Preview
  • Heart of Barkness

  • Chet and Bernie Mysteries, Book 9
  • By: Spencer Quinn
  • Narrated by: Jim Frangione
  • Length: 8 hrs and 56 mins
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars (756 ratings)

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Heart of Barkness

By: Spencer Quinn
Narrated by: Jim Frangione
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Publisher's summary

Spencer Quinn's Heart of Barkness is the latest in the New York Times best-selling series that the Los Angeles Times called "nothing short of masterful".

Chet the dog, “the most lovable narrator in all of crime fiction” (Boston Globe) and P.I. Bernie encounter heartache and much worse in the world of country music. They’re both music lovers, so when Lotty Pilgrim, a country singer from long ago, turns up at a local bar, they drive out to catch her act. Bernie’s surprised to see someone who was once so big performing in such a dive, and drops a C-note the Little Detective Agency can’t afford to part with into the tip jar. The C-note is stolen right from under their noses - even from under Chet’s, the nose that misses nothing - and before the night is over, it’s stolen again.

Soon they’re working the most puzzling case of their career, a case that takes them back in time in search of old border-town secrets, and into present-day danger where powerful people want those secrets to stay hidden. Chet and Bernie find themselves sucked into a real-life murder ballad where there is no one to trust but each other.

©2019 Spencer Quinn (P)2019 Recorded Books
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Featured Article: The Best Cozy Mysteries to Keep You Warm This Holiday Season


We’ve rounded up a list of some of the best cozy mystery audiobooks to help brighten up your winter listening. Here you'll find contemporary and historical cozies, classic whodunits and ingenious heist stories. While varying in tone, plot, and setting, these picks all share an irresistible holiday atmosphere. You'll find snowstorms galore, bakeries full of tasty holiday treats, glittering get-togethers, and picturesque English villages decked out in their holiday finest.

What listeners say about Heart of Barkness

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  • Overall
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    4 out of 5 stars

my least favorite

i love chet and bernie and love this series, but i had no idea what was going on throughout this story. i didnt even understand why they started investigating before a murder was even committed. definitely my least favorite.

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  • Overall
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Another wonderful book!

The Chet & Bernie series gets better with every new book, and this one is no exception. The relationship between private investigator Bernie and his dog Chet is so tender...and hilarious! You can’t help but fall in love with this very special crime-fighting duo. The author has written another best seller, and Jim Frangione is the best narrator around! Case closed!

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  • Overall
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Wonderful

The story is smart, intriguing, funny, endearing, exciting and overall wonderful. Please keep them coming Spencer Quinn, and Jim Frangione is the best!! Love you both 💓

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Enter Mingo

Loved Quinn’s take on

Chet’s possessive/jealous meeting with Mingo. Hilarious! I hope they meet again.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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Chet Makes Me Smile!

Listening to these books is just like coming home to your tail-wagging dog after a stressful day.....except that he can talk too, lol!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Chet and Bernie are back to save the day!

This is another great installment in the Chet and Bernie Mystery Series. Hearing this grand adventure from Chet's perspective gives the gift of laughter and lightens the heart.

Jim Frangione is a talented and engaging narrator. He brings Chet's sweetness, fierce heart and unique world view to life making each book in this series fun and entertaining.

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If They Were All Like This

Engaging story with familiar characters. Well worth the time. I hope all future Chet and Bernie books continue to use the same narrator. He makes the experience complete.

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Narration really increases the enjoyment

This review applies to the entire series. I bought books 2 through 4 in paperback and enjoyed them, but when I listened to the audio books, they were triple better. Reading the paperbacks I got a sense of the playfulness that comes with Chet’s point of view, but the narration had me chuckling out loud. The mysteries are well-conceived and written, and enjoyable in themselves, but Chet’s inner dialogue, and the narrator’s inflections, are so much fun - it’s like getting two-for-one. I’m so glad I ran across those first three paperbacks while I was just killing time in the bookstore, and that the stories have been continued and recorded so delightfully.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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Such fun

Seeing the story through the eyes of Chet, a bright but easily distracted dog, who assists in the investigations of his best friend, Bernie, a private investigator is a lot of fun.
Tricky one to solve even if Bernie is the most incredible investigator in the world. And the brightest. Even if Chet does say so himself.
Wonderful narration.

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  • Overall
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Wonderful as always

Love the Chet and Bernie books. Quinn perfectly captures all things dog in the character of Chet.

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