The Call

by Christian White, Summer De Roche, Sibylla Budd (Narrator)

Jackie and Pete King have lived in Dunmore for years, running one of the two local pubs in the sleepy little town. Money has been tight after the bushfires, and it’s about to get tighter if they can’t find a way to pay their suppliers to keep their business going and keep the bank from foreclosing on their property. So when Jackie receives a mysterious phone call offering them $100,000 to let someone bury a body on their land, the answer isn’t as simple as they thought it would be.

It’s a deal that could change their lives. But when a woman in the next town over goes missing, it’s a deal that could ruin them forever.

Genres: Audiobook, Fiction, Thriller, Mystery, Crime, Suspense, Australia

4 pages, Audible Audio

First published March 30, 2023

About the author

Christian White is an Australian author and screenwriter. His debut novel, The Nowhere Child, won the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for an Unpublished Manuscript. He co-created the television series Carnivores, currently in development with Matchbox Pictures and Heyday TV, and co-wrote Relic, a psychological horror feature film to be produced by Carver Films (The Snowtown Murders, Partisan).

Born and raised on the Mornington Peninsula, Christian had an eclectic range of ‘day jobs’ before he was able to write full-time, including food-cart driver on a golf course and video editor for an adult film company. He now spends his days writing from his home in Melbourne where he lives with his wife, the filmmaker Summer DeRoche, and their adopted greyhound, Issy. He has a passion for true crime podcasts, Stephen King and anything to do with Bigfoot. The Nowhere Child is his first book. Christian’s currently working on his second novel, due for publication by Affirm Press in 2019.

Reviews

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars:

What a fantastic Audible Original! “The Call” is highly relatable.

Picture this: You have money troubles. Severe money troubles, facing potential foreclosures. Even your grown children have financial issues. You live in a quiet little town, in a rural area. Then you receive a phone call. It’s a mysterious person who tells you that you will receive $100K if you allow this person to anonymously bury a body on your property. What would you do???

Narrator Sibylia Budd uses her voice to make this an impactful story. It’s almost 4 hours of suspenseful activity written by Christian White and Summer DeRoche. There are unexpected plot twists. It was very enjoyable.

I highly recommend this as a quick audio. I enjoy those audibles that keep me engaged and guessing!

[TheBookWarren · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 ⭐️— This Audible exclusive novella from the prolific Aussie thriller Writer, Christian White, is far better than I had anticipated. Having clicked “listen” purely to see what the narrator sounded like, I found myself being stunned it had almost come to a conclusion when I look at the run-time! At a bit under 4hrs, it has a steady pace without ever being full-bore. White writes with such simplistic, yet solid prose that it is genuinely hard not to listen to ‘one more chapter’ — Clever & obviously deliberate given the context of this Free Audible exclusive (free for May, anyways).

The characters have a realistic conundrum and face their quandary with excellent dialogue and a really human tonality. It is not over the top, and the story arc has a genuine authenticity to it that despite being a touch on the nose, and clearly obvious in its overall design, is engaging and entertaining if not compelling at every moment.

An Aussie couple living in remote Victoria, 90 minutes outside Melbourne (so Aussie-noir but not full-blown remote or dry style) and are facing financial hardship (aren’t we all?). In the midst of their daily lives, an unexpected phone call threatens to change their lives in a big way, but with consequences that could wind-up life changing — enter the quandary!!!

Definitely worth a listen for audible members, one of the best monthly picks I’ve had the pleasure of listening to. A thriller that’s more family drama at its heart, I enjoyed this one & am glad I was reminded of White’s skill set.

[Jayne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pub owners Jackie and Pete King can't pay their suppliers.

A foreclosure notice from the bank is imminent.

So when Jackie receives a mysterious phone call offering the couple $100,000 in exchange for permission to bury a body on their land, she agrees to this life-changing deal.

This Audible Plus novella was well-paced and entertaining with many twists.

Sibylla Budd did a superb job with the narration.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

This husband and wife writing duo is hard to beat at the dark, suspense novella game! At less than 5 hours, I listened to this in a single day.

What would you do?

