Xmas 2002 Dexter Box Set: Amazon.ca: Colin Dexter: Books

Product Description

This audio box set contains three crime mysteries by Colin Dexter, all read by Kevin Whately, who plays the long-suffering Sergeant Lewis in the Inspector Morse TV series. The titles are: "Last Bus to Woodstock", "Last Seen Wearing" and "The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn".

Ingram

In the first Inspector Morse mystery, Morse must use all of his skills to solve the murder of Sylvia Kaye, a beautiful hitchhiker whose bludgeoned body is found outside of a pub in Woodstock, near Oxford. Reprint. --This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.

See all Product Description

Tag this product

(What's this?)

Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items.

Customer Reviews

6 Reviews

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

Average Customer Review

4.3 out of 5 stars (6 customer reviews)

Share your thoughts with other customers:

Create your own review

Most helpful customer reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars � � � -- -- -- � � �, July 8 2007

By

Craobh Rua "Craobh Rua" (N. Ireland) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Last Bus To Woodstock (Paperback)

Colin Dexter was born in 1930 and, over the course of his writing career, has won CWA Gold Dagger and Silver Dagger awards. "Last Bus to Woostock" was his debut novel, was first published in 1975 and introduced the world to the famous Inspector Morse.

However, the book's victim is introduced before the hero. Sylvia Kaye and a friend are travelling into Ocford city centre for a night out - unfortunately, believing they had missed the last bus, the pair had hitched into town. Several hours later, Sylvia's body is found in the car park at the back of the Black Prince, with the murder weapon - a heavy tyre spanner - conveniently lying beside her. The case sees Morse paired up with Sergeant Lewis for the first time. The pair seem to have little in common : where Lewis is married and reads the Daily Mirror, Morse is single, lives alone and enjoys the cryptic crosswords in the Times. Morse is fussy about spelling and grammar, enjoys classical music and is partial to a few drinks. The crime scene, being a pub, would appear to be a case of the Inspector mixing work and pleasure - and, although he isn't supposed to drink on the job, he happily bends that rule once in a while. (He also seems to take great pleasure in refusing to allow Lewis do the same). When the investigation gets up and running, Morse is very curious about two people in particular : Sylvia's friend - who, strangely, remains anonymous and doesn't come forward - and whoever it was picked the pair up.

"Last Bus to Woodstock" is quite possibly the politest murder-mystery book I have ever read - for example, Morse's arrival at the scene of the crime is announced with the exclamation "How he hated sex murders !". There didn't really seem to be much method to the investigation - it's built on assumptions and leaps of faith - while I found it a little odd there was no apparent lab work. (The murder weapon, which was found at the scene, was roundly ignored !). I realise the book was written in the 1970s, but surely some fingerprinting and forensics work would have been available - even in Oxford? Overall, the book is a little slow and plodding, and by the time the book reached its climax - where Morse revealed all - I really didn't care all that much. Based on Morse's popularity, I can only assume the series improves drastically as it goes along.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews

Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Report abuse

3.0 out of 5 stars "And now, for your entertainment and delight, Inspector ...", July 31 2000

By

"theodosia" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Last Bus to Woodstock (Mass Market Paperback)

I have known of Inspector Morse (the hero(?)) of this book, for years through TV, so I had a set ideas of what he, and his cases, were like before I read this book. I should not have been so narrow minded. The plot appears quite simple, and at the start, boring. A young, somewhat "tarty" girl gets nastily murdered outside an Oxford pub. She was seen before the murder with a female companion hitch hiking. The obvious suspect (the owner of the car which picks the girls up) comes forward...and all hell breaks loose. The story is quite difficult to follow and slow, but the character of Morse, the Inspector in charge, and his relationship with his new "sidekick" Sergent Lewis, make the book good, and quite compelling. The "shock" ending is not so great a shock, but more a sad one. What makes the story better than average is Dexter's description of Morse's character and the way his mind works, his little quirks and habits. For a first book in a series it is slow, but still compelling enough to make me want to read more. I would not recommend this book if you are one for skipping ahead, or you get bored easily. The slow build up is something that adds to the whole book, if not the basic plot.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews

Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Report abuse

5.0 out of 5 stars Great start to a great series, May 30 2000

By

J. C. Birchley (Wuerenlingen, AG Switzerland) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: Last Bus to Woodstock (Mass Market Paperback)

I confess to an unfair advantage .... I was living near Oxford when Colin Dexter first introduced his character, Morse. Dexter was not well known at the time but 'Last Bus ...' was a big success locally. I remember walking or driving the same streets that came to life in his book and I was immediately captivated by the way he brought out the atmosphere of the city and the guilty 'looking over the shoulder' mannerism of the characters. Yes, this was the first of the Morse books and a superb launchpad for those to follow. The way he introduced the setting, the characters to his new readershhip ... Of course, the rest is history. Curiously, I still think this is the best of his books.

Terence Hardiman must have been a perfect choice as story reader - he appeared as one of the characters in the TV production - and would have made a good 'Morse'. Gems of literary devices are many, but I particularly liked the bit about the batsman checking the scorebook. A bit like when another character in a different TV series, coincidentally also played by Hardiman, opens an envelope to read the one word denouement, 'Voltaire.' Have I given it away? I think not, but if you can deduce the guilty party from this, you could do Morse's job better than he can. Enjoy.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews

Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Report abuse

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review

› See all 6 customer reviews on Amazon.ca

Want to see more reviews on this item?

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 20 reviews 4.0 out of 5 stars

Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Morse at his best!
Morse never fails to keep you hooked as you try to keep pace with his ever flowing mind. Colin Dexter is a pure genious in the art of writing a thriller - his novels are... Read more

Published on April 17 1999 by melissa@unitekmiyachi.com

5.0 out of 5 stars A terrific mystery!
You won't regret this read. Just when you think you know how it is going to end, you are fooled.Good plot. Good characters. Great dialogue. Read more

Published on May 7 1998 by Gerald Lipsky