Cricket is good everyone.

I listen to these stories for light releif, which on the whole works. But would Gemma please get over her class issues. She obviously hasn't been to a cricket match , especially Western terrace Headingley, or would know it is supported and played by people from all social groups. Stop making an issue about Devlin being working class he isn't that anymore.

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Loved this one

In typical style, poor Jemma is left sorting things out . With her interfering mother up to her usual tricks. However, and without spoiling it too much our girl finally wins out in the end. Another must listen, now off to listen to the next one. I find them so addictive :)

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another fun mystery

likable characters, good plot and great narrator. June is a hard month for Jemma as the next book, 7, is also taking place in June.
I hope the 8th book will be available in audible soon.

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Four Puddings and a Funeral

Another funny murder mystery with lots of puddings, emotions are running high in this one. Read brilliantly again by Pearl Hewitt.

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loved it

can't wait to start next book
narrative very good and pricklebum comes to the rescue

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Excellent

Yet another enjoyable story, perfectly narrated. These stories bring a smile to the face and are a wonderful distraction.

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Excellent tea Grommet

Well written, narration excellent. My complements to the chef.
All the characters are believable and I certainly know a few myself
Would recommend

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Hard to get my head around.

I find it hard to marry the English diffidence of Gemma Rose and her rambunctious attitude to getting information. So, sometimes I just want to shot out that this is the 21st century and that her missish ways just aren't credible for someone who has lived for 8 years across several continents in a 'high powered' environment.

In my opinion it makes her less credible! However the stories are very interesting, even if she isn't.

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4 people found this helpful

Thinly disguised homophobia

For a book written in 2018, there is language in here that comes straight out of the middle ages. There is something forced and unauthentic generally about the language of the book, the "forced" artificial Englishness. It's like someone has tried to turn quintessential Englishness into squeezy cheese and is forcing it down your throat. I googled the author and found her to be American.Try it yourself.

The worst part of this book is the homophobia. The book mentions 2 women being together. The term "one of those" is used. I haven't heard that expression for 20 years. Was this book really released in 2018? Rather than saying that being gay is as much part of this world as being straight (It is, it has been around for all human history), little put-down expressions are used such as it's fine "as long as their happy" (Again, which century has this author done her research in, or has she decided that she's just going to use this as a vehicle for her own homophobic views). Also, there's an implication being gay is somehow wrong, but "as long as they're happy" it's OK. This is patronising, offensive and again, lacks authenticity in the 21st Century. Being gay is also referred to as a "lifestyle choice". Is being straight a "lifestyle choice"? Can this homophobia get any worse? I thought we'd left these outdated expressions back in the 80s where they belong. It's quite clear that the expressions thinly disguise homophobia:

"He would have never have accepted all these new fangled ideas about 2 women living together" = He was homophobic
"He was traditionally minded" = He was homophobic

It's like being at an alt-right white supremacist convention in the USA where sayings and expressions thinly disguise what is actually being said.

Just like racist comments, there is no place for homophobic characters in a book. The attitude towards gay people seems to be one of begrudging tolerance with a view to saying that they should be kept in background, seen but not heard. It's reminiscent of "Don't ask, don't tell" by the US army.

And this is where the author makes one of the biggest mistakes. I lived and worked in Oxford for a number of years at the university. The university (both staff and students) has a high proportion of gay people, and there is absolutely no difference in they way they are treated by people in this part of the world. This is an enlightened, educated city. Just like most other places in the UK in the 21st Century, it doesn't even cross most peoples' minds to make any distinction between 2 men being together, or a man and a woman, or two women. The outdated language used in this book does not exist in the real Oxford.

Shame on Pearl Hewitt for agreeing to narrate this book.

I feel I've wandered into a bygone age in this book ... and not in a good way ... an age of thinly disguised racism, homophobia and other prejudice. It left a very bitter taste in my mouth.

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4 puddings & a funeral

I enjoyed the book although I wish the main character had more of a back bone & could say ‘NO’ & mean it.

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1 person found this helpful