The Dead Beat
by
Doug Johnstone
My first Doug Johnstone audio novel and a worthwhile listen/read at that. I have stated several times that the narrator can make or break an audio book and in this case it is the former.
Set in Scotland, the narrator’s Scottish accents are wonderful to listen to, although they may make a true Scot cringe.
The plot maybe stretched a tad. After all it is unlikely to see a work experience staff member writing obituaries on her first day on the job at the local newspaper. However, most of my favourite fiction authors or books have plots which are way over the top…but still entertaining. And I found this one to be entertaining.
However, in a newspaper office is where the book began and there was enough in the first few paragraphs to whet my appetite. The story line developed well combining mental illness, depression, suicide, murders and extramarital affairs to create an interesting read.
Normally, mental illness, and depression are not topics high on my list of ‘must reads’. However, in this case each was not overdone, and therefore, not a detailed description of each characters illness was included.
I have rate The Dead Beat as a three star read on Goodreads. If the option was available I would have added a half star.
Definitely, a nice quick read.
A solid
read.
Goodreads readers have rated
The Dead Beat
an average of 3.6 stars from 170 ratings and 25 reviews
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