If you, like me, are struggling to stop listening to All the Politics Podcasts because none of them make you feel anything other than deep worry for the world and sadness and whatcanyoudoanyway, then let me offer you the suggestion of murder mystery audiobooks.
There are two types of audiobooks: those you need to listen to closely and carefully – say literary fiction and those that you can have on in the background while you clean, make lunches, drive. If you are aiming to replace podcasts – that perfect medium for doing something else while listening – then you need the second category. The books that have enough plot and enough repetition of that plot that if you stop paying attention for a few minutes, say to take the clothes out of the dryer, you haven’t missed some crucial piece of character development.
And here is where the Cormoran Strike mysteries shine. Lots of repetition of key plot points as the two detectives, Cormoran and Robin, discuss their investigations, crushingly slow development of their romantic relationship, near endless reminders that Cormoran has an amputated leg and likes greasy food.
What does not work as well is the muddling of the murder investigations themselves. Lots of characters involved – in one of the books, Ink Black Heart, there are eight or so characters who have both internet names and real world names and you have to try to match each to each while only paying Half Attention. It doesn’t work very well. So you really have to accept that you’ll always be a little unsure of who is who in the murder investigation, or maybe actually read the books.
Having finished all six I can’t claim these are the best murder mysteries out there – probably hovering more like average – but I will say I am very glad to have purged my life of endless speculation about the 2024 election and reporting of polls that don’t matter anyway. So if you have another series to recommend, let me know.
Literary Vice 