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  • Carnival of Shadows

  • By: R J Ellory
  • Narrated by: Jeff Harding
  • Length: 20 hrs and 30 mins
  • 4.1 out of 5 stars (72 ratings)
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Carnival of Shadows

By: R J Ellory
Narrated by: Jeff Harding
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Summary

Kansas, 1959. A travelling carnival appears overnight, intriguing the townsfolk with acts of inexplicable magic and illusion. But when a man's body is discovered beneath the carousel, FBI Special Agent Michael Travis is sent to investigate. But things are not what they seem, and with each new turn of the investigation, Travis’ faith is challenged as he struggles to open his mind to a truth that defies comprehension.

©2014 Roger Jon Ellory (P)2015 W F Howes Ltd

Critic reviews

"An atmospheric thriller with a gallery of fascinating characters." ( Irish Independent)
"At a time when crime fiction has become so formulaic, it's a relief to find a book as left-field as this latest offering from RJ Ellory.... An intriguing, delightfully unpredictable novel." ( Mail on Sunday)

What listeners say about Carnival of Shadows

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Answer the questions!!

A Hungarian man is found murdered at a carnival; so the FBI send in their hot agent, eager to impress in his new senior role. Nobody at the carnival will answer the questions and tap dance around the truth the whole time, making you feel the agent's anger at the slow pace of the investigation.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great book crime really enjoyed

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

it has very good story and the plot is excellent

Which scene did you most enjoy?

The scene where the Carnival players face the great FBI

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

YES gripping

Any additional comments?

I search for books with JEFF HARDING as narrator my '#1 choice this year

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

A different storyline from RJ Ellory but so worth it !

I have read everything R J Ellory has done and each one stayed with me for very different reasons. This story was slow burner, there are parts that had me in tears and others diving for the history books! Whilst Agent Travis was the main character I loved the character Edgar, complex, mysterious and enthralling.
Stick with it !

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

BORING AND REPETITIVE!

I had high hopes for this. a mysterious magical circus, murder and FBI agent on the hunt.

While the narration is 'okay' the story, the plot and the writing are so dull I kept falling asleep, as did my partner. The characters are lifeless and/or irritating in the extreme and if I had to hear the story of the lead character's traumatic events during his childhood one more time I'd have screamed out loud'

ELEVEN HOURS of my life I wasted listening to this drivel...do yourself a favor and avoid it.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

long winded but please stick with it.

First read this book a couple of years ago and stuggled with its long story line, list of characters and somewhat deep plot but listerning to it on audio brought it not only alive it put the listerner there in real time living and listerning along with the twists and turns of the story.
I love American history and R j Ellory has a great wealth and knowledge of this that is interesting and quite frankly mind blowing.
A great British author. A great book, brilliant characters and a must read.

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Too long and too slow for me

I struggled to get through this story. I found the tempo very slow and the main character frustrating and repetitive and by the big reveal/twist at the end I was a bit past caring. Good performance by Jeff Harding - but the story was not for me.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

an intriguing listen

well narrated and a good story. lost a little momentum about half way thru. could have been cut back a bit in length and not lost much. a bit of a disappointing showdown for the climax but well worth the credit none the less. still worthy of 4 stars.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

fascinating

As usual R J Ellory does not disappoint and delivers a fast paced interesting book.

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