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Dalziel & Pascoe #2
An Advancement of Learning
The “master of . . . cerebral puzzle mysteries” sends his Yorkshire detectives back to college to be taught a lesson in murder (The New York Times).
Reginald Hill “raised the classical British mystery to new heights” when he introduced pugnacious Yorkshire Det. Inspector Andrew Dalziel and his partner, the callow Sgt. Peter Pascoe (The New York Times Book Review). Their chafing differences in education, manners, technique, and temperament made them “the most remarkable duo in the annals of crime fiction” (Toronto Star). Adapted into a long-running hit show for the BBC, the Gold Dagger Award–winning series is now available as ebooks.
If Alison Girling, former principal of England’s Holm Coultram College, died in an avalanche in Austria, why has her skeleton been unearthed on campus? While no love is lost between conservative detective Andrew Dalziel and the entirety of Liberal Arts, his attention to the grim discovery must be paid. But when he and Peter Pascoe scour the ivory tower for answers, they discover that the shady faculty and creepy student body have more to bury than just one corpse. Try two—and counting. As Pascoe is sidelined by an old college flame, Dalziel’s suspicions of academia are becoming dire. Because the deeper he digs for secrets, the dirtier they get in this “steadily, edgily amusing . . . dark comedy” (Kirkus Reviews).
An Advancement of Learning is the 3rd book in the Dalziel and Pascoe Mysteries, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order.
Reginald Hill “raised the classical British mystery to new heights” when he introduced pugnacious Yorkshire Det. Inspector Andrew Dalziel and his partner, the callow Sgt. Peter Pascoe (The New York Times Book Review). Their chafing differences in education, manners, technique, and temperament made them “the most remarkable duo in the annals of crime fiction” (Toronto Star). Adapted into a long-running hit show for the BBC, the Gold Dagger Award–winning series is now available as ebooks.
If Alison Girling, former principal of England’s Holm Coultram College, died in an avalanche in Austria, why has her skeleton been unearthed on campus? While no love is lost between conservative detective Andrew Dalziel and the entirety of Liberal Arts, his attention to the grim discovery must be paid. But when he and Peter Pascoe scour the ivory tower for answers, they discover that the shady faculty and creepy student body have more to bury than just one corpse. Try two—and counting. As Pascoe is sidelined by an old college flame, Dalziel’s suspicions of academia are becoming dire. Because the deeper he digs for secrets, the dirtier they get in this “steadily, edgily amusing . . . dark comedy” (Kirkus Reviews).
An Advancement of Learning is the 3rd book in the Dalziel and Pascoe Mysteries, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order.
251 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1971
433 people are currently reading
682 people want to read
About the author
Reginald Hill
156 books501 followersReginald Charles Hill was a contemporary English crime writer, and the winner in 1995 of the Crime Writers' Association Cartier Diamond Dagger for Lifetime Achievement.
After National Service (1955-57) and studying English at St Catherine's College, Oxford University (1957-60) he worked as a teacher for many years, rising to Senior Lecturer at Doncaster College of Education. In 1980 he retired from salaried work in order to devote himself full-time to writing.
Hill is best known for his more than 20 novels featuring the Yorkshire detectives Andrew Dalziel, Peter Pascoe and Edgar Wield. He has also written more than 30 other novels, including five featuring Joe Sixsmith, a black machine operator turned private detective in a fictional Luton. Novels originally published under the pseudonyms of Patrick Ruell, Dick Morland, and Charles Underhill have now appeared under his own name. Hill is also a writer of short stories, and ghost tales.
After National Service (1955-57) and studying English at St Catherine's College, Oxford University (1957-60) he worked as a teacher for many years, rising to Senior Lecturer at Doncaster College of Education. In 1980 he retired from salaried work in order to devote himself full-time to writing.
Hill is best known for his more than 20 novels featuring the Yorkshire detectives Andrew Dalziel, Peter Pascoe and Edgar Wield. He has also written more than 30 other novels, including five featuring Joe Sixsmith, a black machine operator turned private detective in a fictional Luton. Novels originally published under the pseudonyms of Patrick Ruell, Dick Morland, and Charles Underhill have now appeared under his own name. Hill is also a writer of short stories, and ghost tales.
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August 11, 2022
An Advancement of Writing
Review of the Grafton Books paperback (1987) of the Collins Crime Club hardcover original (1971)
Of course with Andy Dalziel at the head of an investigation you are pretty much guaranteed a group of upset suspects and interviewees. Plunking the cantankerous inspector into the world of academia is a guaranteed 'cat among the pigeons' scenario. Dalziel's patter also provided for various entertaining LOL moments such as the one excerpted above, likely a display of pretended ignorance. Pascoe meanwhile renews an earlier romance with young professor/aspiring novelist Ellie Soper, who becomes his wife a few books later in the series.
The case involves the accidental unearthing of a skeleton from underneath a memorial monument to a school's previous Dean. The cold case turns hot when a new victim is discovered and then an apparent suicide is either the conclusion to the crime spree or a clue to its final solution.
Cover image of the original Collins Crime Club edition 1971. Image sourced from Wikipedia.
I re-read An Advancement of Learning due to a recent discovery of my old mystery paperbacks from the 1980s in a storage locker cleanout. I was especially curious about the precedents for Mick Herron's Jackson Lamb in the Slough House espionage series in the personality of Reginald Hill's Chief Inspector Andy Dalziel, which Herron has acknowledged.
Book haul of the early Dalziel and Pascoe paperbacks, mostly from Grafton Books in the 1980s. Image sourced from Twitter.
Trivia and No Link
An Advancement of Learning was adapted for the long running TV series of Dalziel and Pascoe (1996-2007) as Episode 2 of Series 1. I could not find an online trailer or posting of the episode.
Review of the Grafton Books paperback (1987) of the Collins Crime Club hardcover original (1971)
It was illogical, but somehow the thought made Pascoe feel guilty.This second in the Dalziel (pronounced Dee-El) and Pascoe series was a distinct improvement over the series opener A Clubbable Woman (1970). The earlier book was overly repellent with its misogynistic rugby club culture and an especially creepy older man / younger girl lechery scene. The detective duo also didn't do any sort of brilliant detecting but just wandered around mostly upsetting the suspect characters with a final confession provided without any dramatic confrontation.
'Perhaps he did do the damage in his cottage himself,' he suggested again. 'Like Prospero, burning his books.'
