Don’t

Sadly this is completely spoilt by the narrators terrible accents. Scottish is bearable but the Irish is terrible and the German sounds straight from the shores of the West Indies. I enjoyed the first book, but I can’t complete this one.

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2 people found this helpful

very nice surprise

I came across the list book whilst searching for historic fiction. Very enjoyable book and creates a definite atmosphere of Victorian England.

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Wasted potential

I really wanted to enjoy this. I like the partnership between the detective and the assistant, and the moments of humour between the characters. I feel like eventually the assistant might develop into less of a naive child and start to be interesting.

Unfortunately, the storytelling is patronising, like a really condescending history teacher, and the narration will make your head explode.

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1 person found this helpful

"Some Danger Involved"

While I didn't find "Some Danger ..." compelling reading, to the point where I couldn't wait to pick up the threads every day, it was nicely read, inoffensive and more entertaining than I had expected. And now I discover that it's only part one, and there are a further eleven books in the series, all of which are ' Included in ... my Membership.' Oh Audible, what are you trying to do to me ?! I find I HAVE to stay with these two characters for at least another couple of books, even if only to watched learn how their relationship / partnership develops ... Life really is too short for this !

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I liked it

Without gory bits but enjoyable listen.
Didn't guess who 'baddie' was for a change.
Surprisingly easy mystery holding my attention.

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Pleasent enough story

Where does Some Danger Involved rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

It ranks somewhere in the middle, not good enough for me to rave about or recommend to all my friends but good enough for me to give the second book a go.

What did you like best about this story?

It moved quite quickly and was an old fashioned who dunnit which I enjoy

Who might you have cast as narrator instead of Antony Ferguson?

Almost anybody else. It's not that Mr Ferguson is a bad narrator it is that he is just plain awful at accents.. every one be it Irish Scottish Italian or Jewish sounded Caribbean... While it only vaguely irritated me I can see why it would ruin the book for others.

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

The new Sherlock

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loved it.

Enjoyed every minute of it... Very Sherlock Holmes. well written. well narrated. Busy downloading next one.

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Not a bad book if you have a spare credit

Ok, so right off I will say this book, while worth a listen, clearly wants to be a Sherlock and Watson book. It's almost a carbon copy, Victorian London, an eccentric independent detective with exotic tastes, a friendship/mentorship between the 2 main characters, this book copies them all. The story is engaging enough and the back story of the characters interesting but to me the main appeal was a good old "who done it?" and it delivered. It might not be Sherlock but it is still an ok book.

The bad stuff though...the language in it was a little offensive, "The Jew", "The Chinaman", it just seemed rude. The author tries to show the beautiful side to both cultures and this is accurate to how people spoke back then but it seems wrong to hear the kind of language this book uses. I will keep this book but probably not the rest of the series.

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Pleasantly Victorian

Enjoyed listening to this tale. A bit long winded in places but understood why for background of characters. An unlikely duo but a nice change to see a down and out getting a leg up.

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Resonant Echoes of the Past

I think it's fair to say that the concept of an inscrutable detective, or as Mr Barker would remind us "Enquiry agent" seen through the eyes of an assistant in Victorian London is not exactly brand new. However, it has not often been done this well.

"Some Danger Involved" introduces us to the enigma that is Cyrus Barker seen through the eyes of his sometimes hapless but actually quite talented assistant, Thomas Llewelyn. The book moves mostly at a reasonably sedate pace successfully evoking a very atmospheric period London at both its best and worst. Will Thomas introduces us to an extremely rich cast of characters while demonstrating ably his knowledge of the times, the city and in particular the Jewish community who feature prominently.

Barker really does fit the bill and both he and Llewelyn are painted with depth and care. The interview scene I found particularly revealing and enjoyable. The rest of the cast also have genuine colour and the time taken to introduce them does slow the pace but they promise much more to come in future episodes.

Antony Ferguson's narration is very well suited and attuned to what the author is trying to portray. He is particularly good with Barker himself.

The story itself while set in Victorian London is incredibly relevant to today's Britain. The theme of prejudice around immigration really is as old as civilisation and it is quite stunning how these echoes from our past continue to resonate today. Thomas does not fall into the trap of polarising the effects, he recognises the multi-faceted nature of this particular beast.

I understand that this book was five years in the making and the result of all that effort is a top quality novel which appears to usher in a series with characters I could grow to love.

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20 people found this helpful