Lord Peter Wimsey with Harriet Vane, Book 1-4 – Dorothy L. Sayers Free Audiobook

Written by Dorothy L. Sayers
Read by Ian Carmichael
Format: MP3
Bitrate: 64 Kbps
Unabridged

Strong Poison (1930)
Lord Peter Wimsey Series, Book 6
Lord Peter Wimsey/Harriet Vane, Book 1
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
Release date: December 14, 2007
Duration: 07:29:11

Strong Poison is the first of a series of Lord Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane mysteries in which their complex romantic relationship is revealed in detail. This superb classic was originally published in 1930.

Dashing detective Lord Peter Wimsey is caught up in the murder trial of mystery writer Harriet Vane.

Lord Peter Wimsey comes to the trial of Harriet Vane for a glimpse at one of the most engaging murder cases London has seen in years. Unfortunately for the detective, the crime’s details are distractingly salacious, and there is little doubt that the woman will be found guilty. A slightly popular mystery novelist, she stands accused of poisoning her fiancé, a literary author and well-known advocate of free love. Over the course of a few weeks, she bought strychnine, prussic acid, and arsenic, and when her lover died the police found enough poison in his veins to kill a horse.

As Peter looks on, he not only falls in love with the accused but eagerly helps with Harriet’s defense when the first trial ends in a hung jury. Will she be convicted and executed for the crime, or can he save her life and win her hand in marriage?

Have His Carcase (1932)
Lord Peter Wimsey Series, Book 8
Lord Peter Winsey/Harriet Vane, Book 2
Publisher: BBC America/Chivers 1999
Length: 13hrs 49min

Harriet Vane has gone on vacation to forget her recent murder trial and, more importantly, to forget the man who cleared her name—the dapper, handsome, and maddening Lord Peter Wimsey. She is alone on a beach when she spies a man lying on a rock, surf lapping at his ankles. She tries to wake him, but he doesn’t budge. His throat has been cut, and his blood has drained out onto the sand.

As the tide inches forward, Harriet makes what observations she can and photographs the scene. Finally, she goes for the police, but by the time they return the body has gone. Only one person can help her discover how the poor man died at the beach: Lord Peter, the amateur sleuth who won her freedom and her heart in one fell swoop.

HAVE HIS CARCASE is the second of Sayer’s famous mystery series to involve Harriet Vane, the independent writer with whom Lord Peter Wimsey falls in love. This time Harriet stumbles across a body on a lonely beach, and Lord Peter rides to the rescue. The book contains a great deal of dialogue spoken by a large cast of characters; this plethora of voices poses a real challenge to any narrator. Ian Charmichael, the well-known British actor who played Wimsey in the BBC Television series, for the most part handles the challenge admirably. He stumbles only during conversations between Wimsey and Vane, when it can be difficult to tell who’s speaking. Nonethless, this classic is an outright pleasure. R.E.K. © AudioFile 2000,

Gaudy Night (1935)
Lord Peter Wimsey Series, Book 12
Lord Peter Wimsey/Harriet Vane, book 3
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
Release date: July 1, 2008
Duration: 15:30:43

When Harriet Vane attends her Oxford reunion, known as the “Gaudy,” the prim academic setting is haunted by a rash of bizarre pranks: scrawled obscenities, burnt effigies, and poison-pen letters—including one that says, “Ask your boyfriend with the title if he likes arsenic in his soup.”

Some of the notes threaten murder and one of them involves a long Latin quotation, which makes Harriet suspect that the perpetrator is probably a member of the Senior Common Room. But which of the apparently rational, respectable dons could be committing such crazed acts? When a desperate undergraduate, at her wits’ end after receiving a series of particularly savage letters, attempts to drown herself, Harriet decides that it is time to ask Lord Peter Wimsey for help. And when the mystery is finally solved, she is faced with an agonizing decision: Should she, after five years of rejecting his proposals, finally agree to marry Lord Peter?

GAUDY NIGHT is one of Sayers’s most famous mysteries, and narrator Ian Carmichael does a splendid job personifying each of its well-drawn characters. The plot offers a lot of activity and even more dialogue, which Carmichael enhances with his gorgeous delivery. When Harriet Vane returns to her alma mater, Oxford, she finds herself in the middle of an escalating campaign of hatred. She calls Lord Peter Wimsey to assist as the attacks become physical, putting everyone in danger. Carmichael beautifully handles the eminently quotable Wimsey, along with a great deal of emotion, a suicidal young student, and the scouts (servants) who are vital to the story. He even treats listeners to a moving duet performed by Peter and Harriet in a lighter moment. A wonderful choice, even for those who are already familiar with the great Dorothy L. Sayers. S.G.B. (c) AudioFile 2004

Busman’s Honeymoon (1937)
Series: Lord Peter Wimsey, Book 13
The Lord Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane Mysteries, Book 4
Length: 12 hrs and 42 mins
Release date: 12-14-18
Publisher: 2012 AudioGO, Blackstone Audio, Inc.

It took several near-death experiences for Lord Peter Wimsey to convince Harriet Vane to be his wife, but she has finally relented. When the dapper detective marries Britain’s most popular mystery author—just a few short years after rescuing her from the hangman’s noose—the press could not be more excited. But Lord Peter and his bride have no interest in spending their wedding night surrounded by reporters. They sneak out of their own reception to begin their honeymoon early, out of sight of the world. Unfortunately, for some couples, calamity is inescapable.

On their 1st morning together, the newlyweds discover the house’s caretaker bludgeoned to death in the manor’s basement. If they thought finding a few minutes alone was difficult, they’re up against even steeper odds. In a house full of suspects, identifying the killer won’t be easy.

Why would anyone have wanted to kill old Mr. Noakes? What dark secrets had he to hide?

Note – Track 1 includes a dedication and a Prothalamion, or wedding song, track 21- 23 is an Epithalamion or ode to a bride….. I had to look it up.