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Piranha to Scurfy and Other Stories

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Piranha to Scurfy and Other Stories

By: Ruth Rendell
Narrated by: Lindsay Duncan
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About this listen

A collection of nine beautifully crafted, terrifying and intriguing tales of spine-tingling psychological terror and suspense from Ruth Rendell.The title story, is about a man whose life, in a sense, is a book. Life for Ambrose Ribbon is lonely, paranoid and obsessive without his mother, yet there is one book that he associates particularly with her: Volume VIII of the Encyclopedia Britannica, Piranha to Scurfy'. It marked a very significant moment in their relationship. But now that she is gone, Ambrose is left to spend his days reading and critiquing novels and writing vicious letters to their authors, pointing out these errors of fact and usage. No one can blame him, this is after all what his mother taught him. Then, one day he comes upon a book that attacks him.

©2000 Kingsmarkham Enterprises Ltd (P)2014 Audible, Inc. Anthologies & Short Stories Crime Fiction Mystery Short Stories Suspense Thriller & Suspense Fiction Exciting

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Critic reviews

"Multiple Edgar and Gold Dagger award winner Rendell displays her mastery of spine-tingling suspense in her first short story collection since Blood Lines." (Publishers Weekly)
"These short fictions showcase Ruth Rendell's many gifts, among them the ability to evoke a mood and trap a reader in the deepest recesses of a character's psyche." (Amazon.com review)
All stars
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I am not a great fan of the genre but really enjoyed this collection of stories.
A variety of lengths and topics and all beautifully narrated by the fabulous Lindsay Duncan.

Enjoyable collection of stories

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I am disappointed the audio book was not divided into “tracks” encompassing each individual story. Enticing fiction marred by careless use of technology

An enjoyable collection, but . . .

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I really enjoyed all the different stories they were really easy to listen to some even relatable.
Can't wait to start the next book

A great listen

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Clever working of a number of themes to do with utopian ideas of life. A pleasure to read.

Fascinating

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This is my first experience of Ruth Rendell and I loved it! Clever and interesting plots that focus on the dark side of human nature. The narration was excellent too.

Much better then expected

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Ruth Rendell never fails to surprise me! Excellent shorter stories here and a couple departing from her usual genre.

Five stars all round!

Unique stories!

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Ruth R really was multi talented. Her short stories are mostly exquisite although the longer one went on a bit. I enjoyed the gentle narration very easy to listen to soporific at times!

Rather Roald Dahl like thrillers

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Superb writer. Beautifully read. Not a snuggled up at bedtime listen!! Winning combination of womein

Scary stuff

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The two longer stories are really good, though some of the others are a bit slight. Lindsay Duncan is a terrific reader.

Great narration - two excellent stories

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The stories are all sufficiently long that the characters have time to develop, and the plot twists therefore feel fully earned. Lindsay Duncan’s reading is nuanced and compelling- she captures the underlying humour and irony, as well as credibly slipping into the characters’s minds. Unlike some readers, she does not strain to put on accents or idiosyncratic voices but nonetheless conveys each character distinctly and convincingly. Perfect pairing with the excellent writing.

Wonderful stories brilliantly read

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