The Sans Pareil Mystery cover art

The Sans Pareil Mystery

The Detective Lavender Mysteries, Book 2

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The Sans Pareil Mystery

By: Karen Charlton
Narrated by: Michael Page
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About this listen

On a cold February night in Regency London, a dark curtain falls on the Sans Pareil Theatre following the death of April Clare, a promising young actress, whose body is found in mysterious circumstances.

Detective Stephen Lavender and his dependable deputy, Constable Woods, quickly discover that nothing is quite as it seems. As successive mysteries unfold, they soon realise that it is not only the actors from the Sans Pareil who are playing a part.

With the Napoleonic War looming dangerously across the Channel, this is a time of suspicion and treachery. Following the clues from the seedy back streets of Covent Garden up through the echelons of society, Lavender and Woods begin to fear that the case is much bigger than they'd dared imagine - and worse, that they are at risk of becoming mere players in a master criminal's shadowy drama.

It will take all of Lavender's skill and wit, and help from the beautiful Magdalena, to bring the mystery of the Sans Pareil Theatre to a dramatic conclusion in the final act.

©2015 Karen Charlton (P)2015 Brilliance Audio, Inc. Detective Historical Mystery Traditional Detectives Fiction Celebrity Exciting Theatre

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Where does The Sans Pareil Mystery rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I would rank this in my top ten. I enjoy murder mystery books with some relational depth to and between the characters, the combination of Karen Charlton's writing and imagination with Michael Page's excellent narration is a great find. I have a job that has more than enough tension and real life concerns, so it is therapeutic to get lost in a good book.

What other book might you compare The Sans Pareil Mystery to, and why?

There is a warmth and depth to the book, just enough edge and murder mystery, but warmth in the unfolding of the key characters. I would compare it to the Max Tudor series, different century, but the characters have a steady reflective no nonsense approach, but with a nod to their romantic and family lives.

What does Michael Page bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

Michael Page is an excellent narrator and performer. He gives depth to the characters, I've enjoyed his narration of all the Max Tudor series, and Elizabeth Edmonson's final three books. It has been a pleasure to find him narrating the Inspector Lavender series

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Gentle tension at times, and occasional laughter.

Any additional comments?

Karen Charlton is an excellent writer, it is a great pleasure to find her books being read by some one as skillful as Michael Page.

A favourite Narrator performing a excellent book

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This is the third book I've listened to in the inspector Lavender series and won't be the last. I enjoy the emphasis on developing the characters and, in this book, was engaged in a gripping story of French spy-rings at the time of the Napoleonic Wars. Lavender and his trusty sidekick Constable Woods are sympathetic characters around whose lives the stories are told.

The narrator does a great job creating all the different accents and portraying convincing female voices.

Gripping story populated by interesting characters

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Karen Charlton is a wonderful writer I have read all of her 5 books 📚 hope it is not too long before her next one

Sans Pareil

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The reader for this story really made it come to life. The storyline was gripping and very well written. Would highly recommend. Now onto the next Detective Lavender book.

Brilliant listen

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For an audio book of just over 10 hours, not a single minute was dragged out or spent filling out the plot. Each character was given the right amount of detail and the story was great in the attention to historic detail.

I loved the use of period slang peppering the tex. The narrator's different character voices meant I could easily tell who was 'speaking'.

I'm looking forward to more in the series, especially as I've realised Stephen Lavender was a real Principal Officer with the Bow Street Magistrates Court.

A brilliant start to this series

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I'm really hooked on this series. The research that has gone into the book has made it feel Victorian, because the attitudes of Victorian society not lost in the the story. Wonderful

Lavender is on the case

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An enjoyable story with interesting characters based at the time of Bonaparte's rampage across Europe, the book gives a bit of insight of what it was like to live at that time. If you like mystery and history, you will probably enjoy this book.

Good and fast paced

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Enjoying listening to the books and hearing the characters develop. Interesting plots with humour and historical interest.

another good listen

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Interesting story of an early detective in Bow Street, Coventry Garden, a very different place than the touristy place it is today. The story evokes something of the dirt, poverty and harshness of life in England during the wars with Napoleon's forces.

Lavender and Wood make a good detective duo and it will be interesting to see how these characters are developed in future stories.

London 1810

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Just fallen in love with the main characters this is the 2 nd in series and I read both books in 4 days seriously good fun brilliant plots

Excellent

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