• Surrender, New York

  • By: Caleb Carr
  • Narrated by: Tom Taylorson
  • Length: 23 hrs and 47 mins
  • 4.0 out of 5 stars (1,749 ratings)

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Surrender, New York  By  cover art

Surrender, New York

By: Caleb Carr
Narrated by: Tom Taylorson
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Publisher's summary

Caleb Carr, best-selling author of The Alienist and The Angel of Darkness, has created a contemporary psychological thriller haunted by the shadowy hands of established power.

In rural, impoverished Burgoyne County, New York, a pattern of strange deaths begins to emerge: Adolescent boys and girls are found murdered, their corpses left hanging in gruesome, ritualistic fashion. Senior law enforcement officials are quick to blame a serial killer, but their efforts to apprehend this criminal are peculiarly ineffective.

Meanwhile, in the county's small town of Surrender, Trajan Jones, a psychological profiler (and the world's leading expert on the life and work of one Dr. Laszlo Kreizler), and Michael Li, a trace evidence expert, once famed advisors to the New York City Police Department, teach online courses in profiling and forensic science from Jones' family farm. Alone and armed mainly with their wits, protected only by farmhands and Jones' unusual "pet", the outcast pair are secretly called in to consult on the case.

Jones and Li immediately discern that the various victims were all "throwaway children", a new state classification given to young people who are not orphans, runaways, or homeless but victims of a terrible phenomenon sweeping America's poor: Abandoned by their families, the throwaways are left to fend for themselves. One of these throwaways, Lucas Kurtz, along with his blind older sister, crosses paths with Jones and Li, offering information that could blow the case wide open.

Racing against the case's mounting stakes, Jones and Li find that they are battling not only to unravel the mystery of how the throwaways died but also to defend themselves and the Kurtz siblings from the threats of shadowy but powerful agents who want to stop them from uncovering the truth. It is a truth that, Jones believes, leads away from their world and back to the increasingly wealthy city where both he and his long-dead intellectual guide, Dr. Kreizler, did their greatest work. But will they be able to trace the case to New York before they fall victim to the murderous forces that stalk them?

Moving at the same rapid pace as his earlier books, yet with the same depth of historical and scientific research, Carr creates another roller-coaster ride of ideas and emotions. Like The Alienist; Surrender, New York brings to life the grim underbelly of a prosperous nation - and those most vulnerable to its failings.

©2016 Caleb Carr (P)2016 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Narrator Tom Taylorson mirrors the tone of intelligence that characterizes the two main characters in this moving novel. He flawlessly reflects the horror in Carr's depictions of the murders of 'throwaway' children and the impact of those murders on investigators Trajan Jones and Michael Li. Taylorson's resonant inflections and impeccable pacing make this a whodunit reflecting the best of Arthur Conan Doyle." ( AudioFile)

What listeners say about Surrender, New York

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Dreadful.

10 minutes in I got a bad feeling. 1 hour later that feeling was irrevocably confirmed. The Alienist novels were fun, melodramatic historical fiction with a heaping dose of grand guignol. This is ponderous, self-conscious and completely out of touch with it's contemporary setting. Sad to have wasted the credit.

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48 people found this helpful

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    3 out of 5 stars

Wanted to love this but...

I loved The Alienist, & generally like Caleb Carr but there were just far too many preposterous points, not to mention the use of the word "indeed", to call this any more than escapism. I hate it when an author I like takes intelligent characters and then takes them down the foolish decision road in order to move the story forward, & that happened far too often here. Plus, there was a lot of pontificating & preaching going on here, even if I generally agreed with the arguments. I stuck to it because I did like the characters, & the story was interesting enough, but just not well delivered on several levels. That said, I still like Mr Carr, & will read him again, in the hopes that better editing will prevail. Tom Taylorson did a fantastic job as narrator.

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40 people found this helpful

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Ditching it after an hour

I loved Caleb Carr's The Alienist and The Angel of Darkness, and was so excited that he had a new book out. My partner and I both tried to listen to this and quit. The writing is not good. The main character, who is narrating the book, is a know-it-all, snarky, sarcastic blowhard who thinks a great deal of himself and not much of anyone else. I don't want to spend another minute with him. The dialogue is terrible, and the descriptive sections include much more detail than is necessary, and overall this comes off as uninspired and boring. It reads as though Caleb Carr spent the last few years reading sub-par detective fiction and is excreting it through his writing. The narrator is not very good. I am bummed out!!!

