In Cold Blood

By: Truman Capote

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Length: 14 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • The most famous true crime novel of all time "chills the blood and exercises the intelligence" (The New York Review of Books)—and haunted its author long after he finished writing it.

On November 15, 1959, in the small town of Holcomb, Kansas, four members of the Clutter family were savagely murdered by blasts from a shotgun held a few inches from their faces. There was no apparent motive for the crime, and there were almost no clues.

In one of the first non-fiction novels ever written, Truman Capote reconstructs the murder and the investigation that led to the capture, trial, and execution of the killers, generating both mesmerizing suspense and astonishing empathy. In Cold Blood is a work that transcends its moment, yielding poignant insights into the nature of American violence.

©1965 Truman Capote (P)2006 Random House, Inc. Random House Audio, a division of Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

"A masterpiece ... a spellbinding work." —Life

"A remarkable, tensely exciting, superbly written 'true account'. " —The New York Times

"The best documentary account of an American crime ever written ... The book chills the blood and exercises the intelligence ... harrowing." —The New York Review of Books

Cold Blood Review

If you could sum up In Cold Blood in three words, what would they be?

Very good listen

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

The nature of there mindsets and how they were caught..

What does Scott Brick bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Very unusual and different voices that portrayed the characters well. You could almost visualize exactly what they looked and sounded like which gave a much more real listening experience.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

When they were confronted by Dewey in jail and were finally accused and "caught".

Any additional comments?

The audio book was just a little long... it could have been shortened as the end wasn't as interesting, sort of anticlimactic.

well done

Would you listen to In Cold Blood again? Why?

descriptive and very deep character development.

Any additional comments?

Well done classic novel- Scott Brick is awesome and brings the book to life.

Chilling Story beautifully told

The book itself is a classic, with enough detail to make you feel a part of the small Kansas town. The narrator is also wonderful, reading in such a way as to keep you captivated.

Great nonfiction story

Where does In Cold Blood rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This is a pretty great book. It's well researched and extremely well written.

What was one of the most memorable moments of In Cold Blood?

If I told you that I would ruin the book!

What does Scott Brick bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Scott is a great narrator. This is the second book I listened to with him and I'm enjoying his style.

Should have read this long ago

Thank goodness for audibles! No one should go throughout life without knowing this story. I agree with something I read somewhere "Capote is the first of a the true crime authors". He balanced the characters (victims/killers) very well. There's probably not much I can add since this book is already deemed a classic and I agree.

True Crime Roalty

Narration was great!! Heartbreaking story I had only seen the movie, I am so glad to have finally heard the book.

Brutal 3rd Time

Capote is one of those rare souls who uses his God-given talents to the fullest. Absolutely flawless writing. Not one wasted word.

I read this book as a kid, maybe once in college and now as a mom who is roughly the age of Bonnie Clutter. It gutted me. Over the years, even though I myself had experienced the pain of losing someone to murder, I had grown wishy-washy on the issue of capital punishment. This book re-convinced me it is absolutely necessary in some cases. These two murderers were animals. For the sake of a sub-plot, Capote tried his damndest to give them a human component and even excuses based on their upbringing, but in the end they were nothing but evil personified.

The performance of this audio book was one of the best I have ever heard. He hit every nuanced element of the writing style and he brought each character to life. He even nailed 1950s teenage slang. Such a great performance.

Chilling and Incredible

Profound account of a senseless crime. Capote expertly defines the personalities and exposes the psyches of the perpetrators. He draws you into their world to the point that you almost sympathize with their flaws. He weaves the accounts of witnesses, family members and law enforcement into a spellbinding tapestry. Truly masterful!

Riveting

Quality narrative. Exceptionally well written. A true magnum opus. Well researched and a great read.

Lived up to the fame

This is a fascinating book both as the psychological/social expose that Capote intended but also thinking about the psychology of Capote himself. Very well written. Also, Scott Brick Even succumbs to the rhythm of the story and doesn’t even sound like himself sometimes.