Title: A Deadly Dividend
Author(s): David Pearson
Series: The Dublin Homicides #1
Narrator(s): Roger Clark
Published by Tantor Audio on February 2, 2021
Length: 5 hrs 11 min
Genre(s): Mystery
Source: Publisher
Format: Audiobook
Purchase: Amazon|Audible
Rating:
Series Rating:
A promising young banker is killed in a Dublin alleyway. Two very different detectives try to find the murderer.
A night out turns into a nightmare for a young man who is killed in Dublin’s city centre. Once a street brawl or mugging is ruled out, it begins to look like he was targeted. But why?
DI Aidan Burke struggles to get anything useful out of the man’s friends and family, so the investigation leads to his workplace. It is here that they establish he was in a relationship with a co-worker.
And when his girlfriend is attacked in her home and narrowly escapes with her life, detectives become certain the death was not random.
The inquiry meets a brick wall of financial secrecy. To no avail, DI Burke tries unconventional methods to break it. Could the softer touch of his sergeant, the unassuming DS Fiona Moore, provide the key?
What did the victim know that required his death? And just how far will the criminals responsible go to protect their secrets?
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
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Deadly Dividend In A Nutshell
The murder of a young and promising banker in a dark alleyway has DI Aiden Burke and DS Fiona Moore scrambling to uncover the motive behind for the crime. Was it job related or was there another motive for his murder?
When I read that Deadly Dividend was about a young banker being murdered in a dark alleyway, my first thought was he must have been skimming funds and somehow got entangled with the wrong person. After all what other reason could be there for his murder?
As I listened I kept thinking I knew it, but with the attack on the victim’s girlfriend I thought it was not as simple as I originally believed. I learnt early in the story the identity of the murderer, but what I didn’t know was the reason. As I delved into the story, I discovered the involvement of several players and the revelation of a number of clues.
The story featured interesting characters, some which I have mentioned below.
- Aiden Burke, a divorced detective, who spends half his time in pub drinking himself into oblivion and the other half solving cases. He was quite he unconventional cop, when it came to solving cases. Impatient and grouchy, which made him difficult to like by his peers. I liked the personal growth he exhibited throughout the story.
- Fiona Moore, Aiden’s work partner, who joined the police force in the hopes of finding a man. Interesting reason to join the force, don’t you think? I guess to protect and serve was the last thing on her mind. However, she has proven to be good at her job. She kept Aiden on his toes and was a positive influence in his life.
- Anthony O’Dowd quite the unsavory character who operates in Dublin’s underworld. He has information that can help in solving the case, but the cops will need to catch him first.
- Edmund Giltrap, the victim’s boss, who has bitten off more than he can chew
I enjoyed the interactions between Fiona and Aiden and I sense an attraction brewing between them. Looking forward to see how this will play out as the series progress.
Overall, a solid start to the series and one I recommend to fans of police procedurals.
Narration
Roger Clark narrated. This was my experience with him. Both his female and male voices were similar and his tone stayed on the same level throughout the story. I would consider his performance average as despite the lack of distinction between the character’s voices I was able to stay in the story.
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About Roger Clark
Roger Clark is a professional actor and voice-over artist who lives in New York City with his beautiful family. American born, Roger moved to Ireland as a youth and graduated from the University of Glamorgan in Wales. He has performed in over forty-five countries. His first venture in audio narration was as a child, helping his father record local newspapers for the blind and visually impaired.
About David Pearson
David Pearson is a native of Ireland and lives on the east coast near Dublin. Having travelled extensively during his career, David says that he has never found a place as beautiful as Connemara in the west of Ireland in all of his travels. David is an avid reader of crime fiction. He particularly admires Ann Cleeves, and enjoys the TV renditions of Vera, Shetland and the Morse and Lewis series written by Colin Dexter. A keen photographer, David visits Connemara as often as his writing will allow to capture the beauty of the place on film.
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I enjoyed reading your thoughts on Deadly Dividend. I do love learning more about different narrators.
Thanks Tasha.
Sometimes when readers/listeners learn the villain early it actually makes the story more intense. Thanks Nadene
So true Debbie.
I used to avoid them but I find I am enjoying the addition of this genre to my schedule. Excellent reviewing.
Thanks DJ. I enjoy police procedurals.
Great review Nadene. I love a good mystery.
Thanks Kim. I believe you would enjoy A Deadly Dividend.
I like the sound of both plot and characters, and I’m so glad this first instalment worked this well for you!
Yes they were both great. Hope to start the next book soon.
Sounds a bit like a good cop bad cop situation. Glad you enjoyed it. Great review.
They were both good cops, its just that one was down on his luck and chose to drown his sorrows in alcohol.
I like the sound of this story but I do like it when narrators use different voices for the various characters. It is hard to follow a story if everything sounds the same.
I agree with you about the narrator. I prefer when different voices are used.
I think I would struggle with such an unlikeable main character. Thanks for sharing your review for Deadly Dividend.
He wasn’t all bad. He redeemed himself in the end.
Deadly Dividend isn’t in my genre of choice but I’m glad it was a solid start for you! I do enjoy the clever title.
I do agree about the cleverness of the title.
I love a good crime audiobook. A murder mystery might be just what I need to get me out of my slump.
So do I.