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30 people found this helpful

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Page Turner

An excellent story on many levels... It's very thoughtful in its approach to the issues, laugh out loud funny at moments and terribly somber at others, cunningly layered and crafty, engaging an honestly accurate of disability and its layers, etc... Some absolutely wonderful characters here and you'll invest quickly and gladly... Especially Lucas and Marciana... The pace is excellent and keeps you gripped and involved... Some may see the big reveals early, and some later, but all will appreciate getting to those reveals... The book really does creatively mirror Alienist and Dr. Lazlo w/ a modern flair and context... My only caviat is that the narrator is pretty bland and prone to some obvious mispronunciations... If not for that I woulda rated 5* w/o reservations... Some may dislike some of the political leanings within the plot line, but they fit the story, and are pretty even handed...

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It's ok

The story is a long one, and there is a lot of what seems to be unnecessary dialog, but keep with it, and listen carefully. It does have a lot of twists and turns. It is worth staying with it.
The narrator hasn't gotten many good comments, personally I think he was able to have plenty of inflection between all the characters, I was pleasantly surprised by it. The only thing I did notice was he had a tendency to run with a sentence and not take a breath! I found myself breathing for him! Other than that I thought he was great. all in all it's a good and interesting book.

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    2 out of 5 stars
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Caleb Carr, where are you?

What would have made Surrender, New York better?

If you were looking for another Alienist, keep looking. I liked everything Carr has written so was excited when I say this book. Oh my. How the mighty have fallen. Implausible story. Unrealized characters. Insufferable narrator. Where to begin. Simple: Chalk this one up to the agent who pushed, the editor who green-lit it, and the author in need of a paycheck. It happens.

What could Caleb Carr have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Rewrite.

What didn’t you like about Tom Taylorson’s performance?

Adopting whiny, high-pitched voices to differentiate characters is really a cheap and unsuccessful way of doing it. It detracted from the story in ways that cannot be adequately enumerated.

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19 people found this helpful

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I have to agree with the negative reviews

This really isn't a very good book. I get that it does reference many things that should be looked at but, it's just not written very well. The narrator really is god awful. His inflections, especially with the teen character are annoying. His women voices are awful too. The book started okay, just went down hill with his very wordy political jabs. I haven't read this author's previous works and I don't think I'm really inclined to do so.

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18 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Couldn't put it down

I finally finished this newest of Caleb Carr's novels at 3:45 AM--compelled to discover how the intricately crafted story lines were resolved amidst insightful (and inciteful) social commentary. Without a doubt, Surrender New York is well worth the sleep deprivation. As with Carr's other works, I found myself fully vested in the characters, their motivations, and their choices. Addressing such issues as legitimate vs illegitimate power, America's class/caste system, the nature of ability and disability, and the interworkings of money and politics, Carr underscores the critical social issues of our times--issues that, sad to say, are themselves timeless. I sincerely hope to meet these characters again. They've given me a lot to think about.

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  • V
  • 08-31-16

Title should have been, "Surrender Your Sensibilit

I am so disappointed!! After the previous wonderful books written and performed so well... this book is FILLED with unneeded profanity. It is as if Mr. Carr had his teenage nephew write this book for him, very sophomoric. I would not recommend any fans waste their time or money on this book.

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10 people found this helpful

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Long time fan of Carr. This title delivers!

As with his previous historical mystery novels the story is rich in intrigue and Carr particular brand of crime solving conjecture. This one , based in more current times, delivers the same chunk of suspense his other delightful titles have provided. The book at times seeming so layered and so long to be too convoluted, yet as it built towards the resolution the story too short and highly charged with myriad emotions. I didn't enjoy the fact that his new characters practiced the same investigative procedures as the previous novels, but grew to love it as the book fell into its narrative stride. I began to process the book and it's mysteries with the characters. I found that as the book began to spiral towards conclusion I was completely invested, both emotionally and intellectually. Cheers Carr this was a welcome addition to my library, thank you!

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9 people found this helpful