Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

Offer ends May 1st, 2024 11:59PM GMT. Terms and conditions apply.
£7.99/month after 3 months. Renews automatically.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Queen of Hearts cover art

Queen of Hearts

By: Rhys Bowen
Narrated by: Katherine Kellgren
Get this deal Try for £0.00

Pay £99p/month. After 3 months pay £7.99/month. Renews automatically. See terms for eligibility.

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £18.99

Buy Now for £18.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Listeners also enjoyed...

Masked Ball at Broxley Manor cover art
Evans Above cover art
Above the Bay of Angels cover art
The Victory Garden cover art
A Very English Murder cover art
The Tuscan Child cover art
Murder at the Dolphin Hotel: A Gripping Cozy Historical Mystery cover art
Where the Sky Begins cover art
A Quiet Life in the Country cover art
The Mills of God cover art
This Rough Magic cover art
Death Among the Diamonds cover art
The Deadly Mystery of the Missing Diamonds cover art
The Mysterious Howling cover art
Murder on the Lusitania cover art
The Bookshop Murder cover art

Editor reviews

Editors Select, August 2014 - Usually when I choose a book as my Editors Select pick, I read it in advance of the audio being completed so that I am confident in my recommendation. Not so with this month’s book. Rhys Bowen and Katherine Kellgren team up again for the next installment of my all-time favorite series, and – truly – audio is the best way to experience it. I have no doubt that this book will be as wonderful as its predecessors. I’ll say it again: if you haven’t listened to the Her Royal Spyness series, do so immediately. Utterly charming and totally un-put-down-able, you’ll join me in counting down the days to each book’s new release. —Emily, Audible Editor

Summary

Lady Georgiana Rannoch, 35th in line for the British throne, knows how to play the part of an almost royal - but now she's off to Hollywood, where she must reprise her role as sleuth or risk starring in an all-too-convincing death scene...

My mother, the glamorous and much-married actress, is hearing wedding bells once again - which is why she must hop across the pond for a quickie divorce in Reno. To offer my moral support, and since all expenses are paid by her new hubby-to-be, Max, I agree to make the voyage with her.

Crossing the Atlantic, with adventure in the air and wealthy men aboard, Mother all but forgets about Max and matrimony - especially when movie mogul Cy Goldman insists on casting her in his next picture.

Meanwhile, I find myself caught up in the secret investigation of a suspected jewel thief. Lucky for me, the lead investigator happens to be my dashing beau, Darcy!

Mother's movie and Darcy's larceny lead everyone to Cy's Hollywood home, where the likes of Charlie Chaplin are hanging about and there’s enough romantic intrigue to fill a double feature. But we hardly get a chance to work out the sleeping arrangements before Cy turns up dead - as if there wasn’t enough drama already.

©2014 Janet Quin-Harkin (P)2014 Audible Inc.

What listeners say about Queen of Hearts

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    94
  • 4 Stars
    37
  • 3 Stars
    14
  • 2 Stars
    4
  • 1 Stars
    1
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    95
  • 4 Stars
    23
  • 3 Stars
    11
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    2
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    80
  • 4 Stars
    34
  • 3 Stars
    12
  • 2 Stars
    3
  • 1 Stars
    1

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

This May As Well Be Book One

The exploits and adventures haven’t improved. Neither has Lady G grown up at all! She is still unbelievably foolish with: 1. Her maid. 2. Requesting money from her mother. 3. Not saying ANYTHING when men are making unacceptable advances to her. 4. Her maid! (I really do not like her)! There is no need to follow this series in order, which I have done until this point! I shall head straight to when she and Darcy plan to marry. Because, quite frankly, I’m now finding her character tedious and feeble. Furthermore, there is no story! As for the narrator. I like all of the accents and dialects that she achieves. They are all distinctive. I think that her success with Queenie’s accent is the reason I don’t like the character. However, I really can’t stand the way she becomes overly dramatic for the least little plot change! I find that grating. I’m glad for the introduction to the next book - that has decided me not to purchase it.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

4 people found this helpful

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

Not my favourite

Would you try another book written by Rhys Bowen or narrated by Katherine Kellgren?

I will probably try other Rhys Bowen books, but I really am not impressed with Katherine Kellgren anymore.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

The ending was a little flat, but that is something I have noticed in the last three or four books. It is almost as though a required number of words have to be written, so there is quite a lot of padding out.

What didn’t you like about Katherine Kellgren’s performance?

The hysterical nature of the reading is getting worse by the book. I doubt the great grandmother of our heroine would be very impressed as she is no longer acting as a lady should. Even Belinda has been screeching, which is very unlike her, though perhaps three accents that sound similar was probably asking too much.

Although I haven't been that keen on Darcy having an Irish accent, I have never heard a member of the Irish aristocracy have an Irish accent, but in this book it seemed to be all over the place.

Could you see Queen of Hearts being made into a movie or a TV series? Who would the stars be?

No.

Any additional comments?

Please get rid of that maid Queenie. She is becoming a real pain.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

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

Ripping Yarn

Usual good fun. But I did miss Georgia's Granddad. Darcy was as perfect as ever.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

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

So much fun!

I thoroughly enjoyed this! Usually when the characters in British novels make a visit to the US I just cringe because the audiobook accents are dreadful. However, this time the narrator was brilliant! All the accents sounded realistic and each one was recognisable from the rest. Katherine Kellgren is fantastic - as if I didn't know that by now! And I thoroughly enjoyed the story as well. Georgie and company just get better and better.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

Disappointing!

The first book in the series I found to be disappointing. Enjoyed all the previous yarns, but the narration spoiled this for me.
So strident and the accent was dreadful. Listening to the excerpt of the next book, sounds much better.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

Just getting grating now

Used to love these stories and was looking forward, but Queenie is just getting ridiculous now and really off putting to the whole story. Probably will return this book and not bother with the remainder of the series.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

Queen of Hearts

Lady Georgina is invited to accompany her mother to America, to get a divorce so she can marry her German industrialist. While there her mother is asked to star in a movie picture, when everything fills apart. Murder, fire and burglary all seem to happen leaving then with plenty of mysteries. Read brilliantly again by Katherine Kellgren.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Dragging on a bit.

Some dramatic change in fortune, with Darcy & Georgiana working on a more serious case...perhaps Germany, Max & the looming war playing a part? This novel was too predictable, and the characters shallow & stereotyped. Nevertheless a pleasant holiday read.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!