'What did we do him for?' asked Dalziel, interested.
- excerpt from An Advancement of Learning
Of course with Andy Dalziel at the head of an investigation you are pretty much guaranteed a group of upset suspects and interviewees. Plunking the cantankerous inspector into the world of academia is a guaranteed 'cat among the pigeons' scenario. Dalziel's patter also provided for various entertaining LOL moments such as the one excerpted above, likely a display of pretended ignorance. Pascoe meanwhile renews an earlier romance with young professor/aspiring novelist Ellie Soper, who becomes his wife a few books later in the series.
The case involves the accidental unearthing of a skeleton from underneath a memorial monument to a school's previous Dean. The cold case turns hot when a new victim is discovered and then an apparent suicide is either the conclusion to the crime spree or a clue to its final solution.
Cover image of the original Collins Crime Club edition 1971. Image sourced from Wikipedia.
I re-read An Advancement of Learning due to a recent discovery of my old mystery paperbacks from the 1980s in a storage locker cleanout. I was especially curious about the precedents for Mick Herron's Jackson Lamb in the Slough House espionage series in the personality of Reginald Hill's Chief Inspector Andy Dalziel, which Herron has acknowledged.
Book haul of the early Dalziel and Pascoe paperbacks, mostly from Grafton Books in the 1980s. Image sourced from Twitter.
Trivia and No Link
An Advancement of Learning was adapted for the long running TV series of Dalziel and Pascoe (1996-2007) as Episode 2 of Series 1. I could not find an online trailer or posting of the episode.
August 30, 2018
I enjoy these two detectives who, in many ways, could not be more different from one another. The contrast between their backgrounds, ages and styles make for interesting, and sometimes amusing, dynamics. In addition, the writing is good and the plotting is superb. So happy to have found this series.
March 24, 2016
Politics and orgies – the academic life...
The staff and students of Holm Coultram College gather together to watch a statue of a giant bronze nude be lifted from its present site on the college lawn to make way for a new building. Feelings are running high in some quarters, since the statue is a singularly inappropriate memorial to the late lamented head of the college, Alison Girling, killed some years ago in a freak avalanche while on holiday in Austria. But things are about to take a dark turn. As the plinth is raised into the air and the earth falls away from beneath it, bones appear, first a shin-bone, then some ribs, and finally a skull complete with a shock of vivid red hair still attached...
This is the second outing for Andy Dalziel and Pete Pascoe, published in 1971. While there's still some way to go before either of the characters become the fully rounded ones of the middle and late series, both have developed quite a bit from their first appearance in A Clubbable Woman. This time it's Dalziel who's out of his comfort zone, relying on Pascoe for insights into how the world of academia operates. Both characters are shown as more intelligent perhaps than in the first book, certainly more shrewd. Dalziel is showing his trademark technique of riding roughshod over anyone who makes the incorrect assumption that just because he's a blunt Yorkshireman (though Scottish by birth, let's not forget) then he must be thick. Pascoe is considerably more thoughtful in this one, less rough around the edges, beginning to show that softer more intellectual side which develops as the series progresses. Yes, it's still the early '70s, so there is still a little too much emphasis on women being judged primarily by the size of their breasts, but on the whole I felt the females were considerably more nuanced in this one – not all voracious man-hunters, or at least, not solely!
The blurb of my copy of the book, an early printing, suggests that Pascoe is the focus of the series, which I found interesting since I would always say that Dalziel is the dominant character, though it's always a duo rather than a one-man-band. It's true that most of the books are mainly written from Pascoe's viewpoint, but Dalziel is such a huge character that he's always right there casting his shadow over whatever Pete might be looking at. In these early books, Dalziel and Pascoe are the only two central characters – the expanded team of the later books, with Sergeant Wield, PC Novella et al, haven't yet been introduced. But in this one, we meet two characters who will reappear: Ellie Soper and Franny Roote. Ellie is an old girlfriend of Pete's and it looks like the embers of their relationship might still be glowing. Ellie is already strong and feisty, but in terms of development, she has even further to travel than either Dalziel or Pascoe before becoming the excellent lead female character of later books.
Franny is one of Hill's more intriguing characters, whom he will return to occasionally throughout the series. The head of the Student Union in this book, Franny is already showing the moral ambiguity that will become more pronounced each time he appears. Knowing more about him from the later books added a lot of interest to my re-read of this one – it becomes clear that Hill too found him intriguing in the writing of him, and felt that there was plenty more to explore. In fact, though all the characters continue to develop and change, Franny is perhaps the one who remains most consistent over the years. His story develops as time goes by, but the fundamental ambivalence surrounding his character is here already in this first appearance.
The plotting is complex and interesting, involving everything from departmental and student politics to orgies on the beach, though the final resoultion veers dangerously close to the old credibility line. But as always it's the writing and characterisation that lifts this series so far above the average. Both Dalziel and Pascoe are great characters individually and the contrasts between them allow for some great humour, particularly in their dialogue. Hill is a master of allowing his characters to reveal themselves to the reader as they gradually learn to respect each other more.
A fine second book that's left me even keener to get on with re-reading the rest. 4½ stars for me, so rounded up.
www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com
The staff and students of Holm Coultram College gather together to watch a statue of a giant bronze nude be lifted from its present site on the college lawn to make way for a new building. Feelings are running high in some quarters, since the statue is a singularly inappropriate memorial to the late lamented head of the college, Alison Girling, killed some years ago in a freak avalanche while on holiday in Austria. But things are about to take a dark turn. As the plinth is raised into the air and the earth falls away from beneath it, bones appear, first a shin-bone, then some ribs, and finally a skull complete with a shock of vivid red hair still attached...
This is the second outing for Andy Dalziel and Pete Pascoe, published in 1971. While there's still some way to go before either of the characters become the fully rounded ones of the middle and late series, both have developed quite a bit from their first appearance in A Clubbable Woman. This time it's Dalziel who's out of his comfort zone, relying on Pascoe for insights into how the world of academia operates. Both characters are shown as more intelligent perhaps than in the first book, certainly more shrewd. Dalziel is showing his trademark technique of riding roughshod over anyone who makes the incorrect assumption that just because he's a blunt Yorkshireman (though Scottish by birth, let's not forget) then he must be thick. Pascoe is considerably more thoughtful in this one, less rough around the edges, beginning to show that softer more intellectual side which develops as the series progresses. Yes, it's still the early '70s, so there is still a little too much emphasis on women being judged primarily by the size of their breasts, but on the whole I felt the females were considerably more nuanced in this one – not all voracious man-hunters, or at least, not solely!