After the bushfires, tourism is in decline and money is getting tighter by the week for small-town publicans, Pete and Jackie King. With a key supplier threatening to pull the plug, and even small things like helping their son make rent after suddenly losing his job proving too much of a stretch, this middle-aged couple are starting to worry about losing the house they have called home since early in their marriage. Then one evening Jackie takes a mysterious call on their home landline. Surely it's a prank? But not like the phone pranks they were used to as teenagers. The caller makes Jackie an offer - $100k in return for burying a body on their property. They will call again for an answer in 24 hours. If Pete and Jackie don't want to do it they should simply ignore the call, but if they want the money all they need do is pick up the phone...

All the action takes place in a short period of time, and the 2 main characters run through the gamut of emotions. There are a couple of devilish twists and then the very last line of the epilogue made me laugh out loud. Clever.

Free on Audible

[TL *Humaning the Best She Can* · Rating 3 out of 5]

Audible audio
----
Good story, gets you wondering how'd you'd react in the same situation... you'd say you'd do the right thing, but who knows till you are in the same or similar situation?

[Caity · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was promised twists and turns, and I didn't get them. The epilogue wasn't clear, and I'm left with questions, which is confusing for an epilogue. I'm giving it three stars because it was suspenseful and drew me in, even if I was disappointed by the ending.

[Kara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Paranoia will get you. Had me questioning the couple’s decision to accept the call several times, like why would you agree if you can’t just leave it alone!

[Stacy Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 ⭐️

This was a thriller with a concept I've not heard before. I found it exciting, adrenaline inducing, and unique.
Absolutely did not see the twist coming.
Loved this story!!!

HIGHLY RECOMMEND

[Natalie M · Rating 3 out of 5]

An Audible Original that poses an interesting moral dilemma.

The premise of the dilemma poses a number of questions I could relate to, but the characters reactions didn’t always seem realistic. A few holes in the plot come together in the end, but we’re annoying until that happened. The writing is good and the narration excellent.

Worth reading as a freebie.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my first time reading this author, though I’ve wanted to for sometime now. This is a clever story with intriguing characters and an outcome that didn’t totally surprise me, but left me satisfied. This was an enjoyable, quick listen from audible originals. I will definitely be looking for more books by this author.

[Chrissie · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable listen, with likeable main characters, and an interesting plot - what would YOU do? 😉

[Kylie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The tension in this story!

[The Cats’ Mother · Rating 4 out of 5]

This short audiobook was free from Audible, and tells the story of an Australian couple who face an ethical dilemma - will they let someone bury a body on their land for a life-changing sum of money?
I enjoyed both the narration and the story, especially the twist in the tail.

[Natalie all_books_great_and_small · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

The Call is a mystery thriller that makes you question what you would do in another person's shoes.
Jackie and her husband Pete run a local pub but are struggling to stay afloat. When they're cut off from their suppliers and they can't find a way around things, a mysterious call comes that offers them a solution, but at what cost. The couple are offered $100,000 in exchange for allowing the mysterious caller access to their land to bury a body.
As the couple begin to tell white lies that begin to spiral out of control and Jackie hears a news report about a missing lady - the pair begin to panic. The weight of what they agreed to and what they've possibly implicated themselves in weighs heavily on their shoulders, and people begin to notice their odd behaviour and lies.
I found this very simple but very compelling to listen to, and I didn't guess the ending at all. The narration was very easy to listen to and kept me hooked.

[Kerran Olson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a bad listen from Audible. I've been loving all I've read from this author this year, and the Audible Originals have for the most part been pretty solid, this one is no exception. Good pacing and a satisfying 'reveal'

[Kelsie · Rating 4 out of 5]

100,000 dollars to bury a body in your yard?

Ok but the Epilogue! It’s worth the read (or listen, like I did). It leaves you satisfied but also wondering if the story ever really ends!

[Jillian · Rating 2 out of 5]

So I wanted to give this more stars because I did listen to the whole thing and wanted to know the ending. But there was so many unimportant details and dialogue, and correct me if I’m wrong—a random person calls 30 years after a body has been buried, and offers money to bury a body--but is lying? Joking? This caller actually has nothing to do with the accident that has ACTUALLY put a body on the land? And then this SAME caller (or another similar caller?) calls ANOTHER 30 years later, to say the same thing? Errr. Is this a haunted phone? A generation of social experimenters? Someone who knows about the original body and is now 100 years old? Did I just not understand this plot at all?

[Nicola Neil · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wonder sometimes about the mental capacity of Audible users. So often these free monthly books have terrible reviews on other platforms like Goodreads, but on the Audible app it's 4.5 out of 5. Do negative reviews get deleted?

