping the crime scene for clues, she leaves evidence that makes her both a suspect and a target. Suspecting the school's Russian janitor of doing more than sweeping the floors, Jessica mounts an investigation. Her ragtag posse helps her uncover a related date-drug scandal, and she fears she’s the next on the killer’s to-do list.
-
The Name of the Wind
- The Kingkiller Chronicle, Book 1
- By: Patrick Rothfuss
- Narrated by: Rupert Degas
- Length: 28 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
I have stolen princesses back from sleeping barrow kings. I burned down the town of Trebon. I have spent the night with Felurian and left with both my sanity and my life. I was expelled from the university at a younger age than most people are allowed in. I tread paths by moonlight that others fear to speak of during day. I have talked to Gods, loved women, and written songs that make the minstrels weep. My name is Kvothe. You may have heard of me.
-
-
Very entertaining but strangely flat
- By Amazon Customer on 27-05-17
Summary
Wolf Hadda's life was a fairytale - successful businessman and adored husband. But a knock on the door one morning ends it all. Universally reviled, thrown into prison, Wolf retreats into silence. Seven years later Wolf begins to talk to the prison psychiatrist and receives parole to return home. But there's a mysterious period in Wolf's past when he was known as the Woodcutter. Now the Woodcutter is back, looking for truth and revenge...
More from the same
What listeners say about The Woodcutter
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
- jackie Hammond
- 23-05-11
The Woodcutter
This is the first review i have ever done, I have to say i enjoyed this book from the first page to the last. I also have to mention the narrator, what an excellent compliment he has made to this book, so easy to listen to and switches characters with such ease and made them so believable. I will be looking for more by this author and the use of this narrator.
Jackie
142 people found this helpful
-
Overall
- Gloria
- 03-03-11
The Woodcutter
Brilliant! Good plot and wonderfully read which makes all the difference.More like this please Mr. Hill!
79 people found this helpful
-
Overall
- Caroline
- 10-06-11
This is how audible books should be narrated
This is so far, the best audible book I have listened too. Mainly the narrator and his skill. Listen and you will understand. A very very talented man, i am now looking for more books narrated by Jonathan Keeble.
As for the story, very addictive listening, twists and turns all the way, I could not stop listening. I cannot recommend this book enough.
Dont wait, download now and you will be amazed
128 people found this helpful
-
Overall
- Scullywag
- 09-06-11
The reviews listed here are not wrong!
This is one of the best books I have listened to from Audible. As others have said, it's a compelling story in it's own right but Jonathan Keeble presents a masterclass with the narration. I chose it on the strength of the positive reviews listed here and I was not dissappointed. The characterisation in the book is outstanding and now it is at an end, I shall miss Wolf, Elf and the others. The story is a clever one but more than anything, the central character really pulls you in. On the face of it, we should loathe him from the story presented but I believed in him and found myself routing for him right through the book. This book is a combination of outstanding plot and writing that is then brought to life by equally outstanding narration.
73 people found this helpful
-
Overall
- Amazon Customer
- 04-05-11
witty and entertaining
This is the first time I've listened to a Reginald
Hill book and found it thoroughly entertaining. The
pace of the story is good with the characters very
easily recognisable as the narrator does a fine job
with the accents. Quite often listening to a story it
is difficult to catch the different characters because
of the pace of the story telling and I sometimes need
to listen several times certain parts to understand
who is who but not in this case. A good listen.
65 people found this helpful
-
Overall
- Jill Besterman
- 06-03-11
Reginald Hill - back to his best
A marvellous, intricate story that keeps one guessing until the end. Beautifully read by Jonathan Keeble - 16+ hours of real enjoyment that I did not want to finish.
72 people found this helpful
-
Overall
- Brian
- 02-06-11
SUPERB
What a good book, the narration is one of the best I have listened to. Good storyline with characters that come to life because of the brilliant narration. Wolf and Dol Trapp where two of my favourite characters.
Please buy it you will not be disappointed.
50 people found this helpful
-
Overall
- Vivien Tarkirk-Smith
- 20-02-11
One of the best readers ever.
You know how a voice can make or break a book? Well, this is an excellent book made brilliant by the reader. His female voices are delicate, believable and distinguishable; how a white man manages to offer the rich rounded baritone sound of a well educated African is a mystery in itself. His other voices, the various accents of the northern counties, the oleaginous soft voice of the MI5 man, the east London voices of the solicitor and his wife - brilliant. This is just the kind of reader we need. Top marks. The mystery itself is unusual and well crafted.