The blurb of my copy of the book, an early printing, suggests that Pascoe is the focus of the series, which I found interesting since I would always say that Dalziel is the dominant character, though it's always a duo rather than a one-man-band. It's true that most of the books are mainly written from Pascoe's viewpoint, but Dalziel is such a huge character that he's always right there casting his shadow over whatever Pete might be looking at. In these early books, Dalziel and Pascoe are the only two central characters – the expanded team of the later books, with Sergeant Wield, PC Novella et al, haven't yet been introduced. But in this one, we meet two characters who will reappear: Ellie Soper and Franny Roote. Ellie is an old girlfriend of Pete's and it looks like the embers of their relationship might still be glowing. Ellie is already strong and feisty, but in terms of development, she has even further to travel than either Dalziel or Pascoe before becoming the excellent lead female character of later books.
Franny is one of Hill's more intriguing characters, whom he will return to occasionally throughout the series. The head of the Student Union in this book, Franny is already showing the moral ambiguity that will become more pronounced each time he appears. Knowing more about him from the later books added a lot of interest to my re-read of this one – it becomes clear that Hill too found him intriguing in the writing of him, and felt that there was plenty more to explore. In fact, though all the characters continue to develop and change, Franny is perhaps the one who remains most consistent over the years. His story develops as time goes by, but the fundamental ambivalence surrounding his character is here already in this first appearance.
The plotting is complex and interesting, involving everything from departmental and student politics to orgies on the beach, though the final resoultion veers dangerously close to the old credibility line. But as always it's the writing and characterisation that lifts this series so far above the average. Both Dalziel and Pascoe are great characters individually and the contrasts between them allow for some great humour, particularly in their dialogue. Hill is a master of allowing his characters to reveal themselves to the reader as they gradually learn to respect each other more.
“You've got specialized knowledge. Or think you have. Without being in a specialized job. You've got this... whatever it is...”
“Degree, sir,” said Pascoe helpfully.
“I know it's a bloody degree. But in something, isn't it?”
“Social sciences.”
“That's it. Exactly. Which equips you to work well in...”
“Society, sir?”
“Instead of which you have to work in...”
“Society, sir?”
There was a long pause during which Dalziel looked at the sergeant more in sorrow than in anger.
“That's what I mean,” he said finally. “You're too bloody clever by half.”
A fine second book that's left me even keener to get on with re-reading the rest. 4½ stars for me, so rounded up.
www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com
April 9, 2009
First Sentence: There had been a great deal of snow that December, followed by a hard frost.
Coultram College is expanding. To do so, the bronze statue of the former principal, Alison Girling, must be moved. Ms. Girling was killed five years ago on a winter trip in Austria. So why is her skeleton found beneath the memorial? Dalziel and Pascoe are office to college to find a killer.
Hill is such a delight to read. In this, the second book of the series, his characteristic humor begins to make itself known.
I love when Dalziel compares schools to inbred communities and the names of his characters—i.e., Girling, Halfdane, Fallowfield, Cockshut, and Disney, known as “Walt” of course—are delightful. The book is very much character driven. The contrast between Dalziel and Pascoe is wonderful. It’s not a case of one being smarter or dumber. The two men are very different, yet each beings a viewpoint and methodology to solving the case.
The plot is rather weak; I identified one killer fairly early. I am also not a fan of the protagonist laying out the facts behind the case at the end of the story. And I hate the use of portents (authors who use them will always lose points from me).
Still, Hill writes a delightful, intelligent book and I shall read on through the series.
AN ADVENCEMENT OF LEARNING (Pol Proc-Dalziel & Pascoe-England-Cont) – G+
Hill, Reginald – 2nd in series
Felony & Mayhem, 2008, US Trade Paperback- ISBN: 9781934609088
Coultram College is expanding. To do so, the bronze statue of the former principal, Alison Girling, must be moved. Ms. Girling was killed five years ago on a winter trip in Austria. So why is her skeleton found beneath the memorial? Dalziel and Pascoe are office to college to find a killer.
Hill is such a delight to read. In this, the second book of the series, his characteristic humor begins to make itself known.
I love when Dalziel compares schools to inbred communities and the names of his characters—i.e., Girling, Halfdane, Fallowfield, Cockshut, and Disney, known as “Walt” of course—are delightful. The book is very much character driven. The contrast between Dalziel and Pascoe is wonderful. It’s not a case of one being smarter or dumber. The two men are very different, yet each beings a viewpoint and methodology to solving the case.
The plot is rather weak; I identified one killer fairly early. I am also not a fan of the protagonist laying out the facts behind the case at the end of the story. And I hate the use of portents (authors who use them will always lose points from me).
Still, Hill writes a delightful, intelligent book and I shall read on through the series.
AN ADVENCEMENT OF LEARNING (Pol Proc-Dalziel & Pascoe-England-Cont) – G+
Hill, Reginald – 2nd in series
Felony & Mayhem, 2008, US Trade Paperback- ISBN: 9781934609088
May 7, 2018
Although this was published in 1971, it is not too dated - a very readable police procedural investigating a body discovered at a small college. The characters of Dalziel and Pascoe become increasingly well established in the second book of the series.
November 25, 2011
It's been some time since I've read a Dalziel & Pascoe mystery and those have been later in the series. This is the second book and it was a good read. The best thing about it is the interaction between Dalziel and Pascoe - a great pair of characters. I enjoyed the epigraphs from Francis Bacon's The Advancement of Learning.
This book was first published in 1971 and is set at a private college. I couldn't help but be struck by how times have changed. Things considered scandalous then might hardly raise an eyebrow now. The student activism on this campus seemed particularly aimless and ineffective, and nights of midsummer sexual romps with vague pagan associations always strike me as somewhat unbelievable. However, I think there may be more interest in pagan rituals in England for historical reasons than here on the Canadian prairies. In any case, it was a good mystery, kept my interest throughout, and reminded me that I should read more of this series.
This book was first published in 1971 and is set at a private college. I couldn't help but be struck by how times have changed. Things considered scandalous then might hardly raise an eyebrow now. The student activism on this campus seemed particularly aimless and ineffective, and nights of midsummer sexual romps with vague pagan associations always strike me as somewhat unbelievable. However, I think there may be more interest in pagan rituals in England for historical reasons than here on the Canadian prairies. In any case, it was a good mystery, kept my interest throughout, and reminded me that I should read more of this series.
