Try free for 30 days

  • The Stranger Times

  • The Stranger Times, Book 1
  • By: C. K. McDonnell
  • Narrated by: Brendan McDonald
  • Length: 11 hrs and 8 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (134 ratings)

1 credit a month to use on any title, yours to keep (you’ll use your first credit on this title).
Stream or download thousands of included titles.
Access to exclusive deals and discounts.
$16.45 a month after 30 day trial. Cancel anytime.
The Stranger Times cover art

The Stranger Times

By: C. K. McDonnell
Narrated by: Brendan McDonald
Try for $0.00

$16.45 per month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $26.99

Buy Now for $26.99

Pay using voucher balance (if applicable) then card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions Of Use and Privacy Notice and authorise Audible to charge your designated credit card or another available credit card on file.

Publisher's Summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

STOP PRESS! The Stranger Times wins the 2023 British Fantasy Award for Best Audio Work!

There are dark forces at work in our world (and in Manchester in particular), so thank God The Stranger Times is on hand to report them . . .

A weekly newspaper dedicated to the weird and the wonderful (but mostly the weird), it is the go-to publication for the unexplained and inexplicable.

At least that's their pitch. The reality is rather less auspicious. Their editor is a drunken, foul-tempered and foul-mouthed husk of a man who thinks little of the publication he edits. His staff are a ragtag group of misfits. And as for the assistant editor . . . well, that job is a revolving door - and it has just revolved to reveal Hannah Willis, who's got problems of her own.

When tragedy strikes in her first week on the job The Stranger Times is forced to do some serious investigating. What they discover leads to a shocking realisation: some of the stories they'd previously dismissed as nonsense are in fact terrifyingly real. Soon they come face-to-face with darker forces than they could ever have imagined.

The Stranger Times is the first novel from C.K. McDonnell, the pen name of Caimh McDonnell. It combines his distinctive dark wit with his love of the weird and wonderful to deliver a joyous celebration of how truth really can be stranger than fiction.

©2020 C.K. McDonnell (P)2020 Penguin Audio

Critic Reviews

A filmic romp with great characters, a jet-propelled plot, and a winning premise. (Eric Brown)

I tore through The Stranger Times. Like an entertaining collision between the worlds of Mick Herron and Charlie Stross, it's a novel that proves ancient eldritch horror is no match for old-school journalism. (CHRISTOPHER BROOKMYRE, bestselling author of Fallen Angel)
There are weird happenings in Manchester; good job the drunk and dysfunctional journalists of The Stranger Times, a newspaper dedicated to paranormal and the unexplained, are on hand . . . terrific, easygoing fun. (Robert Millen)

What listeners say about The Stranger Times

Average Customer Ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    100
  • 4 Stars
    26
  • 3 Stars
    3
  • 2 Stars
    5
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    108
  • 4 Stars
    14
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    1
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    96
  • 4 Stars
    19
  • 3 Stars
    6
  • 2 Stars
    4
  • 1 Stars
    1

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Stay for the acknowledgments

It’s been a while since I’ve had this fun with a book. Brendan MacDonald’s performance is brilliant. I never thought I would be laughing at the acknowledgements in a book, but here we are. I cannot wait for book two.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Strange times indeed

Sorry for the cliched title but I’ve a headache. This is a wonderfully fun audiobook for fans of Ben Aaronovitch’s Rivers of London series. I’m hoping this series is just as promising.
Highly recommended.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

loved it

great Charecters, great narration ,will be back for the second instalment can't wait to see where we go 👍

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great read 5 stars

I loved this book - entertaining, unpredictable, funny and narrated well. if you liked Rivers Of London then you will love this book too.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Don't normally write reviews .... but ...

After reading and adoring Ben Aaronovitch series of Rivers of London I was grieving when finished. Stumbled upon this a year later and have loved it. Narration is excellent, totally absorbing story, great characters. Have now powered through and finished up to book three and am just purchasing no. 4. Only hoping there will be a 5, 6, 7 .......... x

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A brilliant read that morphs into excellence on audio

This book is just a marvel! McDonnell writes so wonderfully with humour, yet also an urgency that’s so well paced you simply cannot remove yourself from the world he’s created! Meanwhile McDonald’s narration of some 10 well fleshed out characters turns this into one of the greatest audiobooks you could possibly endure! It’s quite astonishing how well he is able to embody each character and make their voice not only true but elevated somehow from the page.

Bravo to all involved, this is an absolute gem of a novel and I can’t wait to read more in the stranger times world! Vincent Baincroft is a character-de-force that permeates your psyche in a myriad of ways, including the unexpected!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Urban fantasy

Light, dark, comedic story. I listened to The Stranger Times podcast after listening to the book, an enthralling expansion of The Stranger Times book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Amazing in everyway conceivable!

I bought the book... loved it!
I downloaded the freebies mentioned at the end of the book and signed up to the authors newsletter... loved all of that (especially the podcasts)
Then signed up to Audible JUST to listen to the audiobook version which was amazing, brilliantly performed and every bit better than everything before it.
I highly recommend this performance. story and book to everyone and can't wait for the sequel!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A masterful performance of a great story

Brendon McDonald gives truly astonishing, masterful audiobook performance of this very funny book. The characters are rich, the story is exciting and it’s very, very funny.
It’s very much in the brilliant British sensibility, following in the illustrious footsteps of Sir Terry Pratchett.
But if you want to hear a remarkable performance, listen to this book. Mr McDonald’s performance is the best I’ve ever heard in 5 years of listening to audiobooks. Prepare to be amazed.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Fabulous

I really enjoyed the book. It had the quirkiness’s of Good Omens and was a fantastic read. I was only sorry when it was over. I am looking forward to the next book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.