65 people found this helpful
-
Overall
- Hatty
- 02-06-11
Best book in ages
Seriously - this is great. I've read all of Hill's Dalziel and Pascoe novels, which I love, but this one is something else. Yes, it has a great plot, but the characterization is I think what makes the difference, Wolf, the protagonist, seems to have taken on a life of his own and its as if Hill is writing about someone real, rather than someone fictional. No matter where you are in the story, you can't help but engage with and root for this guy. Somehow I managed to cram 16 hours of listening into about 4 days and wished it would never end. If this ever gets produced for screen, its going to have to be handled really carefully because there is so much genius to mess up.
48 people found this helpful
-
Overall
- H. Tollyfield
- 29-05-11
A compelling story
The combination of Reginald Hill's writing and Jonathan Keeble's reading make this excellent listening. I didn't want to pause the story and lot's of things didn't get done because I wanted to know what was going to happen next.
35 people found this helpful
-
Overall

- Diana
- 20-01-11
One of my favorite Reginald Hill books!
I always expect quality from Reginald Hill, and have loved every book he's ever written.
The Woodcutter surpassed even my high expectations with an engaging story, great characters and a study in justice that leaves a lasting impression. To me, Hill's greatest talent is to remain completely invisible as the story unfolds. Too often I read stories that, while interesting and thought-provoking, feel like a message from a writer on his soapbox. The Woodcutter is filled with moral ambiguity, and leaves the reader with much to contemplate, but, at least for me, my reaction was to events and aspects of Hill's characters. Not once during the entire book did I feel the presence of Hill's hand as the story progresses through bad acts committed by good people and surprising kindness from some "bad guys." There is suspense throughout, but it didn't feel dark ... occasional humor and never forcing the pace of action keeps the tragic elements of the story from overwhelming the reader. Highly recommended!
115 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- David
- 30-06-13
You are in good hands
Some reviewers have suggested that the book gets stronger as it goes along. I actually felt just the opposite. I had not read any Reginald Hill before, but after only a few minutes of listening it was obvious that I was in the hands of a master storyteller. His unobtrusively artful use of language, the subtle brush strokes he used to paint his characters and the effortless way in which he moved through the exposition allowed me to relax and settle in to enjoy what was obviously going to be a fascinating and exciting ride. This impression was only reinforced by Jonathan Keeble's extraordinarily fine vocal rendering of both the characters and the narrative.
Nor did I, like some other reviewers, feel the book went on for too long. It continued to keep me fully engaged all the way to the last word. My only complaint is that it did begin to feel somewhat more contrived and "slick" as the plot wound to its conclusion. Sometimes even a little obvious. And the literally "bodice ripping" climax (no pun intended here) could have come straight out of the pages of a modern Gothic romance. No question that it was powerful and shocking, but it was also jarring and incongruous in a book which had been so seamless and convincing up to that point.
That said, Hill was such a fine writer and this was such a ripping good tale for most of its length that I could forgive much. I had a great time listening and I think most others will as well.
63 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Mel
- 21-10-11
Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf!
Even if you read all of the "Best Sellers", the Man Bookers, the Edgars, the Hugos, the Pulitzers, Staff Favs, and the readers suggestions in your constant pursuit of good and/or entertaining reading material, this award winner's latest book may have sneaked by you--and what an epic MISS. Thanks to consistently high marks by Audible reviewers, I was schooled, and spent 16 engaging hours hanging on to a rollicking, smart, psychological thriller where the big bad wolf is the heroic axe-wielding woodsman, and sets out to prove that unconventional fact. It took me a couple of chapters to get used to the breakneck pace, and I would've been thoroughly satisfied with a nicely tied up ending at about the 12 hour point, but neither little personal gripe diminishes the experience. My first Reginald Hill--and from what I've heard from other readers, one of his best. A great choice...Thanks-previous reviewers.
112 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Kathy in CA
- 02-07-17
Love, Betrayal, Revenge--a Masterpiece of Fiction!
Here we go again. It sat way too long in my Library. Perhaps books are like fine wine and cheese, getting better and better as they age (in the Library?) I simply loved this book. I am torn between listening to it a second time and moving on as I have too many other books waiting.
Very brief description. It is the story of a successful business man married to the woman of his dreams. He is utterly and completely betrayed by family and his closest friends in the worst possible manner. It is the story of his attempt to pull himself out of hell and effect revenge where it is deserved.