June 8, 2025
It's a lot of fun to reread this book years after reading the entire run of Dalziel and Pascoe mysteries. It is here, rather than in the first book in the series (A Clubbable Woman) that we start to understand the gulf between Pascoe and Dalziel, the former a college-educated young man and the latter an old, fat, high-school educated and extremely canny police superintendent. This is also the first book in which we meet Ellie, Pascoe's college girlfriend and now a 31-year-old college instructor herself. Her relationship with Pascoe is a real highlight of this series going forward.
This particular mystery is nicely complex and difficult to guess. There are lots of clues and plenty of red herrings, and even with lots of experience reading mysteries I only got the answer half-right. (I had remembered nothing about the book after first reading it some 30-40 years ago.) The picture of progressive, even dissolute college life (the book was originally published in 1971) sets the stage for a fundamental Dalziel/Pascoe uneasiness as their partnership goes on. The characters are drawn very well, even those who have only a short time on the stage. The writing is sharp and clear and occasionally quite beautiful.
I'm very glad I decided to reread this series; it's even better than I remember.
This particular mystery is nicely complex and difficult to guess. There are lots of clues and plenty of red herrings, and even with lots of experience reading mysteries I only got the answer half-right. (I had remembered nothing about the book after first reading it some 30-40 years ago.) The picture of progressive, even dissolute college life (the book was originally published in 1971) sets the stage for a fundamental Dalziel/Pascoe uneasiness as their partnership goes on. The characters are drawn very well, even those who have only a short time on the stage. The writing is sharp and clear and occasionally quite beautiful.
I'm very glad I decided to reread this series; it's even better than I remember.
August 13, 2020
"There's nothing that human beings haven't managed to do to one another, however vile. And no motive, however slight, which has not brought someone to murder." - Pascoe
While I wasn't crazy about this first Dalziel and Pascoe mystery that I've read, I loved the series foundation that has been laid and will definitely continue with future stories. An Advancement of Learning has a beautiful setting - a small college on England's coast. As the statue of the college's former principal is being moved, bones are discovered underneath, leading to the investigation of a five-year old murder. The story is character driven, with a subtle humor injected throughout.
Strengths: Dalziel and Pascoe, for one. Complete opposites in background, education, character and style, their abilities complement each other. The world of academia can be a little quirky, and that's the case here. It's fun to watch as the interaction between students, staff and detectives unfolds. The mystery plot is tightly woven and I enjoyed following along in the investigation.
Negatives: There were so many characters that I had difficulty keeping up with them. They weren't fleshed out enough for me to get to know them. And while there were no explicit scenes, there's a lot of suggestive references. There's also some profanity that you would expect to find in mainstream fiction.
Still a good story overall. I anticipate getting to know Dalziel and Pascoe as the series progresses.
While I wasn't crazy about this first Dalziel and Pascoe mystery that I've read, I loved the series foundation that has been laid and will definitely continue with future stories. An Advancement of Learning has a beautiful setting - a small college on England's coast. As the statue of the college's former principal is being moved, bones are discovered underneath, leading to the investigation of a five-year old murder. The story is character driven, with a subtle humor injected throughout.
Strengths: Dalziel and Pascoe, for one. Complete opposites in background, education, character and style, their abilities complement each other. The world of academia can be a little quirky, and that's the case here. It's fun to watch as the interaction between students, staff and detectives unfolds. The mystery plot is tightly woven and I enjoyed following along in the investigation.
Negatives: There were so many characters that I had difficulty keeping up with them. They weren't fleshed out enough for me to get to know them. And while there were no explicit scenes, there's a lot of suggestive references. There's also some profanity that you would expect to find in mainstream fiction.
Still a good story overall. I anticipate getting to know Dalziel and Pascoe as the series progresses.
May 7, 2023
I found this one a bit hard work. I’ve never read anything by this author before and just wasn’t really feeling interested in it, even though I battled on. I think it’s because it was was first published in the 70’s and I found the style of writing a bit alien to me and slightly sexist! If you like this author then you’d probably disagree with me. Just not for me.
December 19, 2019
I've now read two of these mysteries. The mysteries are very good. Twisting and turning, some things you see coming, some you don't. No gun battles or craziness, just good, keep-your-interest reading.
However, I doubt I'll read another by this particular author and the reason is some of his comments about women just made me cringe. Not just in this book but in both. They're just sexist, misogynistic, chauvinistic, just plain nasty.
If you say "what did you expect, given the title of the first book?" I would say I couldn't and didn't believe it was meant as physically clubbing a woman. But, yep, there it was, that phrase used in unmistakable context. So why did I read the second. Well, like I said, the actual story was enjoyable and all I can say is hope springs eternal and I hoped for better from the author in the second. But no, more of the same ugly talk sprinkled here and there like little droplets of sewage.
So I'm out.
However, I doubt I'll read another by this particular author and the reason is some of his comments about women just made me cringe. Not just in this book but in both. They're just sexist, misogynistic, chauvinistic, just plain nasty.
If you say "what did you expect, given the title of the first book?" I would say I couldn't and didn't believe it was meant as physically clubbing a woman. But, yep, there it was, that phrase used in unmistakable context. So why did I read the second. Well, like I said, the actual story was enjoyable and all I can say is hope springs eternal and I hoped for better from the author in the second. But no, more of the same ugly talk sprinkled here and there like little droplets of sewage.
So I'm out.
April 30, 2016
Thank goodness I'm rather fond of Dalziel and Pascoe, especially Pascoe, and the story was not bad either. I did however find it hard to keep track of all those people, it felt like 100 names in the first 10 pages alone. (I expect it's time I took a holiday.)
On the positive side, I really liked the early 70s setting, and since the book was published in 1971, it is quite authentic. All those oh so progressive ideas and ideals seem incredibly naïve. And no, I'm not a cynic!
BTW, this sort of pairing of detectives seems quite popular in English TV crime series, the bit-of-rough experienced detective and his younger more intellectual (and good-looking) sidekick: Lewis and Hathaway, Thursday and Endeavour (Morse), or my latest discovery, Geordie Keating and the (gorgeous!) vicar Sidney Chambers. Not that I'm complaining ... ;)
On the positive side, I really liked the early 70s setting, and since the book was published in 1971, it is quite authentic. All those oh so progressive ideas and ideals seem incredibly naïve. And no, I'm not a cynic!
