Burglars Can't Be Choosers

By: Lawrence Block

Narrated by: Richard Ferrone

In this first in a series of wickedly funny mysteries, best-selling author Lawrence Block introduces Bernie Rhodenbarr, sometimes burglar, sometimes sleuth. Pulling only an occasional, very discreet job, Bernie manages to maintain his comfortable New York City apartment and keep his unorthodox vocation a closely-guarded secret. Every burglar knows never to trust anonymous phone calls. But when the caller offers easy money for an hour's work, Bernie can't ignore the job. All he has to do is find a blue box in an empty apartment. But the valuable box is nowhere to be found. The occupant is, however - and he's dead. Suddenly Bernie finds himself the object of a massive man hunt, wanted for both theft and murder. Winner of multiple Edgar and Shamus Awards, Lawrence Block crafts clever plots with characters you wish you could have over for drinks. But stop to count the silver afterwards. You'll find yourself laughing out loud as gravelly-voiced narrator Richard Ferrone brings sticky-fingered Bernie to life.©1977 Lawrence Block (P)1998 Recorded Books, LLC

Nice story

It was getting used to the pace of the story and the narrator but he did a great job. At the end it was just like it always had to be his voice. The story was nice and steady and i will certainly listen to the next one .

Clever!

Like all the books in this series it starts out seeming to be a simple murder mystery. And like all his works, Block adds some complex twists. That plus the characterizations and good descriptions makes this series a fun read (or listen!)

The main character narration

I like the easy pace of the story, but a little too many plot lines. I needed to remember what we were solving for.

Solid

Honestly I'm not sure what all the negative reviewers have against this story. It's a solid murder mystery with a fun perspective from another criminal that we don't really see a lot in other stories. The focus on locks, keys, and lock picking was a great over arching theme to the story. The only real complaint I had was the main character was stuck in the apartment a bit too long and I felt bored. Other than that the noire setting was executed really well, the narrator did a fine job creating the smokey filled room like nostalgia of a classic detective story (although Bernie and Ray sounded a bit too alike at times), and the characters themselves kept things interesting with their ever evolving and revealing back stories.

I'd recommend this to anyone who is a fan of the genre and audio books.

Okay

A very obvious story. Not much of a mystery but an easy listen as you do other things.

Easy to follow

Solid characters, interesting story development.... overall - it didn't disappoint. i definitely reccomend this title, because while it's not complex it's well written and has great humor to boot.

Subtle

Good book with a subtle humor imbedded. Well read. One of my favorites by Lawrence Block.

Fun performance of a fun story!

Loved this whole series in print, and was happy to find it on Audible - great job by the narrator, he brings life to all the characters with slightly different voices for each. All together, it’s a really fun version of a really fun book! Can’t wait to listen to more Bernie Rhodenbarr

Twists and turns

For this genre it was fun. Not a cozy mystery but as close as you can get in NYC I suspect!

Fun!

This was a fun book, although not suspenseful as described. It was a good mystery. The narrator did a great job. His voice seemed to fit the character!