Dire Straits Audiobook By Helen Harper cover art

Dire Straits

Bo Blackman, Book 1

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Dire Straits

By: Helen Harper
Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld
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Bo Blackman is a rookie private investigator working for the London based firm of Dire Straits. She doesn't often get triber-based assignments, which is just as well. Vampires and daemons don't interest her as much as humans do. However, when she has to serve a summons on a dodgy daemon called Devlin O'Shea and she ends up saving his life instead of being framed for his murder, her life takes a shocking turn for the worse. And when the vampire Families start involving themselves too, Bo no longer knows where to turn.

©2014 Helen Harper (P)2014 Tantor Contemporary Fantasy Fiction Paranormal Paranormal & Urban Urban Demons Vampires
Interesting Premise • Unique Plot • Excellent Narration • Intriguing Mystery • Engaging Storyline • Pleasant Voice
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This is the first book through Audible. Helen's book has me hooked. Her storyline line was gripping. The tension between Bo and Michael was a tease. The ending however was a surprise. I enjoyed the narration. It was very entertaining.

First time

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I don't think Helen Harper could write a book I wouldn't like. She has a pure urban fantasy formula that never fails. Her stories have the greatest character growth without taking things too seriously. The pace is fast but never frantic. Just about perfect. The narration was excellent too.

Really just perfect urban fantasy.

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Decent urban fantasy, needs a bit of polishing for the next installment but, the main character was quite likeable and the story good enough to make me curious to see what happens in book 2.

3 1\2 Stars

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The narrator is perfect for this book. The mixture of Vampire and detective was a new and intresting. Though there were a couple of mistakes made by the Mc that made you want to wince.

good

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This book was ok, i found it dragged a bit. I liked it but didnt love it.
I found the antagonist to be obvious and could not believe the story went on and on without anyone even considering it. it was frustrating.
This book was worth the read if you like vamp books which I do. i will probably give the 2nd book a try and then decide if I want to finish the series.
The were other details the author never gave which I found frustrating also, what is Bo's grandfather, what was Peter's sin/crime, how did Beth and Bo's grandfather end up working together?? what happened to O'Shay?? lots of unanswered questions/details!

Vampires

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I enjoyed listening to this book, kept me reading to the end. Worth your time to read.

Good book

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Vampires, demons and private detectives traipsing around London. Not a bad way to spend a day.

Middle of the road Ok

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This was a unique plot concept for me. The vampires of Twilight smashed together with *pick a murder mystery detective*. While I'm not usually into the whole vampire theme, this one did hold my attention well enough.

Good twist for the vampire realm

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Would you consider the audio edition of Dire Straits to be better than the print version?

I have to say that the reader truly got into the characters. I was able to keep them all separate just by the voice that was used. Very enjoyable.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Bo Blackman is my favorite character. She really grows and blossoms through all the books and I can relate to her in many of the situations she finds herself in with difficult decisions to make and not always having the best answer.

What about Saskia Maarleveld’s performance did you like?

She truly did a good job bringing out the characters that made it easy for the listeners to tell who is speaking before the narrations tells them. Very good.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Many sections made me laugh and cry. You will have to listen for yourself to see if the book moves you as much as it did me.

Any additional comments?

This series has grabbed my attention and held it. The characters are well rounded and fun to follow. There is joy, sorrow and anger inspired by the situations and it will hold your attention as well. Hope you enjoy as much as I do!

Excellent Mystery

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The five minute teaser that I listened to sounded enticing, which is why I bought the book. However, it was excruciatingly hard to listen to hours and hours of the narrators voice, I had to force myself to finish over the course of several days. I honestly don't know how to rate this book because I can't get past Ms Maarleveld's voice.

Hard to listen to

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