BTW, this sort of pairing of detectives seems quite popular in English TV crime series, the bit-of-rough experienced detective and his younger more intellectual (and good-looking) sidekick: Lewis and Hathaway, Thursday and Endeavour (Morse), or my latest discovery, Geordie Keating and the (gorgeous!) vicar Sidney Chambers. Not that I'm complaining ... ;)
April 30, 2016
PROTAGONISTS: Supt. Andy Dalziel and DS Peter Pascoe
SETTING: UK
SERIES: #2 of 25
RATING: 3.25
WHY: Superintendent Andy Dalziel and DS Peter Pascoe are investigating a murder at a university. Alison Girling was the former president who was supposedly killed in an avalanche in Austria. When a memorial statue of Girling is moved, her body is found underneath. The interaction between Dalziel and Pascoe is well drawn, but the basic plot is weak. The conclusion is a long drawn-out explication which I found tedious.
SETTING: UK
SERIES: #2 of 25
RATING: 3.25
WHY: Superintendent Andy Dalziel and DS Peter Pascoe are investigating a murder at a university. Alison Girling was the former president who was supposedly killed in an avalanche in Austria. When a memorial statue of Girling is moved, her body is found underneath. The interaction between Dalziel and Pascoe is well drawn, but the basic plot is weak. The conclusion is a long drawn-out explication which I found tedious.
November 20, 2021
This British policing story contrasts two detectives, the senior of whom has a massive inferiority complex and so has to keep deriding his junior.
I have read two others in the series, much later books. This is the second instalment. By the time I had got a quarter way, I checked when it had been written, for the antediluvian attitudes. 1971. I thought, well, it's awhile ago, but still... then I realised that this was in fact 50 years ago. When a detachment of police constables arrives I was astonished that they were all men. My husband remarked that this was real 'Life On Mars' times.
Nothing excuses the presentation of women as having little or no agency, even a college professor being told she must not moulder away as a singleton; a police detective jumping into bed with a witness; every arrival of a pair of breasts in a room being remarked on with note to their shape and voluptuousness.
If one character is presented as coarse and leering, the sidekick does not have to approve and can demonstrate a better attitude. If one character is an appallingly bad leader of people, another character, even one met briefly, should be a contrasting good leader. Not just an exploiter of young impressionable women or a tolerant background figure. I have to think the material presented is the way the author thought.
We also get an improbably large number of deaths, and many mentions of drugs with no police action to find same. While having gained even a basic degree seems enough to generate constant resentment from a workmate who should have his mind on his work. Police work is mostly unseen apart from un-taped and un-noted interviews. Even in those days, police had to write up notes.
I will stick to modern procedurals, but some readers may get more out of the tale than I did. This is an unbiased review.
I have read two others in the series, much later books. This is the second instalment. By the time I had got a quarter way, I checked when it had been written, for the antediluvian attitudes. 1971. I thought, well, it's awhile ago, but still... then I realised that this was in fact 50 years ago. When a detachment of police constables arrives I was astonished that they were all men. My husband remarked that this was real 'Life On Mars' times.
Nothing excuses the presentation of women as having little or no agency, even a college professor being told she must not moulder away as a singleton; a police detective jumping into bed with a witness; every arrival of a pair of breasts in a room being remarked on with note to their shape and voluptuousness.
If one character is presented as coarse and leering, the sidekick does not have to approve and can demonstrate a better attitude. If one character is an appallingly bad leader of people, another character, even one met briefly, should be a contrasting good leader. Not just an exploiter of young impressionable women or a tolerant background figure. I have to think the material presented is the way the author thought.
We also get an improbably large number of deaths, and many mentions of drugs with no police action to find same. While having gained even a basic degree seems enough to generate constant resentment from a workmate who should have his mind on his work. Police work is mostly unseen apart from un-taped and un-noted interviews. Even in those days, police had to write up notes.
I will stick to modern procedurals, but some readers may get more out of the tale than I did. This is an unbiased review.
August 17, 2020
Morderstwo w prywatnym college'u, snobistyczne towarzystwo elitarnej brytyjskiej młodzieży, bachanalia i pogańskie rytuały. Nie mogłam nie pokusić się o sięgnięcie po kryminał z takimi elementami. Tym bardziej, że autor już mi znany, a moje pierwsze spotkanie z serią o detektywach Dalzielu i Pascoe wspominam naprawdę nieźle. I tym razem się nie zawiodłam - zarówno “An Advancement of Learning” jak i czytane wcześniej przeze mnie “A Killing Kindness” to bardzo przyjemne brytyjskie kryminały. Hill pisze kryminały klasyczne - zdecydowanie bliżej mu do Agathy Christie i P.D. James niż do nie stroniących od brutalnych i makabrycznych opisów Mo Hayder czy Chrisa Cartera i wybitnie angielskie - ze Scotland Yardem, pagórkowatymi okolicami i urokliwymi wiejskimi krajobrazami oraz tak charakterystycznym dla brytyjskiego społeczeństwa uwidaczniającym się na każdym kroku podziałem klasowym. Bardzo podoba mi się u Hilla wplatanie w fabułę folkloru i elementów nadnaturalnych. I co najważniejsze - autor nie obraża inteligencji czytelnika i wykreowana przez niego historia - poza tym, że ciekawa i wciągająca to i pozbawiona dziur logicznych. A i bohaterowie są jak najbardziej realistyczni i zachowują się wiarygodnie. Ciekawym i trafnym zabiegiem było wybranie na głównych bohaterów dwóch diametralnie od siebie różnych detektywów. Z powodu ich kontrastujących ze sobą charakterów i osobowości niejedna wymiana zdań doprowadza do ciętych i pełnych ironii ripost.
Mnie - wielką miłośniczkę sprawnie napisanych klimatycznych brytyjskich kryminałów - Hill tymi dwiema książkami w pełni kupił i seria o Dalzielu i Pascoe zostaje ze mną na dłużej! A i po inne - osobne - powieści autora z chęcią sięgnę.
Mnie - wielką miłośniczkę sprawnie napisanych klimatycznych brytyjskich kryminałów - Hill tymi dwiema książkami w pełni kupił i seria o Dalzielu i Pascoe zostaje ze mną na dłużej! A i po inne - osobne - powieści autora z chęcią sięgnę.
