Just One Evil Act cover art

Just One Evil Act

An Inspector Lynley Novel, Book 18

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Just One Evil Act

By: Elizabeth George
Narrated by: Davina Porter
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About this listen

Barbara Havers puts her career on the line while DI Thomas Lynley attempts to straighten her out before it's too late.

When Hadiyyah Upman disappears from London in the company of her mother, Detective Sergeant Barbara Havers is as devastated as the girl's father. They are her close friends as well as neighbours, but since the child is with her mother, nothing can be done.

Five months later, Hadiyyah is kidnapped from an open air market in Lucca, Italy, and this triggers an investigation in the full glare of the media spotlight. Barbara's clever manipulation of the worst of London's tabloids forces New Scotland Yard to become involved. But rather than Barbara herself, her superior officer DI Thomas Lynley is assigned to handle a situation made delicate by racial issues, language difficulties, and the determination of an Italian magistrate to arrest and convict someone - anyone - for the crime.

©2013 Elizabeth George (P)2013 Penguin Group USA Crime Fiction Mystery Fiction Italy Suspense

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All stars
Most relevant  

Who was your favorite character and why?

I love Barbara Havers, I love her sailing ever closer to the wind, and her loyalty.

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

I did find some of the Italian pronunciation a little ott at times

Enjoyable

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As a fan of the Lyndley books, I was keen but the characters seem to have fallen off a little in this novel. It needed a dam good edit and more polishing of the plot. Some of the plot didn't make sense and (in my version anyway) there was no ending, it just suddenly stopped. Far too long and Lyndley hardly appears in it much. The Havers thing did not really work. Potentially it could have been good, it seems not to have been edited or thought through properly.

The main criticism though was the narrator who was unable to pronounce Italian. Every time she said something incorrectly in the language - which was most of the time - I was cringing. As there is quite a bit of Italian in the novel, an element I would have enjoyed hugely without the bad pronunciation, someone should surely have chosen an actor who knew Italian ?

good plot ruined by narration and bad editing

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Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

i didn't enjoy this book much, but due to personal circumstances was stuck with it. How irritating it was to hear so much Italian (without translation) and be forced to guess the meaning. I found Barbara Havers crush on Taymullah Azhar more like that of a teenager than a supposed hard-headed police detective. Surely in the real world she would not have got away with her insubordination and insolence. Lindley again was portrayed as the aristocratic 'toff' with an affluent lifestyle, whilst Barbara was the down-at-heel, badly dressed side-kick. As the story moved towards the end I felt myself hoping that Azhar would turn out to be the murderer, Barbara would be wrong and then kicked out of the force. But sadly it wasn't to be. Azhar and his daughter flew off to Pakistan, Lindley picked up his affair with the vet, and Barbara was left alone again. I suppose Elizabeth George will wheel her out once again to be the foil for Lindley's brilliance!

What aspect of Davina Porter’s performance might you have changed?

I thought her interpretation of Barbara Haver's was over the top.She sounded more like an east end costermonger than a detective. Not being able to speak Italian I am not a good judge, but her Italian pronunciation sounded quite authentic.

Could you see Just One Evil Act being made into a movie or a TV series? Who would the stars be?

NO - for the love of god spare us. i saw some with Nat Parker and Susan Small and was not impressed.

non capisco

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Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Its not the best audio book I have listened to, but the story was enough to keep me interested

What did you like best about this story?

I like the characters of Inspector Linley and Sgt Havers and their interaction

What aspect of Davina Porter’s performance might you have changed?

I wasn't a fan of her plodding rendering of the Italian phrases.

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

It was all a bit pedestrian although I liked the sinister nature of the plot. I felt a bit uncomfortable about the constant reference to race and religion- 'the muslim man....' the Pakistani.... etc etc It seemed a bit over the top and not how we speak in England.

Any additional comments?

even though it wasn't my favourite, I'm still looking forward to the next one.

Good listen despite plodding Italian!

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Would you consider the audio edition of Just One Evil Act to be better than the print version?

No. As other reviewers have said, there's far too much Italian. I can read Italian a bit but couldn't follow the speech. It would have been better if the author had translated somehow where necessary because sometimes the Italian was relevant to the plot. Also the names would be easier to follow in print.

Would you be willing to try another book from Elizabeth George? Why or why not?

I have always loved Elizabeth George's books and grabbed this one before there were any reviews. It is a disappointment.

What didn’t you like about Davina Porter’s performance?

Her voice wasn't suitable to the book - a man would have been better. Maybe she was chosen for her Italian?

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Too long and complicated for one sitting.

Any additional comments?

I am just at the end of Part 3 and no longer really care who did what to whom but am gritting my teeth to get to the end. This seems quite different from Elizabeth George's previous Lynley books and seems a bit self-indulgent.

Agreeing with other listeners.......

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Great story again, but narration very off putting. Suddenly Isabelle Ardery is Scottish, Havers a Londoner and Deirdre went from Daydre to Die-dre throughout the book. Lorenzo became Loranzo and towards the end I missed chunks waiting for the mispronunciation.

Odd narration

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Would you try another book written by Elizabeth George or narrated by Davina Porter?

I have read or listened to all the Inspector Lyndley books, but this one was much to heavy going. Unless you speak Italian it is very difficult to follow. I had to keep re winding just to follow the plot, and I am still not sure if I understand the conclusion.

Would you be willing to try another book from Elizabeth George? Why or why not?

Yes, I on the strength of her previous books.

What three words best describe Davina Porter’s performance?

Various accents.

If this book were a film would you go see it?

Possibly.

Long winded.

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I love Elizabeth George & particularly her Inspector Linley stories, which was the only reason for me sticking with this interminable and tedious book.
Davina Porter’s reading was painful in the extreme - she mangled all the names, few of which were pronounced in the same way twice and few of the characters retained the same accents throughout the entire reading, Added to which plot was ridiculous and the entire book needed a damn good edit!
Such a shame!

Overlong and seemingly endless!

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I found that this story wasn't what I expected for one of the Inspector Lindley books it went on too long and had too much Italian in it which was distracting too non speakers of the language

How much Italian is in the book

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Loved this book. No dull pages to read through. A very clever and interesting read.

Gripping

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