The scenery is amazing--Cumbria, northern England, sprinkled with lakes, precipitous mountains, considered one of the most beautiful regions in the country. It is a character-driven story. As it proceeds they become more developed. I loved the main protagonist, Wolf Hadda. I went from hating to liking or understanding several others. Some, I never came to terms with. I guess Wolf didn't either.
Jonathan Keeble did an exquisite narration. It was so perfect I will seek out other books by him in the future. I will look for other books by the author, Reginald Hill, as well.
I am SO glad I finally gave this book a listen. It will now be among my list of all-time favorites. As you may guess, it comes highly recommended by me.
19 people found this helpful
-
Overall

- Arcada
- 06-03-11
A Great Read
I wasn't sure about this book at first. I listened to the sample audio and decided to take a chance. It was well worth it. Kind of like the Count of Monte Cristo as told by a great-grandson of Charles Dickens. A compelling and intelligent thriller with humor and heart.
54 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Chip Atkinson
- 02-07-13
I'll have Revenge please...
As I listened to this tale it became obvious how much I love revenge stories. The most thorough and satisfying tale of revenge would be The Count of Monte Cristo. The best modern tale, in my opinion, is the Dragon Tattoo series. Of course, Monte Cristo and the Dragon Tattoo are both biblical in length. But this is what makes them so brilliant, the authors spent as much time completing the satisfying and justified revenge as they did on the (unjust) destruction of the heroes.
Which brings me to The Woodcutter. As the story develops we are introduced to a gruff, unsophisticated, powerful man who's humility immediately attracts the reader. He is betrayed and destroyed to the point that any part of what made him great in his world could never be redeemed. The conspiracy against him is every bit as sophisticated and developed as Larrson's trilogy. (If you haven't listened to the The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo trilogy, stop here and buy it now.)
What disappoints me here is the lack of depth and completeness in the revenge itself. There, I've said it. I listened to every minute of this book with relish. It is entertaining and clever. The mystery revealed is remarkable. However, its lack of detail and brevity left me disappointed.
Still, its a great book, well worth your time!
50 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- ben
- 27-03-13
WoW!!
I haven't written a review for a long time, because the audios I have chosen haven't been all that noteworthy.
This book is the exception, prompting me to write a review.
First off, I had never heard of this author. (shame on me)
Second, I only purchased this on the good reviews, and the storyline intriqued me.
It is the first book since Game of Thrones, that I absolutely did NOT want to stop listening to. (btw, game of thrones is a completely different genre, however, both the writing, storyline, and readers are excellent!)
This is a book that I am glad I listened to, rather than buy the hard copy to read.
The reader was exceptional. I could picture this entire book in my head as he read along.
I researched this author, and found that sadly, he had passed on last year I believe.
The literary world has lost a wonderful writer.
Fortunately for me, I listened to this one.
22 people found this helpful
-
Overall

- K. Wing
- 20-05-11
A really good story and a really good narration
I listen to audiobooks when I'm driving and when I'm hiking. With some books, I drift away from the story and have to rewind but not with this one. This audiobook kept my attention the whole way through and I was really sad to get to the end of it because I wanted more.
44 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Mark
- 09-10-16
Hints of greatness
A guy’s life is torn apart after being convicted of a horrendous crime and becoming disfigured and crippled in an escape attempt. Then he tries to get to the bottom of what happened. The woodcutter (and international businessman), the psychologist, the pastor and the dog were all so interesting, I would've liked a book about just them without the thriller plot. For me, the downside was twofold. First, it was a thriller but I never had any doubt how it would turn out. Two, the message — that grim necessity makes people do horrible things and there’s nothing that can be done about it — isn’t one that resonates well, with me anyway. I totally recommend the book, but ultimately, it’s a genre thriller, which is a bit disappointing because parts of it hinted at greatness. Bechdel test: pass. Grade: A-
Stellar narration.
4 people found this helpful
-
Overall

- Barbara
- 19-05-11
a great pleasure
People who are already familiar with Reginald Hill won't need to be told what they already know: that he is a master storyteller, mixing a suspense story with deep insights into the human psyche and a powerful ability to make the landscapes come alive. The Woodcutter is thoroughly enjoyable, and at a lenght of 15+ hours it really draws you into the cleverly plotted story. Enjoy!
25 people found this helpful