A series that just gets better

Cocaine Blues is the first book in the Phryne Fisher series, but one of the last to be published on audible. Which may be a good thing, because the series gets blazingly better as it progresses. The series is interesting because it addresses a wide range of people and ideas grinding against each other, but the best of whom cheerfully flow through Phryne's dining room, parlor, and (yes) sometimes her bedroom. I never appreciated, until I began this series the amazing social changes that took place in a very short time between the beginning of the 1900s to the end of the roaring twenties. F. Scott Fitzgerald's Bernice did more than just bob her hair.

Phryne Fisher is a young woman living on the edge of a world changing from the Victorian ideas of women as angels in the home, to the young women who drive ambulances in World War I and are thus allowed/forced to do and see things that even five years earlier would be unthinkable for most females. Phryne herself goes from a child in Australian poverty being called "hey you", to a young woman in England called the Hon. Miss Fisher. Her reasons for returning to Australia would make Agatha Christies proud. As the series goes along we find that she has a very good time in spite of any curves life throws her. The books are well researched as to historical accuracy, and I can't wait to see how Kerry Greenwood goes from the roaring twenties to a very angry thirties, and what Phryne will do next.

75 people found this helpful

I'm totally hooked!

I started listening to the Phryne Fisher mysteries after watching the television series on Netflix. I was disappointed to find out the series was cancelled.

So I decided to listen to the books.

I'm up to book 17 and expect to finish the series in a month or so.

The books are different from the TV shows, but not disappointing. The stories are complex and fun. Phryne is more sexual than the TV show and travels all around Australia.

The narrator, Stephanie Daniels, is one of the best I've ever listened to. She does so many variations of English dialects: cultured British, Australian, Cockney, Irish, Scottish, the insanely difficult Welsh, as well as a myriad of Russian, Polish, Austrian, German, French, and (gasp!) even Yiddish!

The books, especially Ms. Daniels, have done something I never would have expected—gotten me to forget losing the TV series.

I'm posting this in the first book because I can't be expected to keep writing the same review for all the books in the series.

(PS: I'm such a nut for the series that my phone ringtone is the first few bars of the TV show theme.)

65 people found this helpful

Just the right amount of cheek and naughtiness

In the first book of Greenwood's Phryne Fisher Mysteries, we're introduced to our heroine, who might at first be mistaken for a wealthy English aristocrat, though we learn she was born in Australia where she lived in poverty with her parents until the passing of a rich relation in England. Phryne, all grown up and living in England, now has more money than she knows what to do with, and is wondering what she should do with her life, since marriage isn't an option she especially looks forward to. After she uncovers a jewel thief during a dinner party, a couple asks her to investigate their son-in-law, as they suspect he might be poisoning their daughter who lives in Melbourne. Phryne doesn't hesitate to leave boring London society behind and make her way to the colonies for a bit of adventure and excitement. She finds plenty there when she encounters a communist taxi driver, meets a gorgeous Russian male dancer and is on the trail of a cocaine ring that seems to be operating out of a Turkish bath house.

This series is firmly set in the roaring 1920s, but there's no mistaking that it was written in modern times. The doctor friend heading the women's hospital in Melbourne is a feminist who uses language to describe female troubles and anatomy that would have made a 20s female author blush. Phryne isn't afraid to use her feminine allure with an attitude that harks back to the flapper girls of old, who could have taught our modern femme fatales a lesson or two in the art of seduction. You can't help but like a girl with attitude who is also kind and caring, and takes such obvious delight in dressing to perfection for every occasion. This is pure chick lit and no mistake, all good fun and good times, with just the right amount of cheek and naughtiness.

58 people found this helpful

Brilliant however you find it!

I was introduced to the Phryne Fisher series via the excellent ABC TV adaption. However, if you think that having seen the TV series spoils the books for you then think again! The plots of the books are quite different to that of the TV adaption and, whilst I could see the origins of the episodes in the books, I was completely enthralled by the books. In fact, it was quite fascinating to consider the differences and similarities while listening.

