The Last Detective cover art

The Last Detective

An Inspector Peter Diamond Investigation

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The Last Detective

Written by: Peter Lovesey
Narrated by: Simon Prebble
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About this listen

Detective Superintendent Peter Diamond is the last detective: a genuine gumshoe, committed to door-stopping and deduction rather than fancy computer gadgetry. So when the naked body of a woman is found floating in the weeds in a lake near Bath with no one willing to identify her, no marks, and no murder weapon, his sleuthing abilities are tested to the limit. Struggling with a jigsaw puzzle of truant choirboys, teddy bears, a black Mercedes and Jane Austen memorabilia, Diamond persists even after the powers-that-be have decided there's enough evidence to make a conviction.

©2006 Peter Lovesey. All rights reserved. (P)2010 BBC Audiobooks America
Police Procedural Mystery Fiction Detective
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What listeners say about The Last Detective

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Entertaining

This is the first time I've listened to this author and will continue to look for more of this series to download.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Enjoyable

Most enjoyable. Story of characters with depth and likeable. I was intrigued with the mystery and that kept the chapters rolling along. A very good listen.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Endless

I never thought this book would end. I found it excruciatingly dull, the pacing was glacier like with so much irrelevant detail. Too much for me. Would not recommend

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Atypical

Not what I was expecting but not bad. I had been looking for usual British police police procedural with detectives, police, SOCO’s etc. This was completely different. Went off on tangents in to a couple of characters lives for quite some time, but still remained interesting in its own way.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Original Storytelling Technique Works

Peter Lovesey leads readers through a twisty-turny investigation after a naked corpse is found floating in a lake near historic Bath, England. The mystery itself - involving infidelity accusations and competing passive-aggressive personalities - is relatively pedestrian.. but Lovesey tells it from multiple perspectives: giving witnesses, investigators, and suspects their own sections in the book to relate the events surrounding the murder. Rather than fracturing the narrative (as might be expected), the method underlines the drip-drip-drip revelations that drive the mystery and keep readers turning pages.
There's nothing particularly spectacular about Lovesey's writing - and his gruff drummed-out-of-the-police-force Inspector Peter Diamond isn't all that intriguing, imo - but this is a story that caught my attention.

Of note: truly outstanding reading from Simon Prebble doubtless improved my impression of the book. Having listened to Mr. Prebble a number of times, I can testify that his diction, timing, timbre, cadence, and tone are typically spot-on.. but his voice-acting is especially notable on this project. Prebble's baritone interpretation of the brooding Diamond, for example, is pitch-perfect.

Altogether, 'The Last Detective' merits 8.5 stars out of 10. If you can get it as a 'Plus' option, DO NOT HESITATE. It would be a great distraction for a long drive or a couple of boring night shifts. Even if they ask for a Credit, you should spend it.
As for me.. on to Book Two of the 'Peter Diamond' series (I hope that Lovesey continues with his "Section-by-Section POV" innovation)

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Not bad

I like the narrator, but found the story kind of draggy. A bit to long and to much repeating of scenes. I kept wanting to bring up things that the police were missing. I must admit about 1/2 way through I figured the ending.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Narration was great.

The plot gets a bit hyperextended at times but still I thought it was a very good listen.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Refreshingly different

Very engaging with several plot twists. Wonderful narration. Lovely descriptions of historical aspects of Bath, UK.

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