January 4, 2019
I read this when I move into a new house - the last four times now. Not sure why but it’s become a rite of passage.
Good book, nice pacing, prefer the novels D&P to the TV ones.
Good book, nice pacing, prefer the novels D&P to the TV ones.
December 2, 2023
A binge-able series. Looking forward to reading book 3
July 18, 2014
This is the second in the Dalziel/Pascoe series and Hill hasn't quite hit his stride yet. The personalities of Fat Andy and Pascoe have not been fully developed at this early stage. Their interaction is not as witty or acerbic as it becomes as the series matures.
In this story, the remains of a body are found under a huge statue that is being removed to make way for new buildings at a local college. Since the statue has been in place for five years, the police have their work cut out for them. Once the body is identified, the faculty are in a state of shock and all become suspects. Just to add to the troubles, there is one other murder...... a young female student who had been suspended for having an affair with a professor. He seems to be the major suspect at least for the murder of the girl but are the two murders really connected? Fat Andy thinks they are but doesn't know why. Before the case comes to a close, we have one more body with which to deal and it all is neatly pulled together.
This is certainly not my favorite book of the series for the reasons stated in the first paragraph but I enjoy Hill's writing/plotting and have read at least seven Dalziel/Pascoe tales. They just keep getting better.
In this story, the remains of a body are found under a huge statue that is being removed to make way for new buildings at a local college. Since the statue has been in place for five years, the police have their work cut out for them. Once the body is identified, the faculty are in a state of shock and all become suspects. Just to add to the troubles, there is one other murder...... a young female student who had been suspended for having an affair with a professor. He seems to be the major suspect at least for the murder of the girl but are the two murders really connected? Fat Andy thinks they are but doesn't know why. Before the case comes to a close, we have one more body with which to deal and it all is neatly pulled together.
This is certainly not my favorite book of the series for the reasons stated in the first paragraph but I enjoy Hill's writing/plotting and have read at least seven Dalziel/Pascoe tales. They just keep getting better.
December 3, 2009
Dalziel and Pascoe enter the world of academia. Hilarity ensues. Student government was never so exciting when I was in college. (Actually, we didn't have a student government when I was in college - at least one professor scolded us for being so unengaged in our education that we actually allowed the administration to run the university unimpeded. But I digress.)
This book is packed with colorful characters, and good solid detection. The assumption that even the students and faculty at a small teacher's college in Yorkshire will be terribly bohemian and anti-establishment does give the book a very 70s period feel, but it comes by it honestly - it was written in the 70s.
This book is packed with colorful characters, and good solid detection. The assumption that even the students and faculty at a small teacher's college in Yorkshire will be terribly bohemian and anti-establishment does give the book a very 70s period feel, but it comes by it honestly - it was written in the 70s.
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December 7, 2010this is the second dalziel and pascoe book. one thing i'm enjoying about this series (having read a whole three of them now ;-) ) is that each seems to have it's own setting. it's quite an old fashioned device to make a book so closed from the outside world but hill manages to write modern books within the constraints. the first in the series was 'the rugby club book' and this one was 'the college book'. this book hooks you in with the intriguing conundrum of 'how did her bones come to be buried beneath her memorial?' and the story flows well but the ending is a bit of a disappointment, as it was with the first book.
(this is book 2 in the dalziel and pascoe series)
July 8, 2011
In this book our author introduces Franny Roote who will appear in other novels in various capacities of deviousness and mischief.
The Super is called to the college to investigate the appearance of a body long dead. The atmosphere of learning is all that Fat Andy denounces and derides. Pascoe will do little to abuse Andy's feelings in that area and cannot seem to say ahead of the Super no matter what degree he holds. He does re-connect with Eleanor Soper and she will be in most, if not all, of the remaining Dalziel/Pascoe mysteries.
The Super is called to the college to investigate the appearance of a body long dead. The atmosphere of learning is all that Fat Andy denounces and derides. Pascoe will do little to abuse Andy's feelings in that area and cannot seem to say ahead of the Super no matter what degree he holds. He does re-connect with Eleanor Soper and she will be in most, if not all, of the remaining Dalziel/Pascoe mysteries.
February 17, 2025
A college campus murder mystery with instant intrigue, a sag-free middle, and home run ending. Book One of this series was good, Book Two is great.
An Advancement of Learning, published in the early-seventies, set in the early-seventies, feels as fresh as if it came out today. I just discovered the Dalziel and Pascoe series and will devour them all. Hill balances plot, characterization, and pacing with perfection. Not overly gruesome so this novel is a strong recommendation for mystery fans of all palates and predictions.
An Advancement of Learning, published in the early-seventies, set in the early-seventies, feels as fresh as if it came out today. I just discovered the Dalziel and Pascoe series and will devour them all. Hill balances plot, characterization, and pacing with perfection. Not overly gruesome so this novel is a strong recommendation for mystery fans of all palates and predictions.
August 29, 2020
I’m a stiff grader.
I only have a few writers I will give a five stars rating to. And a half dozen more I’ll give four. I like this series though I often don’t understand what the author is talking about. It’s not the Britishness. That I can handle it’s the slang language. This and the silliness of constantly trying to prove how gross Dalziel is by mentioning him scratching himself. It really doesn’t add anything to the story or the characterization.
I only have a few writers I will give a five stars rating to. And a half dozen more I’ll give four. I like this series though I often don’t understand what the author is talking about. It’s not the Britishness. That I can handle it’s the slang language. This and the silliness of constantly trying to prove how gross Dalziel is by mentioning him scratching himself. It really doesn’t add anything to the story or the characterization.
July 28, 2021
An early book from the Dalziel and Pascoe series and not one of the best.
Much of the attitudes and commentary are reflective of the time, although having read some of his later work, I'm unconvinced that this changed much with time.
Having read some of the later books, I knew the identity of a key perpetrator, although I felt that the author disguised this pretty well.
An easy enough book to read, but somewhat unsatisfying.
Much of the attitudes and commentary are reflective of the time, although having read some of his later work, I'm unconvinced that this changed much with time.
Having read some of the later books, I knew the identity of a key perpetrator, although I felt that the author disguised this pretty well.
An easy enough book to read, but somewhat unsatisfying.
