Disappointed with narration.

Narration sounded synthesised. Although story was interesting and well written it was spoiled for me.

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Loved it

Enjoyed the story it Kept me guessing and wanting to get to the end to find out what happened!

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5 1/2*

So entertaining, was dubious at the start even though I’ve read or listened to every one of this authors books. The characters were people I could care about, which for me is important and adds emotion to the narrative. I miss them already but ironically hope it’s not the start of another series as it was perfect as a stand-alone. I was disappointed that it ended as I thought it would, that’s my curse I’m afraid.

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Loving this main character

Bring on the next one. I can’t wait. Great story, great main character, great performance.

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What a brilliant narrator

I loved this! Wasn’t sure that the story line was my type of thing at the very very beginning, but soon got sucked in to it. One of my favourite audio books.

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robotic voice

why anybody chooses Hillary Huber to narrate their books I will never understand. She sounds like a robot. It is dreadful. It is like a computer program reading the book. Very off-putting.

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Brilliant

Loved the first two Frankie Elkin books. She’s a brilliant character. Can’t wait for the next one!

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one of three best

Great story, great narration, well worth a listen. very different from the writers usual books but definitely great

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Disappointing on so many levels

I discovered Lisa Gardner last year when Audible recommended Before She Disappeared, the first of the Frankie Elkin novels. I loved it. Whatever the audiobook equivalent of "couldn't put it down" is, that's what I felt with that novel. I was disappointed that it was the only novel with the main character, as there seemed to be so much potential for more.

I then downloaded Catch Me, by the same author. I did not like it one bit. The style was different, the characters unlikeable, and the plot just didn't grab me. I gave up as I disliked it so much. So it was with mixed feelings that I downloaded this. If it was similar to Before She Disappeared, then I thought I'd like it. If not...

Well, it turns out it's not like either of those books. One of the things I loved about listening to Before She Disappeared was the narrator (Regina Regan). She had such a warm voice that completely enveloped you. It was an absolute pleasure to listen to her, and she lifted the novel up when it sagged a little. This narrator (Hillary Huber) is completely different. At times it feels like it's very good software reading it, like Alexa or Siri. The warmth is gone. Slightly mechanical. Subsequently, the character of Frankie feels a bit different. But apart from that, the character seems to be written differently as well. In the previous novel, there was a certain vulnerability that poked through. Here, we're constantly slapped in the face with references to her alcoholism, Paul, the cop she fell in love with, and occasional references to the previous case.

Perhaps it's the fault of the setting. The first novel was set in a city with a variety of characters from different backgrounds. Here, in the forest, with the same set of people, there's less to explore - both in terms of characters, but also in terms of location.

Another problem is that there is too much that's unnecessary here. It took more than 3.5 hours (chapter 14) before anything actually started to happen. That's a LOT of backstory. And the ending went on FOREVER. It reached a certain point and I saw that I had still 2 hours left to listen to. Then there was an hour. And then the schmaltzy goodbyes took up the final 20 minutes. And really, the last 10 minutes just dragged and dragged. I was willing it to end.

It's hard to believe that this was written by the same person. It just feels so different. Reading other reviews, I can see that some people love it. I didn't totally dislike this. I made it to the end, after all, and the first 90 minutes or so really went by quite quickly. But then it just seemed to take forever.

The ending was not a huge surprise. So, as I said in the title, it was disappointing on many levels.

I don't know if I'll bother with another Frankie Elkin story. Perhaps if it goes back to another city setting, I might give it a go. And not sure about the narrator. She was "ok", but nothing more than that. I don't know why she read the character of Bob as if he had a cold. Very bizarre.

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Great series

My favourite series at the moment. Amazing story, great writing and characters. My one and only tiny gripe is the narrator doesn't really change her tone despite what's going on in the story... she reads it in the same chirpy way whether the characters are being hunted by a psychopath in the wilderness or safe in a luxury hotel. But it's still a brilliant listen and I loved it.

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