It is July 1985, two days before Live Aid, the historic charity concert taking place simultaneously in London and Philadelphia to raise money for famine relief in Ethiopia. Goth teenager Hanna Gordon has been asked by her mother, Lydia, to distribute invitations to their neighbours for a get-together at their house “in aid of the children”. Hanna suspects Lydia’s intentions may not be entirely charitable and that she wants to show off their new barbecue. Hanna’s longsuffering dad, Peter, isn’t keen, complaining “it’ll cost a fortune to feed the whole bloody street”.
Hanna, who is keeping a secret from her family, may be mortified at her mother’s party plans but she nonetheless does what she asks, delivering the invitations around their suburban cul-de-sac while only dimly aware of a mysterious figure lurking in the shadows. When Lydia spots the same figure a day later skulking in their garden, it is clear something is afoot on Delmont Close.
The Barbecue at No 9 is the follow-up to Jennie Godfrey’s hugely successful The List of Suspicious Things. Like its predecessor, it combines mystery with sharp period detail and everyday lives rendered in closeup. That the novel is told from the perspectives of assorted neighbours makes it ideally suited to audio. In this production, Hanna is voiced by Raffey Cassidy while her dad is played by the comic actor Stephen Mangan. Josh Dylan is Steve, a Falklands veteran suffering with PTSD, and Gemma Whelan (Game of Thrones) shines as Rita, a fortysomething Australian who is new to the Close and is harbouring secrets of her own.
• Available via Penguin Audio, 8hr 42min
Further listening
No Friend to This House
Natalie Haynes, Mantle, 9hr 6min
This reimagining of the story of maligned priestess Medea offers a different viewpoint on the myth of Jason and the Golden Fleece. A thrilling tale of vengeance and brutality, read by the author.
Fly, Wild Swans
Jung Chang, William Collins, 10hr 21min
Adjoa Andoh reads this sequel to Wild Swans, which focuses on China’s rise on the world stage and on the author’s mother, who bravely shared family stories and encouraged her to write.
