Cambridge English Placement Test B2 Level Read and select about Sherlock Holmes

 

First off, let it be loudly asserted that characters, strong characters, are at the heart of all great literature and always will be. Plot, even in detective fiction, is a very secondary matter. Not many readers could outline the plot of the Sherlock Holmes story The Sign of the Four but many people have no difficulty bringing Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson to mind. A writer who does not create convincing characters will fail. A writer who creates thrilling, troubling, insistent characters need not worry too much about any other aspect of writing. 

What is said about the role of characters? 

A They need to be carefully integrated into a novel's plot. 

B They are less important in detective stories than other fiction. 

C They can ensure the success of a novel if they fulfil certain criteria. 

D They must be appealing so readers want to learn more about them. 

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The correct answer is letter C.

Cambridge English Placement Test B2 Level Listen and select about a gym

 

You hear two people talking about a gym. 

What do they agree about? 

A It should provide a wider range of classes. 

B It should have better equipment. 

C It should have longer opening hours. 

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Audioscript

Man: I’ve signed up for a class at the gym tomorrow. It’s the only way I can make myself get there. I’d really like to do some martial arts or yoga but they only have fitness training and that kind of thing. But even if I’m not that keen on whatever it is, at least I go. 

Woman: They need to extend the choice a bit more. 

Man: They’d get more people using the gym then, wouldn’t they? 

Woman: It’s open from early to late and there’s often hardly anyone there.

Man: I know. 

Woman: But at least I get to use whatever equipment I want – and it’s in excellent condition because it’s not used much.

The correct answer is letter A.

CEPT Practice B2 Level Read and select about Falicon Park

 

Falicon Park was a typical English suburban road, some fifty years old. The individuality of the properties had increased over the years as successive owners had remodelled and added to their homes. Garages had been converted into kitchen extensions and lawns had become parking spaces while adventurous gardeners had experimented with rocks and olive trees or palm trees. About halfway along the southern side of the road was number 18. It was a detached house, double-fronted. The paintwork was in good order although it was not fresh. The concrete driveway was scarred with cracks and oil stains, and the space for parking had been extended with gravel. A yew hedge straggled across in front of the gravelled area. The curtains were firmly closed and the windows too. The place had an unloved air, unlike the majority of its neighbours.

Most of the houses in Falicon Park 

A were almost identical. 

B had large gardens. 

C were well looked after. 

D belonged to large families.

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Answer - C were well looked after.