June 22, 2016
An interesting story! It is a murder mystery set in Yorkshire, England on a college campus with many interesting characters. The ending was both unexpected and satisfying. I will definitely continue reading the Dalziel and Pascoe mystery series as I am enjoying it very much!
January 9, 2020
Ah, the peace and unity that abounds on our college campuses, especially among the faculty and staff. Even the word collegiate reflects such things. But how realistic is that? Welcome to the campus of Holm Coultram college. As the book opens, one hapless professor is accused of playing doctor with one of his students, and naturally the young woman is the one largely getting punished for it. Oh, the good professor can’t teach for a while, but he doesn’t lose his job or salary. There is, among the faculty and staff, some resentment about that.
Concurrently, the college has determined that a statue of its founder, Alison Girling, must come down. But in the process of removing it, workers find human remains, and a couple of Yorkshire cops hit campus to investigate.
These cops, Dalziel and Pascoe, are a unique pair. Dalziel is blue collar hard-core. He never had the opportunity to avail himself of a college education, and he sees little or no advantage to one in his advancing years. Pascoe, on the other hand, is a bit more cerebral. He has done the university scene, and he understands the people to a greater degree than does his boss. But it is crusty old Dalziel with his rather unhealthy fascination with female breasts and body parts in general who gets the sleuthing done by and large.
As the officers dig deeper to find out whose body is under the statue, they uncover a jungle of secrets that make the peaceful recently co-ed campus seem downright contentious and filled with something akin to palace intrigue. As the book progresses Anita, the student accused of playing doctor with the professor at the beginning of the book, is counted among the dead; and before the book ends, more bodies will turn up.
This is worth reading if only to experience the author’s attitudes toward students in a small liberal arts school in the early ‘70s. You’ll read about late-night naked dancing activities, a fascination with Ouija boards and spiritualism in general, and the ubiquitous presence of Cannabis. When this is done, neither students nor staff come out looking good at all.
These two cops intrigue me, and that’s why I will read the third book in the series. The fact that men of so opposite a perspective on life can work successfully together is fascinating, and the fact that the author crafts these men such that their ability to work together is believable will keep me coming back.
Concurrently, the college has determined that a statue of its founder, Alison Girling, must come down. But in the process of removing it, workers find human remains, and a couple of Yorkshire cops hit campus to investigate.
These cops, Dalziel and Pascoe, are a unique pair. Dalziel is blue collar hard-core. He never had the opportunity to avail himself of a college education, and he sees little or no advantage to one in his advancing years. Pascoe, on the other hand, is a bit more cerebral. He has done the university scene, and he understands the people to a greater degree than does his boss. But it is crusty old Dalziel with his rather unhealthy fascination with female breasts and body parts in general who gets the sleuthing done by and large.
As the officers dig deeper to find out whose body is under the statue, they uncover a jungle of secrets that make the peaceful recently co-ed campus seem downright contentious and filled with something akin to palace intrigue. As the book progresses Anita, the student accused of playing doctor with the professor at the beginning of the book, is counted among the dead; and before the book ends, more bodies will turn up.
This is worth reading if only to experience the author’s attitudes toward students in a small liberal arts school in the early ‘70s. You’ll read about late-night naked dancing activities, a fascination with Ouija boards and spiritualism in general, and the ubiquitous presence of Cannabis. When this is done, neither students nor staff come out looking good at all.
These two cops intrigue me, and that’s why I will read the third book in the series. The fact that men of so opposite a perspective on life can work successfully together is fascinating, and the fact that the author crafts these men such that their ability to work together is believable will keep me coming back.
November 3, 2021
Morderstwo w prywatnym college'u, snobistyczne towarzystwo elitarnej brytyjskiej młodzieży, bachanalia i pogańskie rytuały. Nie mogłam nie pokusić się o sięgnięcie po kryminał z takimi elementami. Tym bardziej, że autor już mi znany, a moje pierwsze spotkanie z serią o detektywach Dalzielu i Pascoe wspominam naprawdę nieźle. I tym razem się nie zawiodłam - zarówno “An Advancement of Learning” jak i czytane wcześniej przeze mnie “A Killing Kindness” to bardzo przyjemne brytyjskie kryminały. Hill pisze kryminały klasyczne - zdecydowanie bliżej mu do Agathy Christie i P.D. James niż do nie stroniących od brutalnych i makabrycznych opisów Mo Hayder czy Chrisa Cartera i wybitnie angielskie - ze Scotland Yardem, pagórkowatymi okolicami i urokliwymi wiejskimi krajobrazami oraz tak charakterystycznym dla brytyjskiego społeczeństwa uwidaczniającym się na każdym kroku podziałem klasowym. Bardzo podoba mi się u Hilla wplatanie w fabułę folkloru i elementów nadnaturalnych. I co najważniejsze - autor nie obraża inteligencji czytelnika i wykreowana przez niego historia - poza tym, że ciekawa i wciągająca to i pozbawiona dziur logicznych. A i bohaterowie są jak najbardziej realistyczni i zachowują się wiarygodnie. Ciekawym i trafnym zabiegiem było wybranie na głównych bohaterów dwóch diametralnie od siebie różnych detektywów. Z powodu ich kontrastujących ze sobą charakterów i osobowości niejedna wymiana zdań doprowadza do ciętych i pełnych ironii ripost.
Mnie - wielką miłośniczkę sprawnie napisanych klimatycznych brytyjskich kryminałów - Hill tymi dwiema książkami w pełni kupił i seria o Dalzielu i Pascoe zostaje ze mną na dłużej! A i po inne - osobne - powieści autora z chęcią sięgnę.
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Mnie - wielką miłośniczkę sprawnie napisanych klimatycznych brytyjskich kryminałów - Hill tymi dwiema książkami w pełni kupił i seria o Dalzielu i Pascoe zostaje ze mną na dłużej! A i po inne - osobne - powieści autora z chęcią sięgnę.
