TV crime reporter Eve Singer's career is flagging, but that starts to change when she covers a spate of bizarre murders – each one committed in public and advertised like an art exhibition. When the killer contacts Eve about her coverage of his crimes, she is suddenly on the inside of the biggest murder investigation of the decade. But as the killer becomes increasingly obsessed with her, Eve realises there's a thin line between inside information and becoming an accomplice to murder – possibly her own.

This is another great story by Belinda Bauer. It's the audiobook version, and the narration by Andrew Wincott is superb. How he changes the voices for each character is wonderful. Having said that, the plot and characters are so well written that I found myself searching for that spare five minutes in the day, that I could grab some extra words. Great story, brilliantly narrated.

Eve is a reporter for a crime tv show. It doesn’t help that she is squeamish, but she’s a good reporter, professional in front of the camera. Her colleague and cameraman Jo and her work well together.
We’re inside the head of a serial killer on occasions, in Eve’s head on others and in the killer’s victims on others.
The killer seems to be always one step ahead and is stalking Eve - she knows this.
Great listening, great suspense. I thought it was really good.

For me unfortunately was almost a DFN.

I listened to the audiobook and I certainly feel that this was half of the problem. I found the narration really dull and lacking any kind of enthusiasm and therefore this transferred to the characters on the book.

The story itself wasn’t too bad and the way the main character had to deal with a father suffering with dementia was portrayed very well. However I really struggled to feel the suspense that was needed in the search for a murder.

I didn’t feel a connection for any of the characters and the dynamics between them just missed the spot in my opinion.

**Listened to the audiobook**

The reviews and the premise of this book were fab and I was super excited to read.
The narration was great, and really helped to immerse my into the characters and the world that Bauer had created.
It was super gripping right from the off! I was in!
However, the more the book went on, the less interested I became. I felt the pacing really slowed as it went on. Like another review I have read, I think this book would have benefitted from a 50-100 pages cut, also some more humour!
Overall I enjoyed this book, but didn't find it particularly original or one that will stay with me.

A solid 4 star read for me, very enjoyable and the narration was brilliant; Andrew Wincott's serial killer's voice was so perfectly creepy!

Having only listened to Exit by this author a while back, I'll definitely check out more books by her. I really like her storytelling and pace.

Thanks very much to Bolinda Audio, via NetGalley for the audiobook, I really enjoyed it.

I was excited to listen to the audiobook version of The Beautiful Dead by Belinda Bauer.

The story is set in the weeks leading up to Christmas and centres on a TV crime reporter, Eve Singer, who is clinging on to her job aware her career is dependent on scooping crime exclusives. She’s under a great deal of pressure to secure said scoops and is under pressure at home where she is responsible for care and wellbeing of her father who has dementia. She cuts quite the lonely figure, as she’s married to her job and has caring commitments to her father - she doesn’t have time for a social life, let alone romantic entanglements.

Eve is reporting on a murder, and the murderer makes contact with her, putting Eve front and centre of the case. Eve finds herself in quite a precarious position - her safety is now an issue whilst she instinctively wants to report and get the scoops to the story.

The story moves along at a good pace with twist and turns and a great range of supporting characters including rival journalists, her unscrupulous Editor, her trusty cameraman Joe, her doddery neighbour Mr Elias, her dementia stricken father Duncan. There is also great humour sprinkled through the book - some laugh out loud situations and amusing observations.

It is expertly narrated by Andrew Wincott who brought the book to life with different accents and voices for the all the characters.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, Bolinda Audio, for making this e-audio-ARC available to me in exchange for a fair and honest review.

One of the best audiobooks I’ve listened to this year! The narrator’s performance was outstanding and perfectly captured the tone and emotion of the story. I particularly enjoyed the musings of the protagonist experience over her father. Can't recommend enough!
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for the opportunity to listen to this book.

This started of very slow for me and I had to stop listening and restart again but then something clicked and it went to some amazing places and I really got into it. Then I couldn't stop and binge listened to the end. The way the relationship with the father was described was so heartful and didn't take away from the crime drama but added to it.

This was my first book by this author and narrator and I will read/listen to more.

I listened to the audio version of this book, narrated by Andrew Wincott, who does a stellar job at bringing this story to life. At first, I wasn't too sure about the narration, but I swiftly found myself engrossed in the story and the various character voices.

For me, this was a bit slow to start, and I worried I wouldn't be able to get into it. But as soon as the main storyline got started, I became invested in knowing more and found myself gripped.

I thought the relationship between Eve and her dad was done brilliantly, and it really did shine a light on the true tragedy of dementia.

I loved Agouta (sorry if my spelling is off - audio!) and found her character to be both charming and funny even amidst all the chaos.

I didn’t enjoy listening to this one and it’s completely my own fault. I don’t enjoy audiobooks narrated by Andrew Wincott and it isn’t because he is a poor narrator but rather I am an avid Archers fan and can’t only hear Adam (who he plays) when I listen to him. I should have checked the name of the narrator before I requested it.

Belinda Bauer is fast becoming one of my favourite authors. Her plots are original and her characters are very memorable. The story is dark and gritty and the killer is creepy and sadistic. I loved all the characters. Eve, a TV crime reporter who also cares for her father who has dementia, grew on me as the book progressed and I loved her growing friendship with her sidekick cameraman, Joe. I enjoyed the scenes with her father, which were very bittersweet but accurately portrayed the reality of living with someone suffering from dementia. The final showdown with the killer was heart stopping!

I really enjoyed Andrew Wincott's narration.

