Psycho

By: Robert Bloch

Narrated by: Richard Powers

Length: 5 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

It was a dark and stormy night when Mary Crane glimpsed the unlit neon sign announcing the vacancy at the Bates Motel. Exhausted, lost, and at the end of her rope, she was eager for a hot shower and a bed for the night. Her room was musty, but clean, and the manager seemed nice, if a little odd.

This classic horror novel, which inspired the famous film by Alfred Hitchcock, has been thrilling people for 50 years. It introduced one of the most unexpectedly twisted villains of all time in Norman Bates, the reserved motel manager with a mother complex, and has been called the "first psychoanalytic thriller".

©1959 Robert Bloch (P)2009 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Icily terrifying!" (New York Times)

"A terribly chilling tale." (Bestsellers)

Ahead of it's time

Where does Psycho rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I have hundreds so placement does not come easy. I'd say in the top 100.

Who was your favorite character and why?

NA

Have you listened to any of Paul Michael Garcia’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes. Paul Michael Garcia is one of my favorites. Some books make my wish list because he is the narrator. How does this one compare? It is right up there with all of his other performances.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

NA -- As this book has already been a movie and a mini-series, another version would be overdone.

Any additional comments?

Wow this book was intense. Honestly I had to remind myself I wasn't enjoying a Stephen King novel. It has all the thrill, excitement, twists, etc. I know, I know, it's a classic and I have no excuse for having not read it before now. It's just when I normally think of classics I think of Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, and the Bronte sisters. Well, anyway this book is spooky and exciting, and I completely recommend it, especially if like me, you've never bothered to watch the movie. This was an incredibly fun experience for me.

way more fun than I thought

this was actually pretty excellent. I have watched the movie, so I thought this might be a little repetitive, but no, I loved it.

Just missed the mark

Boy did I want to really like this book. The Narration was great no complaint in that end, the story was good but fell flat at the end in my opinion.

Listened To It All In One Glorious Binge

I’ve always loved the film, but up until now I had never felt the need to read nor hear the book for myself. The Novel is just as chilling and suspenseful as I ever could have wanted. It’s interesting how the character of Norman Bates was a fat middle aged man, but in the film was skinny young man. Both Normans are fascinating! The murders are slightly different, but equally as shocking and brutal. Once I started listening, I could not stop until it was over. Great story, great performance by Richard Powers, and, of course, a great film adaptation. Perfect story all the way around.

Great audiobook, great narrator, great movie.

Except for the physical description of Norman Bates, the book and movie compliment each other superbly. Own this well-narrated audiobook and the movie and revisit them every few years...you won't be disappointed. (A+)

Excellent!

Even with knowing the plot and ending the book was still a very good listen!

Bates is even more terrifying!

This story is just as scary as the movie and with every single detail in the audiobook gave me chills! Now, I'm scared of Norman Bates more when I listen to this book! Great narration! Love it!

Has anyone not seen the film?

What did you love best about Psycho?

Hitchcock was pretty loyal to the book, other than casting -- Norman is a different age and body type than Anthony Perkins, and Martin Balsam plays Arborgast considerably different than the book's character. It's so difficult to not "see" the film while listening to the book, but, fortunately, they pretty much follow the same path.

The performance is very good. The reader makes subtle changes in voice, just enough to let you know it's a different character.

great classic story and great narrator

this was very good. the narrator is really very good so that makes it so much more enjoyable - don't like a bad narrator. loved hearing more to the story than the movie i know so well - worth listening to for a classic scary story!

Great timeless Story

Would you consider the audio edition of Psycho to be better than the print version?

I loved listing to this story. It was done

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I listened to this very fast over two days. I didnt want to turn it off.

Any additional comments?

Great book. I knew the story but it would have been increadable to read it and not know what was going on.