This is a mediocre thriller featuring a pair of annoying cnuts surrounded by one-dimensonal cliche people. I'm amazed that it took two people to write this. It's like a term one creative writing project. It didn't cost me anything in dollar value, but I feel like I should be compensated for my time.

[Hayley (hayleys.little.library) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I recently listened to ‘The Call’ on Audible after the synopsis completely drew me in! I am also a big Christian White fan. Overall I think it was okay, but definitely nowhere near as clever and thrilling as Christian’s books normally are.. I think a few aspects of the plot were really clever, some were a bit lacking, and others didn’t quite make sense to me.
It was still fun for a quick listen though!

[Melinda Nankivell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jackie and Pete own a pub in Dunmore and money is tight. Then one night a mysterious caller phones, offering them $100,000 to allow him to bury a body on their land.

This was quite an enjoyable short story from an author I’ve not read before, offered as a free book of the month on Audible. Worth a listen for something pretty light, even if it is meant to be a thriller

[Christina · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was so incredibly bad. The writing was terrible, the plot boring, the characters 2 dimensional. I kept thinking as I read this, show us, don’t tell us. The authors kept telling us irrelevant information about the characters rather than showing us what we needed to know. At least it’s short.

[Katie Rowe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow what a story. I love anything by Christian White he’s such a great author.

[Chloe Dean · Rating 2 out of 5]

Alright for a short lil book. I only listened to it because it was free and I wanted to pass some time. 1.5 stars

[January · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Call by Christian White and Summer DeRoche
3h 42m narrated by Sibylla Budd

Genre: Crimes Fiction, Suspense

Featuring: Pub Owners, Couple, Dunmore, Australia; Dilemma Trope

Rating as a movie: R for adult content

My rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️☎️

My thoughts: 📱9% 20:55 less than 5 minutes away from the end of Ch 1 - Meh. 📌

It started a bit slow, but once the call occurred, it picked up considerably.

Recommend to others: Yeah, it's free and not bad.

[Kira Simion · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love this couple <3. They’re sweet and silly but realistic in a mystery-will-(s)he-won’t-(s)he kind of way. Free if you’re an Audible member.

[Eliza · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was really good, I liked that it was a short story so the ending came fast. I also really enjoyed the ending.

[Jasmin · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars. Read this for book club. I quite enjoyed this read but would hardly call it high quality literary writing. I got into it in time and enjoyed hearing the unfolding. Occasionally I felt it was a little slow. At times I was having to pause because it was stressful in a good suspenseful way. I felt the epilogue fell flat, was confusing until I relistened to it, and seemed unlikely. I enjoyed the healthy relationships between Jaqcuii and Pete And Gus and his wife. The relationships explored in this country town were sweet, eg with the kids and Adam the bar kid. Pete’s miserable attempts at managing with the police were amusing and Jaqcuii’s commendable. Overall it was reasonably enjoyable. I wouldn’t say this was particularly high quality, but a decent enough read. I felt the narrator did a very fine job.

[Sarah Cupitt · Rating 1 out of 5]

Despite the potential for an intriguing storyline (because who wouldn't want 100 grand to bury a body in your backyard), the execution falls short, making it difficult to stay invested in the characters' journeys (or anything).

The book's plot lacks depth and fails to engage the reader from the very start. Transitioning from one scene to another feels abrupt, leaving the narrative disjointed and confusing.

Also, the characters were SO FUCKING ANNOYING AND STUPID I DIDNT WANT TO FINISH THIS AT ALL. I was promised twists and turns, and I didn't get them. No wonder why it was the free monthly book on Audible.

[Joan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I hate giving "bad" reviews but this is just down right stupid.
You get a call offering you 100K if you let someone bury a body on your land.
You accept and then you become a pair of stupid paranoid off the charts idiots who think everyone is after you.
The paranoia factor was just too much for me.
The first hour was great-interesting, engaging then two hours of them being paranoid.
Too over the top and why to easy to figure out

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.
Imagine you're buried in debt without any real solution and one day you get a call where the caller makes an absurdly unusual request. The request - 100k to bury a body on your land.

What would you do?

I really enjoyed The Call. It was a quick, attention grabbing, tense-filled mystery you'll want to complete in one listen.