As usual, a great read.

I love Kobna reading these books - he really makes the story live. This book progresses Peter's story well. The only criticism is nothing to do with the book, but with the way that whoever arranges the audio book has not thought about the placement of the interview with Ben and Kobna. It should come after the acknowledgements read by Kobna - instead the loud harsh voice of the interviewer comes straight in after the very quiet ending of the story - it is very jarring, and such a contrast to Kobna's quiet voice, so be prepared!! It gave me such a fright as it was so unexpected. Chapter 17 is the interview.

19 people found this helpful

Confused

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

I feel that I must have missed big parts of this book, but when listening again I find I have not. This book has left me slightly confused. With all of the other books the scene has been set and you can set play on your 'imagination video' and as Kobna reads the book you can visualise what is happening. With this book it was totally lacking.

Would you ever listen to anything by Ben Aaronovitch again?

Of course, I love this series, its just this book didnt light my fire as much as the others.

What does Kobna Holdbrook-Smith bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

Ahhhh Kobna, I love his voice, I could listen to him read the AA road Map!

Any additional comments?

I'm going to listen to the whole series again - because I can and you hear something new every time. Please please, if you have just discovered this book on audible, don't buy it, go to the first book, buy that and work your way through the series. Honest its worth it.

14 people found this helpful

Another great story but...

Where's the fun jazz intro before each chapter gone? (Insert sad face emoji here). I really enjoyed this one though - things are really hotting up now!

4 people found this helpful

Procedurally brilliant. More things explode

Another great dive into the Met & Folley. Great addition to the series. Brilliantly read

4 people found this helpful

Magical London gets bigger and better

I feel like I've been waiting AGES for this (mainly because I have) and then it was over really quickly (mainly because I binge listened in a few sessions) The story is moving on: things are revealed with new characters and old. Some seemingly random people and events from previous books are suddenly significant. More Guleed which is excellent. Nightingale gets more magisterial (magusterial?). We learn more about magic and London history. What's not to love?

DO NOT listen to this until you have read/listened to all the preceding books. This is not a stand alone title. Maybe give the comics a go too. The latter are not essential but a few events from them are referred to in passing and, although this does not affect the ongoing story, it's always good to be an obsessive completist.

Kobna Holdbrook Smyth is excellent as ever. I enjoyed the interview at the end where David Aaronovitch reveals that he writes some accents just to see how Kobna handles them. At any rate, his voice is now and forever that of Peter Grant.

4 people found this helpful

It's been worth the wait...

Lovely - Ben Aaronovitch has put a bit more muscle into the story arch, fleshed out the minor characters (past AND present), and has woven tantalising threads through the fabric of the main character that may, or may not, bear fruit in future episodes. I love it when I sense a variety of possible future outcomes.

The story unfolds at a very fast pace, yet the characters are always given just enough time to develop without any sense of being rushed. I loved the sprinkling of magical back history throughout the previous books and wasn't disappointed with this volume. And, as always, I especially love the way that Ben Aaronovitch give as much effort to crafting the past and present background, geographically speaking, as he does to his characters.

And as to the performance by Kobna Holbrook-Smith...I love, love, love it. Kobna REALLY brings the story alive with such passion and humour. His timing is amazing.

I thoroughly enjoyed listening to the story and the performance.

9 people found this helpful

Acronyms ...

I struggled to work out some of the acronyms that litter the story but perhaps there's a glossary in the actual book?

Also found it hard to recall what happened in the last book as it's quite a long time since I listened to it.

And what a sudden ending! I thought something had gone wrong when the voice of the woman interviewing the author and the reader piped up.

I really like KH-S reading these stories and generally enjoy them but this one seemed to finish shortly after it got going.

3 people found this helpful

Left too much hanging

I was really enjoying this book - Kobna Holbrook-Smith is always a pleasure to listen to and I love the Rivers series) - then it seemed to stop rather abruptly with rather too many loose ends left dangling, as though the author decided that was enough for one book and he'd just stick the rest in the next one. I appreciate that you need to leave your readers hanging to maintain interest, but unlike previous books it seemed as though nothing at all was resolved in this one. Perhaps Hanging Tree was an appropriate title, but I would have like at least some of the story lines to come to a conclusion. Yes, my interest is piqued sufficiently to continue to the next book, but I'm left slightly dissatisfied with this one, like The Empire Strikes Back.

2 people found this helpful

Steeped in the mystical

What made the experience of listening to The Hanging Tree the most enjoyable?

The narrator is particularly suited to this series and the wide range of accents that he has really lends authenticity to the story.

Any additional comments?

Peter is back and so is the faceless man. Set deep in the mysteries of London, the Hanging Tree is both the name of a pub and a relic of bygone criminal action. It seems only fitting that an officer of the law should look there for clues. Peter once again risks his life and several blocks of prime real estate to neutralise the bad guys and as always, he does it with style.
Peter is one of my all-time favourite characters and I always look forward to Aaronovitch’s unique London style. The characters are well built and are particularly expressive when it comes to British wit. The mix of ancient London architecture, history, and myths and legends make the books really come alive, not to mention the lively natural element that the rivers bring. Nightingale enables the reader to get an understanding of the immense scale of the world that Aaronovitch has created, giving the story a depth in time.
If you get the chance to listen to the audio version, which I highly recommend, you will not be disappointed. The narrator has a distinctive style and really embodies Peter’s character.

2 people found this helpful

Left hanging?

The book started very well and felt as if it would return the the excellent form of the earlier books in the series. I enjoyed the humour and the mix of characters. However, the ending is such a disappointment. It felt as if it had been finished for a particular deadline, rather than being brought to a proper conclusion in its own right. I can appreciate that certain threads of the story have to be left so that they can be picked up in the next book, but everything was rushed, bundled up in a most unsatisfactory way. I shall undoubtedly read the next one when it appears, but with less of the pleasurable anticipation with which I awaited this one. Perhaps the next should be the last.

5 people found this helpful