Forty Words for Sorrow Audiobook By Giles Blunt cover art

Forty Words for Sorrow

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Forty Words for Sorrow

By: Giles Blunt
Narrated by: James Daniels
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When the badly decomposed body of 13-year-old Katie Pine is found in an abandoned mine shaft, John Cardinal is vindicated. It was Cardinal who'd kept the Pine case open - insisting she was no mere runaway - and Cardinal had been demoted to the burglary squad for his excessive zeal. But Katie Pine isn't the only youngster to have gone missing in the rural town of Algonquin Bay, and Cardinal is now given the go-ahead to reopen the files on three other lost kids. When another youth is reported missing, he begins to see a pattern that screams "serial killer."

Meanwhile, the brass have partnered him with Lisa Delorme, newly shifted to homicide from the Office of Special Investigations, and Cardinal can't help but wonder if she's been sent to keep tabs on him. A guilty conscience makes him think so.

Superbly paced, with fully-fleshed characters and utterly convincing police detail, Forty Words for Sorrow is also a novel of place that transcends the genre. Blunt puts us in a small Canadian town in the dead of winter and makes us feel the cold, then turns the cold into a metaphor for the destruction of young lives.

©2004 Giles Blunt (P)2004 Brilliance Audio, Inc. Crime Thrillers Mystery Suspense Thriller & Suspense

Critic reviews

"Blunt has done for Canada's north what James Lee Burke did for Cajun Louisiana." ( Margaret Cannon, Toronto Globe and Mail)
Engaging Storyline • Well-written Plot • Fantastic Narrator • Gripping Mystery • Vivid Descriptions • Cool Effects
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A well written crime novel by Giles Blunt. His intricacies into Canadian culture really submerge you into the scene. The narrator was a good voice actor, with cool effects like radios and what not. My only gripe was the bad Canadian accent, stretched words that weren't necessary.

Good book, bad accent.

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This was my first experience with this author and the novel is toward the end of the series. However, this didn't diminish my overall enjoyment of the plot, the characters and the pictures the author paints of a demented pair of killers in a cold and desolate landscape. A child is found buried in a slab of ice and from there, a grisly tale of madness and obsession unfolds. I'd be happy if Audible carried more of this series.

Canadian Cop a Winner

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The story line was really good,, if a little gruesome. The matter was appalling at first, but didn't bother me at all as the. book continued. The writing was very engaging.. I loved listening him, I would love to hear some other words by this author, but there were no more on audible. Read this book.

An excellent book

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It is a sad but interesting mystery and it kept me interested until the very end.

characters were interesting.

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it was a very good read. An enjoyable easy read. Looking forward to reading more by this author

could not put it down

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I loved the Cardinal series on Hulu, so this book was a must! Great voice portrayal and fantastic mystery!

Fantastic listen!

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The accents used were atrocious and not even close to the average speaking voice in the real North Bay.

Material outweighs average narration

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Really enjoyed this story. The characters have layers and are believable. Absolutely recommend, have listened to it over and over.

Great story, great characters!

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it felt a little slow in the beginning, but once you feel the tone and understand that it is setting a specific tension it goes swimmingly from there. can put it down. heading straight on to number two. The narrator is fantastic.

even better than the TV show

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How did the narrator detract from the book?

The narrator drove me crazy with his weird British/Scottish/Irish-like accents for Canadians. I have NEVER heard any Canadians speak with this kind of hybrid accent, and certainly not French Canadians. He would have done better keeping to one voice.

Bad narration

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