Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

Offer ends May 1st, 2024 11:59PM GMT. Terms and conditions apply.
£7.99/month after 3 months. Renews automatically.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Trick of the Dark cover art

Trick of the Dark

By: Val McDermid
Narrated by: Juanita McMahon, Gerri Halligar
Get this deal Try for £0.00

Pay £99p/month. After 3 months pay £7.99/month. Renews automatically. See terms for eligibility.

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £16.00

Buy Now for £16.00

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Listeners also enjoyed...

1979 cover art
Detective Sebastian Clifford, Books 1-3 cover art
A Litter of Bones: A Scottish Crime Thriller cover art
Above Suspicion cover art
Whisky from Small Glasses cover art
The Infirmary: A DCI Ryan Mystery (Multicast Drama) cover art
Deadly Lies cover art
A Long Time Dead cover art
False Start cover art
The Body in the Marsh cover art
The Woodcutter cover art
The Bonnie Dead cover art
The Snow Killer cover art
A Tapping at My Door cover art
Good Girls Don't Die cover art
Murder on the Marshes cover art

Summary

When Charlie Flint is sent a mysterious package of cuttings about a brutal murder, it instantly grabs her attention. The murder occurred in the grounds of her old Oxford college - a groom battered to death just hours after his wedding. As his bride and wedding guests sipped champagne, his alleged killers were slipping his bloodstained body into the river.

Charlie doesn't know who sent the package, or why, yet she can't get the crime out of her head. But as she delves deeper, and steps back into the mysterious world of Oxford colleges, she realises that there is much more to this crime than meets the eye.
 

©2010 Val McDermid (P)2011 WF Howes Ltd

Critic reviews

"Wonderfully compelling stuff." (Daily Mail

"A workout for the grey cells, perfectly executed." (Daily Telegraph)

"This standalone from the Scottish force of nature is a brutally clever story." (Daily Mirror)  

What listeners say about Trick of the Dark

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    391
  • 4 Stars
    248
  • 3 Stars
    150
  • 2 Stars
    49
  • 1 Stars
    37
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    339
  • 4 Stars
    179
  • 3 Stars
    62
  • 2 Stars
    14
  • 1 Stars
    16
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    293
  • 4 Stars
    167
  • 3 Stars
    89
  • 2 Stars
    27
  • 1 Stars
    32

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Just So Disappointing

McDermid is one of my favourite crime writers who usually constructs a powerful and absorbing plot combined with credible characters. Sadly in this book she fails on the first and possibly on both counts.

This is largely a lesbian love story with what might turn out to be a good crime story hiding somewhere in the background.

I gave up after about three hours and that's the first time I've done that for years and the first time with one of her books ever.

As I said, a great disappointment.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

50 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars

Very Disappointing

I was very disappointed by the novel and the choice of narrative voices. It's been some time since I read a McDermid and this felt like it could have been a first attempt at novel writing rather than that of an experienced writer. It was v simplistic and to be honest rather poorly edited. Given both the narrative voices were supposed to be of youngish women, I can't understand why the producer chose voices that sounded as if they belonged to over 50 women. All in all not good.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

35 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Felt let down

Generally speaking I am a fan of Val McDermid and generally she appears to be believable on background. However, on this occasion she appears not to have given as much commitment to this as she normally does. The central character appears to be some sort of cross between a psychologist and psychiatrist which in my experience very rarely happens, I have never experienced it myself and I have 30 years experience in psychiatry. The story seems to revolve around her competence to practise and awaiting the verdict from the GMC which probably wouldn't happen because it would not come under the remit of the GMC, even if she was a psychiatrist which she wouldn't be unless she had first been trained as a medical doctor. She is a good storyteller but I did feel there is a responsibility to get the background something like believable. Sorry Val not your best.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

34 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Will be back to this one

Beautifully crafted characters, and wonderfully read, I'll be listening to this again in short order as I enjoyed it so much. The twists and turns of the plot and the sympathetic portrayals of complex people (aren't we all) create a gripping story. Val is a new discovery for me. I'll be reading more.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

26 people found this helpful

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

Ignore all the homophobic reviews- fab book

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes- I have listened to all the other Val McDermid audiobooks but nearly didn't listen to this due to the reviews- but I'm really glad I did. They are all massive homophobes. I really enjoyed this; just as good as her other books

Who was your favorite character and why?

Maria because she's a dentist

What about Juanita McMahon and Gerri Halligar ’s performance did you like?

Both great narrators

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

19 people found this helpful

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

Read it and make your own mind up

Enough of your homophobic crap. This is a good work of fiction. The fact that the main characters are lesbian isn’t important. The writing and plot construction is first class. Get a grip!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

15 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars

poorly researched

An exciting plot but based on false premises about forensic psychiatry.'A beach book' it will sell well but the links to reality are tenuous.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

14 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Very Disappointing

Having loved the Tony Hill series this was such a disappointment. The characters are irritating, the plot weak and the narration awful. This feels like a book written to sell on the back of the author's previous success.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

12 people found this helpful

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

Intense and creepy

Excellent narration adds to the pleasure of this audible version. Complex and twisted plotting packed with surprises. Well paced and really enjoyed it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Indeed a trick

I am still scratching my head wondering how & why I purchased this strange book. I am fairly new to 'Audible' and maybe I was tricked into it because it certainly is not the sort of literature which I would normally choose. However, I paid for it so I listened to it from start to finish.
The publishers describe it as a 'thriller' but I found little or nothing thrilling about it - but doubtless had the publishers been more honest & described it as a homosexual fantasy I would have given it the wide berth which it deserves.
I have seen other reviews complementing the storyline. Frankly, I found it dull and enitely predictable. I accurately deduced the villain's true identity very early on in the piece which thus added little to the enjoyment.
The constant theme of lesbianism which runs through the story was more nauseating than tittilating & was certainly unendearing.
As for the reading, I have no doubt that the 2 readers found it arduous but the attempt at a Scottish accent was almost farcical.

I shall NOT be looking for any more of this genre in future:

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

10 people found this helpful