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March 20, 2022
An easy read with a brisk plot and some fairly sharp observation. Very much of its time. I checked the date if first publication after I read it, but assumed it must have been early 70s. The casual sexism, the rather grubby ‘Carry On’ references to sexuality and the copper who left school at 14 berating the too-clever-by-half sergeant who went to university? Yep, all there. Still, part of the point of the writing is that in Dalziel, the author shows us the 1970s police officer, warts and all, scratching his belly, telling young women that their jobs will do until they meet a nice lad and get married, and swilling his whisky. And we may not like him much (Pascoe certainly doesn’t), but he is a very effective protagonist. It’s a bit like Morse, a decade or so later and becoming an anachronism even then, although Morse is a great deal more refined than Dalziel. Pretty much every detective story I have ever read has a flawed protagonist with unlikeable aspects to their personality at its heart. The flaws vary with the age; Holmes had his cocaine, (‘the needle, Watson’), and his successors tend to drink and have disastrous personal lives. Flawed characters make for interesting reading in a way that bureaucrats who do their paperwork meticulously and work out every day do not, and it’s probably too big an ask to expect 1970s police officers to be psychologically anachronistic. But it still made me wince a bit.
January 16, 2024
Chief Superintendent Andy Dalziel and PC Peter Pascoe are sent to Holm Coultrain College to investigate the red-haired skeleton unearthed on campus.
A bronze memorial sculpture was being relocated to make room for a lab facility. When the base was pulled up bones fell out of it. This did not set well with a number of people.
There were conflicts among the faculty and among the student body. Originally an all-female campus (students and faculty), changes had been made. To keep up with the times, it was decided to change to a mixed campus, to help bring in more money for expansion. The old guard of the faculty was against it.
Among the student body was Franny Roote, well dressed, good looking, smooth moves and quite a following among the students, especially the females. What is his draw?
Talk of a Satan cult on campus, with faculty and student members, séances, and mid-night rituals cloaked in secrecy, are rumoured. Could there be ties to the skeleton?
Who is the skeleton? When was the death and by who and how? Other murders take place on campus and questions arise about the relationship between these happenings.
Dalziel and Pasco have a full slate of clues and suspect to tie into for the solutions. Twists, turns and blind alleys make for a complicated challenge for these men. Also a good read for the reader.
A bronze memorial sculpture was being relocated to make room for a lab facility. When the base was pulled up bones fell out of it. This did not set well with a number of people.
There were conflicts among the faculty and among the student body. Originally an all-female campus (students and faculty), changes had been made. To keep up with the times, it was decided to change to a mixed campus, to help bring in more money for expansion. The old guard of the faculty was against it.
Among the student body was Franny Roote, well dressed, good looking, smooth moves and quite a following among the students, especially the females. What is his draw?
Talk of a Satan cult on campus, with faculty and student members, séances, and mid-night rituals cloaked in secrecy, are rumoured. Could there be ties to the skeleton?
Who is the skeleton? When was the death and by who and how? Other murders take place on campus and questions arise about the relationship between these happenings.
Dalziel and Pasco have a full slate of clues and suspect to tie into for the solutions. Twists, turns and blind alleys make for a complicated challenge for these men. Also a good read for the reader.
February 22, 2025
Another high-ish 3, or perhaps a lowish 4 would be more fair. It lost me near the end, and I know I shouldn't punish the entire book for the final chapter, but ... no, high 3 it is, that feels right.
Hill's a good writer, his mysteries are usually worth the effort. This one had just a tad too many characters (and I know a mystery needs characters, if there's only the detective and one suspect, then the detective can usually work out who did it). I couldn't keep track of them. Ellie was the one Pascoe was sleeping with, Disney was old and mean, Franny was a student, Landor was the boss, and everyone else blended together.
Despite that it went along okay, occasionally being very interesting, occasionally feeling a bit too long, and then the mystery was solved with 10% of the book left to go (on my Kindle) so the entire remaining bit was a recapitulation of what happened and far from being the thrill-fest it can seem in, say, Agatha Christie's hands, it was dull dull dull. He did not nail the landing.
(Note: I'm a writer, so I suffer when I offer fewer than five stars. But these aren't ratings of quality, they're a subjective account of how much I liked the book: 5* = an unalloyed pleasure from start to finish, 4* = really enjoyed it, 3* = readable but not thrilling, 2* = disappointing, and 1* = hated it.)
Hill's a good writer, his mysteries are usually worth the effort. This one had just a tad too many characters (and I know a mystery needs characters, if there's only the detective and one suspect, then the detective can usually work out who did it). I couldn't keep track of them. Ellie was the one Pascoe was sleeping with, Disney was old and mean, Franny was a student, Landor was the boss, and everyone else blended together.
Despite that it went along okay, occasionally being very interesting, occasionally feeling a bit too long, and then the mystery was solved with 10% of the book left to go (on my Kindle) so the entire remaining bit was a recapitulation of what happened and far from being the thrill-fest it can seem in, say, Agatha Christie's hands, it was dull dull dull. He did not nail the landing.
(Note: I'm a writer, so I suffer when I offer fewer than five stars. But these aren't ratings of quality, they're a subjective account of how much I liked the book: 5* = an unalloyed pleasure from start to finish, 4* = really enjoyed it, 3* = readable but not thrilling, 2* = disappointing, and 1* = hated it.)
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July 30, 2020Superintendent Dalziel and Sergeant Pascoe are called to a local university where a body has been found while workmen try to move a statue. Dalziel and Pascoe settle into the university life and find a lot of secrets coming to light.
This story is set in about 1971 or 1972. It has aged pretty well in spite of the misogynistic remarks sprinkled throughout the text.
I started reading this series because of the TV series. Most of the installments are not available at the library as downloadable audio. After borrowing and reading at he first book, A Clubbable Woman on Kindle, I bought the second one on Audible. Apparently, Audible has an exclusive on most of the series. The price wasn't worth it. I am sure the story is pretty good, but the narrator was terrible. He sounded like he had a mouth full of marbles for the first 1/3 of the story. It was really hard to understand even in a completely quiet environment.
The production was also subpar. The sound levels fluctuated weirdly and the narration, at certain points, sounded like the narrator was speaking with a metal bucket on his head.
This story is set in about 1971 or 1972. It has aged pretty well in spite of the misogynistic remarks sprinkled throughout the text.
I started reading this series because of the TV series. Most of the installments are not available at the library as downloadable audio. After borrowing and reading at he first book, A Clubbable Woman on Kindle, I bought the second one on Audible. Apparently, Audible has an exclusive on most of the series. The price wasn't worth it. I am sure the story is pretty good, but the narrator was terrible. He sounded like he had a mouth full of marbles for the first 1/3 of the story. It was really hard to understand even in a completely quiet environment.
The production was also subpar. The sound levels fluctuated weirdly and the narration, at certain points, sounded like the narrator was speaking with a metal bucket on his head.
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