A Promise of Ankles - Alexander McCall Smith

Written by Alexander McCall Smith
Read by Robert Ian MacKenzie
Format: MP3
Bitrate: 64 Kbps
Unabridged

44 Scotland Street Series, Book 14
Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
Release date: December 8, 2020
Duration: 09:56:56

The residents and neighbors of 44 Scotland Street and the city of Edinburgh come to vivid life in these gently satirical, wonderfully perceptive serial novels, featuring six-year-old Bertie, a remarkably precocious boy—just ask his mother.

Welcome to 44 Scotland Street, home to some of Edinburgh’s most colorful characters. There’s Pat, a twenty-year-old who has recently moved into a flat with Bruce, an athletic young man with a keen awareness of his own appearance. Their neighbor, Domenica, is an eccentric and insightful widow. In the flat below are Irene and her appealing son Bertie, who is the victim of his mother’s desire for him to learn the saxophone and Italian–all at the tender age of five.

Love triangles, a lost painting, intriguing new friends, and an encounter with a famous Scottish crime writer are just a few of the ingredients that add to this delightful and witty portrait of Edinburgh society.

For the residents of 44 Scotland Street, life in Edinburgh’s intriguing New Town is a thing to be relished.

But there are mysteries that need solving too. Could Angus Lordie’s dog, Cyril—the only dog in Scotland with a gold tooth—have unearthed a Neanderthal skull? Does the long-suffering Stuart have any hope of kindling a new relationship when Bruce, ever the navel gazer and consummate seducer, effortlessly steps into his pas de deux? And how will the patrons of Big Lou’s cafe react to the menu’s imminent culinary transformation?

The stories of this wonderfully vibrant cast may take unexpected turns, but the warmth and humor at Scotland’s most recognizable address will ultimately affirm the joy life brings us all.

“Originally serialized in the “Scotsman”, this latest novel from Smith (”The No.1 Ladies’ Detective Agency”) revolves around the inhabitants of an Edinburgh apartment house. The newest resident is 20-year-old Pat, who rents a room from the slightly older and irresistibly handsome Bruce. Pat’s eccentric neighbors include Dominica, an artsy and wise widow; Bertie, a five-year-old saxophone player; and Bertie’s overbearing mother, Irene. In order to make ends meet, Pat takes a job as a receptionist at a nearby art gallery. Her boss is the ineffectual Matthew, whose father owns the gallery. When Pat gets a hunch that one of the gallery’s paintings might be valuable, and then the piece of work goes missing, the action takes off. Other storylines include Bruce struggling over an appropriate career path and conflicted Bertie undergoing therapy. The novel is made up of several short chapters that leave the reader wondering what will happen next. This, along with McCall Smith’s insightful and comic observations, makes for an amusing and absorbing look at Edinburgh society”…..Library Journal

I love the narrator…