Queen of Hearts Audiobook By Rhys Bowen cover art

Queen of Hearts

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Queen of Hearts

By: Rhys Bowen
Narrated by: Katherine Kellgren
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About this listen

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.
Cozy Detective Fiction Historical Literary Fiction Mystery Women Sleuths Women's Fiction Feel-Good Witty
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Editorial 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

Featured Article: The Best Cozy Mysteries to Keep You Warm This Holiday Season


We’ve rounded up a list of some of the best cozy mystery audiobooks to help brighten up your winter listening. Here you'll find contemporary and historical cozies, classic whodunits and ingenious heist stories. While varying in tone, plot, and setting, these picks all share an irresistible holiday atmosphere. You'll find snowstorms galore, bakeries full of tasty holiday treats, glittering get-togethers, and picturesque English villages decked out in their holiday finest.

What listeners say about Queen of Hearts

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Enjoyable Read

Enjoy listening to this series. This particular book portrayed Americans in a bad light. A reputation brought about to our bad behavior overseas.


If you want a good series to listen to, with light-hearted intrigue, this is the series for you.

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1 person found this helpful

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

Always fun

Fun easy listen. Can't wait for more with Darcy and Georgie it's time they get engaged and have adventures as a couple

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Mystery & Downtown Abby Fans will love these books

If you could sum up Queen of Hearts in three words, what would they be?

Funny, entertaining, heartwarming.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Queen of Hearts?

Every interaction between Georgie, the main character, and her rich self-absorbed mother is fascinating. In this book, they are traveling from England to Nevada so Mommy can get a divorce from her 4th husband. They take a ship to New York and then a train cross country. So many great scenes, conversations. It is a trip to an interesting time in history--1930's before WWII.

Have you listened to any of Katherine Kellgren’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I've listened to all of Katherine Kellgren's performances of Rys Bowen's "Royal Spyness" series and I believe she makes the books better. Her accents, and ability to switch from Scottish to proper English to cockney English to Irish to upper class American, is stunning. I'm now looking for other books she narrates regardless of the author.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Each of the Royal Spyness books has made me laugh out loud a number of times and I for the rest of the time I am just riveted by story and by the narration. I usual finish these books in two days or less.

Any additional comments?

Love Audible!! Thanks to Audible for introducing me to these books. I don't know that I would have ever found them if I had not been browsing your offerings. And what a wonderful pleasure they have been--all of the Royal Spyness series.

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

Entertaining

Good addition to the series. Bowen does a great job of moving her British characters to an American setting. In the process we get a good view of early 20th century America and the wonders and challenges it presented to foreigners. The plot, continued character development, and settings are all well advanced in this book.

Kellgren does an excellent job of narration! Men's and women's voices and the various British and American accents are rendered with consummate skill. A pleasure to listen too.

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

Awesome book

I really enjoy these books and the performance is fantastic. This particular book was very entertaining and I love the time period it is set in.
There is only one little drawback with these books and that is that since the performance is so fantastic with so many different voices for different people, the volume varies quite a lot so one has to set the volume rather loud to hear the lovest character voices. This means it's hard to listen to it before bed. That being said all the different voices made of course by the same performer really adds to the feeling of reality.

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

Love the narrator

The narrator definitely makes these books. I love the accents; she does an amazing job. Sometimes Georgie is dense batter mysteries when the answer is so obvious, so that irritates me. All in all, I’m ready to get to them just getting married already.

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

Still love the series

Another fun chapter in Lady Georgiana’s adventures. It was fun to bring it to Hollywood.

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

Things need to happen already.

I'm giving this a 3 star because I have enjoyed the series but I was disappointed by this one for several reasons. Mainly though it's that the personal stories aren't progressing. When will find out what Darcy does, and how is it that he gets these crazy dangerous jobs with not enough pay to even buy food? I'll continue reading but I do hope that more happens in the personal aspects.

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9 people found this helpful

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

Not Bowen's best

What did you love best about Queen of Hearts?

The narration, Queenie, and Georgie's reactions to Queenie.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

I just didn't care that much. The mystery was kind of weak.

What about Katherine Kellgren’s performance did you like?

She is fabulous. She makes the series.

Any additional comments?

I'm with everyone else about the Georgie and Darcy lack of sex storyline. Also, stick to the UK or at least Europe. We're invested in the story of a British aristocrat, and all that this entails.

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6 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Katherine Kellgren is flawless

The narrator is about as important as the author when it comes to audio books I find. Katherine Kellgren is consistently flawless in her performances. I'll listen to anything she narrates! Love this series too.

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1 person found this helpful