Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

Offer ends May 1st, 2024 11:59PM GMT. Terms and conditions apply.
£7.99/month after 3 months. Renews automatically.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Broken Promise cover art

Broken Promise

By: Linwood Barclay
Narrated by: Quincy Dunn Baker, Brian O'Neill
Get this deal Try for £0.00

Pay £99p/month. After 3 months pay £7.99/month. Renews automatically. See terms for eligibility.

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Listeners also enjoyed...

The Hunt Club cover art
Hallowed Murder cover art
Never Look Back cover art
The Good Girl cover art
Her Last Day cover art
One Last Child cover art
The Short Drop cover art
The Deep, Deep Snow cover art

Summary

The morning it all started, newspaper reporter David Harwood had plenty to worry about. A single parent with no job, forced to return with his young son to the small town of Promise Falls to live with his parents, the future wasn't looking too rosy.

So when his mother asked him to look in on his cousin, Marla, who was still not quite right after losing her baby, it was almost a relief to put the disaster his own life had become to one side. The relief wouldn't last long.

When he gets to Marla's house he's disturbed to find a smear of blood on the front door. He's even more disturbed to find Marla nursing a baby, a baby she claims was delivered to her "by an angel". And when, soon after, a woman's body is discovered across town, stabbed to death, with her own baby missing, it looks as if Marla has done something truly terrible.

But while the evidence seems overwhelming, David just can't believe that his cousin is a murderer. In which case, who did kill Rosemary Gaynor? And why did they then take her baby and give it to Marla?

With the police convinced they have an open and shut case, it's up to David to find out what really happened, but he soon discovers that the truth could be even more disturbing....

©2015 Linwood Barclay (P)2015 Recorded Books LLC

What listeners say about Broken Promise

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    325
  • 4 Stars
    220
  • 3 Stars
    65
  • 2 Stars
    15
  • 1 Stars
    14
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    351
  • 4 Stars
    163
  • 3 Stars
    39
  • 2 Stars
    8
  • 1 Stars
    1
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    278
  • 4 Stars
    191
  • 3 Stars
    73
  • 2 Stars
    19
  • 1 Stars
    5

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Classic Barclay !

Good story, good narration, and it looks like there may be a sequel. Excellent listen !

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

11 people found this helpful

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

Engaging story, excellent narration.

Really held my interest from beginning to end, the pace never flagged. Haven't read a Lynwood Barclay for some time, and this is one of his better books. Might try another.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

10 people found this helpful

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

Really not sure about this one

If I'd bought this in print form, it's one I'd have speed read just to find out what happened. It's quite a good story line but I felt it was written in a superficial way...as if we were observing the story and characters from a distance rather than being drawn into it. Has put me off anything else by the author unless I needed something for a beach holiday.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

8 people found this helpful

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

Very enjoyable

Hi great easy listen, lots of different threads but the outcomes were a little predictable

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

8 people found this helpful

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

Broken Promise. Make a promise to yourself. Buy it

What made the experience of listening to Broken Promise the most enjoyable?

I've never been disappointed with Linwood Barclay novels, paper book or audio. So I knew the same would apply here before the download....the anticipation was duly rewarded.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Broken Promise?

When the truth broke, whilst expecting one character to be guilty of the crimes, the other took my breath away

Which scene did you most enjoy?

As always with Linwood Barclay novels, each scene brings quality and consistency - page by page.

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Be careful what you promise

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

7 people found this helpful

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

Poor ending

A well written, paced thriller. However,an absolute goose chase, when within the first 4 chapters you have got the story sussed, you are taken through various roads to confuse you. Linwood certainly succeeds. I thought there would be a follow up book .......is there?

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

7 people found this helpful

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

Brilliant

Kept me captive for the first few days of my holiday - if you like his other books then this is definitely worth listening to / reading. You must listen right to the end.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

7 people found this helpful

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

brilliant

As always barclay produces a terrific story that grips you from the first word. roll on the next book

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

6 people found this helpful

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

Broken Promise

The is the first of a trilogy by Linwood Barclay and is highly recommended.
I have spent a weekend listening to this and thoroughly enjoyed it.
I will be looking forward to reading or listening to the next book when it is published.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

4 people found this helpful

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

Great listening

Where does Broken Promise rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I can easily place Broken Promise among the best stories and sets of characters I have ever come across.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The character of David comes out clearly as the everyday hero, supportive of his son and his parents, trying to do what is best for all, and solving a mystery in the meantime. Nevertheless we understand there is something in his past we don't know.

What about Quincy Dunn Baker and Brian O'Neill ’s performance did you like?

The two voices contribute to a lively performance, in which David's point of view is distinct from the rest. They both do a great performance.

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

This book gave me an adrenaline rush and I felt the urge to go quickly through it to discover what would happen at the end. The conclusion was satisfactory from a good / evil point of view, but perhaps too dramatic with respect to the tone of the rest of the story. As I felt sort of disappointed for many lose threads, I searched the internet and found out that the author is planning to publish two more stories to complete a Promise Falls trilogy. Cannot wait for the second book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

4 people found this helpful