Without taking anything away from Kerry Greenwood's masterful writing, I can say without any hesitation that Stephanie Daniel's reading made the series come alive for me. Her style captures the character of Phryne perfectly and her versatile voice somehow manages to give every single character their own distinct recognisable voice.

I cannot recommend this series more highly. You will not regret your purchase!

34 people found this helpful

Light-Hearted, Amusing Fare

This is the beginning of Phryne Fisher's adventures. A wealthy flapper in 1920's England, who began life in poverty in Australia, Phryne decides to battle boredom and ennui by going back to Australia and becoming a private investigator. All very light, but with a kernel of serious concern, and portraying 20's Australia very well. The story is interesting, the writing is very good and often tongue-in-cheek, and Stephanie Daniel provides exactly the right narration -- the perfect inflection and tone of voice for a rich, well-educated, sophisticated woman of the world in the time period portrayed, with an expert delivery of ironic and humorous lines. The first Phryne Fisher book I read was one later in the series, and I enjoyed it so much that I am now working on listening to the entire series in order.

This is the sort of book which will be enjoyed by people who like Amelia Peobody books -- the same sort of independent heroine with an eccentric view of the world, all done with fun and humor. A great escapist experience.

30 people found this helpful

I’m hooked and contagious

This series is not PG-13 since life isn’t either. It is written in Australian English and not translated. As with all series I find some of the books more appealing than others. The author is knowledgeable in many areas and incorporates research into the stories making the books more sumptuous reading. The story of how the main character at her christening is not named after a Nymph as initially intended but after a courtesan nicely sums up her character and the authors skills in shaping characters with substance and depth. The books are detective stories with several plots developing simultaneously with interesting and surprising details. Several of the characters and their lives are carried on through more than one book wherefore they ought to be read chronologically. Who would have thought that the English aristocracy, Russian revolution, French cocaine and Australian abortion laws could be so exciting and make you chuckle? This author can write.

25 people found this helpful

Good Story, Disappointing Reader

I should start by saying that I'm a big fan of Kerry Greenwood's Phryne Fisher mysteries. Cocaine Blues is the first of these and I was looking forward to experiencing it as an audiobook. I have to say that it was a disappointing experience. Stephanie Daniel fails to relay the liveliness of either the story or of the main character. Some of the accents were slightly suspect, too. Why on earth would Lydia, daughter of the well-to-do Colonel, speak like a cockney? Her accent ought to have cut glass. Small details like this, combined with Daniel's failure to engage with the story, failed to engage this listener. A good story, spoiled in the telling.

24 people found this helpful

A Fun First!

More Phryne Fisher, please!!!!! This is the first of Kerry Greenwood's Phryne Fisher series, and it is just packed with adventure, style, mystery & fun. Anyone familiar with the series will notice that the earlier books in the series are shorter (and this one was no exception), but they are all well worth the time taken to listen to them. And I think that this was definately worth the credit spent. There are still a few books in the series that are not on Audible, and some have not been produced yet by Bolinda, but there IS a brand new one in the series. So I'll say it again ... to both Audible & Bolinda ... More Phryne Fisher, please!!!!!

24 people found this helpful

Narrator drives me crazy

What did you like best about Cocaine Blues? What did you like least?

I almost couldn't finish this book because the narrator made me crazy. I felt like I could hear her swallowing every other minute. Surely an audible book narrator can find a way to combat this problem. Perhaps the producers can edit that horrible sound out? It is so distracting!

Would you be willing to try another one of Stephanie Daniel’s performances?

No way.

10 people found this helpful

Miss Fisher begins

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

The inimitable Phryne Fisher is an absolute delight, and this book sets her in her time (the roaring twenties), city (the not so roaring Melbourne) and introduces us to her entourage. The plot is a bit clunky at times, but Kerry's series is enchanting and it is fun to see how it all began.

Would you recommend Cocaine Blues to your friends? Why or why not?

Absolutely.

Did Stephanie Daniel do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?

She did a very good job overall.

Did Cocaine Blues inspire you to do anything?

I have already listened to other books in the series, and I am delighted to say that a new TV series is being produced in Melbourne.

Any additional comments?

Get yourself immersed in Phyrne Fisher's world. She's a delight.

9 people found this helpful