Blue Smoke

By: Nora Roberts

Narrated by: Joyce Bean

Length: 15 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

Incomparable #1 New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts delivers a tale of gut-level fear, human triumph, and the bonds that carry us through our darkest times…

Reena Hale’s destiny was shaped in the destructive - yet fascinatingly beautiful - fire that leveled her family’s pizzeria when she was young. Now an arson investigator, she finds her strength and wits constantly tested, although sometimes the job seems like a snap compared to her love life. But she can’t always blame the men. After all, a soot-caked woman barking orders and smelling of smoke isn’t the biggest turn-on in the world. Then she meets Bo Goodnight, who seems different. He’s been trying to find Reena for years, and now that she’s close enough to touch, he has no intention of letting go.

Nor does the man who has begun to haunt Reena’s life - with taunting phone calls and a string of horrifying crimes. And as Reena tries desperately to trace the origins - of the calls, the fires, the hatred aimed in her direction - she will step into the worst inferno she has ever faced...

©2005 Nora Roberts (P)2005 Brilliance Audio

Critic reviews

"Romantic suspense queen Roberts lights up Baltimore's Little Italy with this appealing story of love, family, food and arson." ( Publishers Weekly)
"Bean's versatile vocal range skillfully portrays male and female parts without hesitation." ( AudioFile)

some fire related grammatical errors

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

yes

What was one of the most memorable moments of Blue Smoke?

all

What about Joyce Bean’s performance did you like?

change of voices

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

retribution

Any additional comments?

The Book incorrectly stated the firefighters wore oxygen tanks!!! this is incorrect, if oxygen leaked from the tank fittings, it could explode!! The air tanks the firefighters wear is compressed atmospheric air.

When describing a fire it would be described as "TOTALLY INVOLVED"... Involved would be the correct terminology.

Intense!

This book was very intense, but i really enjoyed it! It is a bit graphic as well. My only complaint was that the narrator's male voices started sounding the same as it went further through the book. Otherwise I thought it was a great story!

Fab

I have listened to so many Nora Roberts and she never disappoints. This is by far one of her more enjoyable and moving stories. Can’t wait to listen to more

Entertainment from start to finish

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

Since I have close to 700 audiobooks, it's hard to rate it exactly. I am very fond of Nora Roberts , so this is close to the top.

What other book might you compare Blue Smoke to and why?

I think maybe High Noon. Strong female lead, lots of suspense, good character interaction and good narrators.

What about Joyce Bean’s performance did you like?

I think she did a great job on making the voice of each character seem different from the one before. You got a sense of different people. She didn't make the male voices sound as though it was a female doing them. I like her work.

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

I really enjoyed the fact that when Bo (who had been searching for Reena for years) looked up and see's her next door, he recognized her as the girl he'd dreamed of since college. For all you romantics out there, it's a moment!

Any additional comments?

I have listened to this book a number of times and always enjoy it. It does have some particularly graphic scenes in it, so you might want to skip over them if you have trouble dealing with that kind of realism. I will listen to this many more times. Well worth the credit.

Fantastic Narration

Range of voices keeps you interested without being reminded it’s a woman trying to sound like a man. Story is a bit predictable as there is no mystery of the bad guy. But good heartfelt story telling of main character’s life from childhood with family mixed in as well. Truly enjoyed the reading and the story.

great listen

loved it. story & narrator great. I love Nora Roberts recommend her books to everyone

Blue Smoke

The story of revenge that spans many years and the fire investigator he is targeting and how she solves the the mystery.

fantastic

I couldn't stop listening to totally awesome book. one of her greatest. I would give it 10 stars or more. I normally just listen during the week but I just had to finish it.

Great

Loved the story characters and the intricacy of it all. I would definitely recommend. Great book!!

Good story

Not one to usually leave a post but I enjoyed the story but feel the voice of the narrator god have been diff. I think her voice was great for the main character and the mama but for the rest of them was to harsh.

I wasn’t sure about the story line, almost traded in but I kept going. I did figure out the person who caused all the havoc rather quickly, but over all it was a good story.