Preview
  • By a Spider's Thread

  • A Tess Monaghan Novel
  • By: Laura Lippman
  • Narrated by: Barbara Rosenblat
  • Length: 9 hrs and 42 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (176 ratings)

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By a Spider's Thread

By: Laura Lippman
Narrated by: Barbara Rosenblat
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Publisher's summary

Mark Rubin's family is missing - and the police won't get involved because all the evidence indicates that his wife left willingly. So the successful Baltimore furrier turns to Tess Monaghan, hoping she can help him find his wife and three children.

Tess doesn't quite know what to make of Rubin, who doles out vitally important information in grudging dribs and drabs. According to her client, he and his beautiful wife, Natalie, had a flawless, happy marriage. Yet one day, without any warning or explanation, Natalie gathered up their children and vanished.

Tapping in to a network of fellow investigators spread across the country, Tess is soon able to locate the runaway wife and the children, who have been moving furtively from state to state, town to town. But the Rubins are not alone. A mysterious man is traveling with them, a stranger described by witnesses as "handsome" and "charming" but otherwise unremarkable. And the deeper Tess digs, the more she suspects that the motive behind Natalie's reckless flight lies somewhere in the gap between what Rubin will not say and what he refuses to believe.

An intricate web of betrayal and vengeance is already beginning to unfold, as memory begets rage, and rage begets desperation...and murder. Suddenly, much more than one man's future happiness and stubborn pride are in peril. For the lives of three innocent children are dangling by the slenderest of threads.

©2009 Laura Lippman (P)2016 HarperCollins Publishers
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What listeners say about By a Spider's Thread

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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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

I like Tess a lot

And this is a Really Good Tess. Good story, with interesting divided narration, that actually works pretty well. The subplot about the wedding is kind of a drag - I just don't care, that's the 4 stars instead of 5 - but there isn't too much of it. On the whole, this is well paced, interesting, and well worth the listen.

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

so clever and unpredictable

Lippman's writing style is so unique. Tess Monahan 's character is full bodied, fresh, and realistic with a wonderful dry wit. She could be one of my best girlfriends, me. I especially love that she doesn't know everything, isn't some savant, perfect crime fighting machine but rather human in her person and profession. excellent

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3 people 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

Suspenseful and clever

Always like this author and her Baltimore tid bits mixed into the story. Good psychological drama

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

Enjoy this series and absolutely admire Barbara Rosenblat’s skills!

For those who didn’t like the switch to Barbara Rosenblat as a narrator...STICK WITH HER! She has unfortunately passed away recently. I have listened to over 1,500 audio books - Barbara Rosenblat is one of THE BEST NARRATORS I have EVER had the pleasure of listening to. Her talent is amazing. Obviously love the series by Laura Lippman as well!

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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

Another Hit!!!

I loved and enjoyed this book...can’t wait to start my next Tess Monaghan novel

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

Realitively good book

This book was pretty good, has some pretty foul language in parts of it. It would have been better without that.

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