Stiletto cover art

Stiletto

The Checquy Files, Book 2

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Stiletto

By: Daniel O'Malley
Narrated by: Maggie Mash
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About this listen

The Checquy: a centuries-old covert organisation that protects the nation from supernatural threat. The Grafters: a centuries-old supernatural threat.

After centuries of rivalry and bloodshed, The Checquy and The Grafters are on the verge of joining forces and only one person has the supernatural skills to get the job done - Myfanwy Thomas. But as a wave of gruesome atrocities sweep London, old hatreds ignite and negotiations grind to a halt....

©2016 Daniel O’Malley (P)2016 W F Howes Ltd Epic Epic Fantasy Fantasy Fiction

Critic Reviews

"Packed full of twists, O'Malley creates a lively and absorbing world." ( Daily Express on The Rook)
All stars
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The only down side was that the narrator doesn't appear to have read the first book. So the pronunciation of Myfanwy is not as described in the first book

Enjoyed the story

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The narrator is different from the first book, which wouldn't normally be a big issue as this book is from a different perspective, but it just doesn't work. Her speed is terribly slow, her pronunciation of significant character and place names is inconsistent with the first book, and her accents are way off mark. Had to stop listening because it was too jarring. Daniel O'Malley is a great writer and The Rook was fabulous, so I think I'll buy this as a book instead of the audio version.

Narrator makes it difficult

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It was a nice follow on to the first book, and came from a different angle than the first book. great story​ and i look forward to reading the next one. it was well preformed so that made is easy to listen to

great 2nd book

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didn't like that it changed a few things about the grafters, but loved it overall

rook 2

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Absolutely will come back to Stilleto for a 'reread'. Hard to leave, just want to continue listening.

Incredibly clever.

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I cannot tell you how many times I’ve read Stiletto and Daniel O’Malley’s first book, The Rook (I wish it was also on Audible). Every time I read them I pick up something different.

I love that these books combine action, the supernatural and the public service together so seamlessly. It does make me laugh. Definitely in my top ten favourite books.

Can listen again and again

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Got significantly distracted by Myfanwy suddenly having a weird new accent. ???? I struggled to recognise it was supposed to be her talking, because she sounds an eastern european grandma, instead of a 30yo english woman. could not get past it.

what is up with myfanwy's weird new accent?

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I loved the Rook. The fast moving, cleverly crafted mystery, and the brilliant, Bridget Jones-esque nature of Myfanwy (the w is silent) Thomas. I was so excited for this sequel. How incredibly disappointed I am to find a new narrator and the primary character so completely changed. I couldn’t get past the first few chapters and am now scouring the internet in vain for a Katy Carmichael narrated version. Poor form publishers. Poor form.

So incredibly disappointed

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This book is a case study in why it’s so important to keep the same narrator for a series. Most notably, the first book, The Rook, specifically states that Myfanwy is an English woman in her early thirties & that she says her name without the ‘w’, so it rhymes with Tiffany. Unfortunately the narrator of this book was completely unaware of this description & therefore her creative choice to make the character fully Welch is extremely jarring and makes an unpleasant listening experience.

Poor narration

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The performer needed to read/listen The Rook first. Mispronouncing names of Myfanwy and Checquy drove me nuts (pronunciations gone over in the first book)
Story is great but I knew it as I read it prior to listening

Story awesome performance could be better

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