The Mystery of Swordfish Reef Audiobook By Arthur W. Upfield cover art

The Mystery of Swordfish Reef

 Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 months free
Try for $0.00
Offer ends July 31, 2025 at 11:59PM PT.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 3 months. Cancel anytime.

The Mystery of Swordfish Reef

By: Arthur W. Upfield
Narrated by: Peter Hosking
Try for $0.00

$0.00/mo. after 3 months. Offer ends July 31, 2025 at 11:59PM PT. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $19.49

Buy for $19.49

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use, License, and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel
An intriguing case for Detective Inspector Napoleon Bonaparte begins on a calm October day in an Australian seaside town. Three men set out to sea for a day's fishing... and do not return. Despite intensive searches, no trace of the men or their boat is found until, weeks later, a passing trawler hauls in a gruesome catch - the head of one of the missing fishermen. It is quite clear that its owner was murdered with a pistol bullet. But by whom, and why, is for Bony to find out.©1939 Bonaparte Holdings Ltd. (P)2000 Bolinda Publishing Fiction Mystery Police Procedural Suspense Thriller & Suspense Fishing

Editorial reviews

Far from his usual stomping grounds in the bush of the Australian outback, Arthur Upfield’s The Mystery of Swordfish Reef finds the willfully unorthodox Inspector Napoleon Bonaparte in an unfamiliar environment: the vast ocean off the southeastern coast of Australia, where a fisherman’s severed head, riddled with bullet holes, washes ashore after he and his crew’s fishing vessel goes missing. Frustrated with a lack of physical evidence, Bony, whose wry attitude and unassailable confidence is superbly portrayed by talented narrator Peter Hosking, immerses himself in the world of sword-fishing to get to the bottom of this seemingly impenetrable mystery.
All stars
Most relevant  
OK, this is definitely a bit of departure from his previous books … but indeed one of the best books in the Bonaparte series so far!LOVED, LOVED, LOVED how Bony’s prim and proper British decorum was overruled by his native heritage - and he kicked ass on the cunning crooks! As usual, captivating story telling, intriguing human relations and I learned a thing or two about deep sea fishing🤓 Excellent narration, of course. Left me wanting more. How is this not a TV series???!!!

OMG - best in the series … Bony Unleashed!!!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

If you could sum up The Mystery of Swordfish Reef in three words, what would they be?

a good mystery another upfield tresure

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Mystery of Swordfish Reef?

the sailfish scene and the way you can imagine the fishing

What about Peter Hosking’s performance did you like?

the way he portraye,s his many parts of the story charicters

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

yes

bony

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This is set in a fishing community in SE Australia. A nice change from the outback mysteries.

Bony goes to the sea

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Narration: As usual, this narrator is top notch. I have trouble understanding some of the Aussie accent, but that's just me.

Story: Not quite up to Upfield snuff, but nonetheless entertaining. Story moves quickly. Nothing profound. Good light read/listen.

Writing: Well written prose. Excellent dialogue. So appreciated that there are absent so many "he saids" and she "saids."

Decent Upfield Mystery

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Okay, every author is entitled to write one book to make a vacation tax-deductible and this is Arthur Upfield’s. Sadly the plot is thin, Bony doesn’t have a chance to use his talents, and the climax relies on a deus ex machina.

Disappointing

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.