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The Dower House Mystery

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The Dower House Mystery

By: Patricia Wentworth
Narrated by: Anne Hancock
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Amabel Grey, a widow with a modest income, needs money. Fast. Her spoiled daughter Daphne has an opportunity to go with friends on holiday, and she's convinced it will end with a lucrative marriage proposal. But where to find 200 pounds?

Amabel refuses to borrow money she knows she can't repay and visits a lawyer friend to ask about ideas for employment. She overhears a client requesting the lawyer find someone to live in his Dower House for six months. The stipend is 200 pounds! And she knows the house, having visited 20 years before. The catch? Previous tenants have been driven away by strange happenings, and the village is convinced the place is haunted. The owner wants the rumors to stop.

Will strange noises, closing doors, and rising mist in the hallways intimidate the determined Amabel? Who or what is trying to scare her away and why?

Listeners of The Astonishing Adventure of Jane Smith will again encounter Jane, her anarchist uncle, and Criminal Investigations Chief "Piggy" LeMesurier. The Dower House's inhabitants and neighbors include a long-lost love of Amabel's.

Public Domain (P)2021 Anne Hancock Detective Mystery Suspense Thriller & Suspense Traditional Detectives Women Sleuths Women's Fiction Fiction Money
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Critic reviews

"This classic British whodunit from the Golden Age of mysteries has been recorded to delight another generation. A comely middle-aged widow agrees to reside in what is reputed to be a haunted house for six months to earn money for her spoiled daughter. With panache and practiced skill, narrator Anne Hancock evokes the gloom of the old Dower House, with its peculiar staff and disconcerting neighboring families. Hancock brings to life the winsome widow and endows her with a rational, cultured voice. She also produces many other compelling portrayals, including those of family retainers, local residents, and people of differing ages, genders, and social background. This is a nostalgic treat." (D.L.G. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine, published June 2021)
All stars
Most relevant
Americanisms in pronunciation slip occasionally into this otherwise good performance - mildoo (mildew), noo (new), pahnd (pound).
The story is what one expects from Wentworth so quite satisfying.

Good performance enough but...

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I know people have been critical of this book. It’s an early Patricia Wentworth and even though it lacks the polish of her Miss Silver mysteries I still enjoyed it. Undemanding to listen to whilst I was painting. It’s got a bit of romance a bit of mystery and a bit of a twist at the end.

Good old mystery!

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This might as well have been an Enid Blyton book - coincidences and secret passages. Also, the narrator did well but why not choose an English actor?

Childish plot

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