Reader: Stephen Hogan
Short Review: The fourth book in French’s excellent Dublin Murder Squad series, read by the talented Stephen Hogan. Previous books in the series include In the Woods and The Likeness. They can be read out of order without spoiling the series.
Reader: Suzanne Bertish
Short Review: A beautiful book, poorly served by bad audio quality and frequent mispronunciations.
Reader: Steven Crossley
Short Review: A decent book with a major flaw, read beautifully by Steven Crossley. Connolly’s book starts out as a promising depiction of the interior life of a bookish, depressed boy with apparently undiagnosed epilepsy and OCD. Unfortunately, it continues on into an all-too-familiar series of retellings of classic fairytales, several of which villanize women for no clear reason. I expected and hoped for more from the book itself. Thankfully, I truly enjoyed Crossley’s narration, and allowed it to carry me through a book that otherwise left me scratching my head and feeling disappointed and maligned.
The Likeness Available from Audible.com Author: Tana French Reader: Heather O’Neill Short Review: Tana French’s strong second novel read beautifully by Heather O’Neill. In this sequel to In the Woods, we follow Cassie Maddox in a strange undercover murder investigation. Cassie gets back on her feet and then gets knocked right back off balance imitating […]
In the Woods Author: Tana French Reader: Steven Crossley Short Review: This Edgar Award winning novel traces a murder in Ireland, following the detectives investigating the case and flashing back to an earlier, similar unsolved case. It is a good novel beautifully read by Crossley, but the novel itself annoys me in a few spots […]
The Young Wan Author: Brendan O’Carroll Reader: Donada Peters Short Review: A sweet, funny prequel to O’Carroll’s earlier trilogy about Agnes Brown, read with great energy, humor, and personality by the incomparable Donada Peters. Long Review: The Young Wan tells the story of Agnes Browne’s early life and her parents’ romance and marriage. Set in […]
Beowulf, translated by Seamus Heaney Translator: Seamus Heaney Reader: George Guidall Short Review: Heaney’s excellent translation read well, though not perfectly, by Guidall. Long Review: You know already whether or not you want to listed to Beowulf as an audiobook. There are those of us who perk right up at the thought of listening to […]
My Dream Of You Author: Nuala O’Faolain Reader: Dearbhla Molloy Short Review: A beautiful first novel from one of Ireland’s best memoir and non-fiction writers, gorgeously read by Dublin’s excellent Dearbhla Molloy with just the right accent and diction. The novel interlaces a story of a woman approaching menopause while re-awakening her sense of romance, […]
Paula Spencer Author: Roddy Doyle Reader: Ger Ryan Short Review: A novel featuring the engaging lead character from Doyle’s The Woman Who Walked Into Doors gloriously read in the perfect Dublin accent by Ger Ryan. Long Review: Paula Spencer is a recovering alcoholic, recovering longtime victim of domestic violence, widow, house-cleaner, and mother weighed down […]