If it bleeds, it leads. This is often said about reporters and how they need the sensational scoop, with just enough titillating peeks of murder, or violence, to keep the viewers stuck to their screens and wanting more. That makes it harder I think for the reporters to stick to their morals, especially when their jobs are on the line. I quite liked Eve, who is a good reporter, and tried to rise above the blood and guts while taking care of her dad who has dementia but still has an important role to play. So, I kept rooting for her when the serial killer decided to make her his voice and sending those awful murder videos (which her bosses loved of course) and her conflicted choices she has to make in either reporting on them or try to track him down and stop him before she becomes his next target. Lots os action and a deadly showdown kept me eagerly listening and I really enjoyed the audiobook version of the book.

The narrator did a wonderful job in bringing Eve and her world to life and so many thanks go to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to listen to this riveting story!

The Beautiful Dead by Belinda Bauer
Narrated by Bianca Bryan
Audiobook release date 8th July 2025
This book was released in 2016, but an audiobook will be available soon.
Thanks to @netgalley and @bolindaaudio for this ALC
What a great book, and a decent narrator. I enjoyed this serial killer story, and how it all unfolded (no spoilers). It covers the topic of Eves dad who has dementia which is sad, but plays a key role in the story. 4 stars

I enjoyed this twisty thriller; set in London and featuring Bauer's trademark black humour, it's a fast paced ride for Eve Singer to hunt down the killer.
Excellent narration on the audiobook.
With grateful thanks to NetGalley, Belinda Bauer and Bolinda Audio for my advance audiobook copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley, Bolinda Audio, and Belinda Bauer for the gifted copy of the audiobook.

I'm rating this book 3.75/5. I enjoyed it, but didn’t love it.

I really liked the premise of a TV crime reporter, there’s something inherently morally gray about that line of work, which made it compelling. Eve was a likable character, and I felt for her, especially with the burden of caring for her ill father. The killer clearly knew how to exploit that. Her relationship and friendship with her cameraman, Joe, was also a fun dynamic.

The killer was fascinating, particularly in how he viewed his crimes as a form of art or performancr, very different from the typical, sexually motivated crimes often portrayed in thrillers.

The writing was beautiful, and I would definitely recommend this book to friends.

Andrew Wincott was an excellent choice for the narration, I give his performance a 5/5.

3.5* The Beautiful Dead - Belinda Bauer. A newshound plays cat and mouse with a killer to get the story and ends up in his sights.

Eve is a journalist in the ferociously competitive world of broadcast news, with an editor who insists that to keep her job she needs to plummet to depths which are very uncomfortable. Along with her cameraman Joe, they chase down gruesome details, vying to beat another journalist to gruesome nuggets of detail and evidence. When a murder sees Eve as a way to fuel his infamy, Eve is only to keen to use him as a means to keep her job but with dire consequences.

I've read many of Belinda's books and have enjoyed them all, particularly her irreverent angle on crime fiction and the humour in her novels. The Beautiful Dead is well written and keeps you guessing most of the way through. Yet, it didn't really grip me as others have. I suspect it was because I didn't hugely warm to the main character and I found the plot line in the latter part of the book relating to her father a bit of a stretch. Eve's editor in the newsroom reminded me of the comedy breakfast TV editor character in the Bridget Jones films - barking at Bridget to do ridiculous daring stunts on breakfast news. By the end of the book it felt a bit dark for the sake of being dark.

One of my go-to authors, this is an early book of hers which I missed first time around. I listened to the audio narrated by Andrew Wincott who was thoroughly engaging throughout.

Thanks to Bolinda Audio and Netgalley for an advance copy.

I've always enjoyed Belinda Bauers novels so I was excited to listen to this audiobook as it wasn't a story I had read before and I really wanted to like it but the narrator wasn't the right fit for me and I found myself not really paying attention with it, So as an sudiobook this hasn't worked for me but i will probably find the story and read it for myself.

4.5⭐️

I read the book of this standalone serial ki11er thriller quite a while ago but couldn’t resist the audiobook read by Andrew Wincott who instils a good level of tension and drama adding interest.

Eve is a tv crime reporter, whose career relies on de@th. There’s a serial ki11er who wants to showcase death as art. He contacts Eve who sees a golden opportunity for her career, except he becomes obsessed with her.

It’s a serial ki11er thriller but it’s still got the great Bauer characterisation with depth and detail. A character who really stuck out for me was the protection officer DS Emily Aguda the antithesis of the stereotype in this role.
I loved my return visit to this book, this is a go to author for me who never disappoints.

I first read this book back in 2018 when I binge read all of Belinda Bauer’s books. I enjoyed it then, even though the plot felt a little more conventional than some of her other thrillers.

Revisiting it seven years, a thousand books and countless killer thrillers later has given me a new appreciation.

Eve Singer is a TV crime reporter. There’s a killer on the loose, committing murders in public and advertising them like art exhibitions. The killer wants publicity and Eve wants the scoop. Soon she finds herself inside the biggest murder investigation of the decade.

The narration by Andrew Wincott conjures a Richard Burton gravitas, and emphasises the sheer quality and unique phrasing in Belinda Bauer’s writing. It’s a cold, dark and twisted plot, though there are sprinklings of humour. This time around I fully savoured the writing rather than rushing through for thrills.

Highly recommended.

Thanks to Netgalley and Bolinda Audio

A good thriller dealing with today obsession with social media and the inherent dangers therein, good characters and the story flowed well, Andrew Wincott is a superb narrator and (for me) lifted this book to another level