Changes

If anything Marsh is more irascible, more curmudgeonly than he was in ''Do No Harm'' (particularly when speaking about bureaucracy and politicians) , but there are still flashes of his black humour. A lengthy career as a brain surgeon has turned him into a pragmatist : I was occasionally shocked by the ease with which the conclusion would be reached that someone was going to die - but it's experience speaking so what else should I have expected? That's offset by the care and compassion which he has for his patients and his readiness to be critical of, and honest about his own actions.

Marsh is a fine writer with the ability to tell a good story. He has a comedian's sense of timing. His disarming frankness came over well in my audio download, but I'll confess that I regret not having bought the harback instead. Whilst having the author as the narrator does ensure that there's not an added layer of interpretation, there were occasions when I wasn't ''completely'' clear about what had been said, particularly when he was cross about something. It is, though, a download I'll go back to.