Dear Durwood

By: Jeff Bond

Narrated by: Jarret Lemaster

Length: 4 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

Book two in the epic Third Chance Enterprises series, Dear Durwood is a stand-alone mystery pitting uncompromising principle against big city greed. 

Durwood Oak Jones is a man of few indulgences. One he does allow is a standing ad in Soldier of Fortune magazine soliciting “injustices in need of attention”. 

This month’s bundle of letters includes one from Carol Bridges, mayor of the dusty, blue-collar town of Chickasaw, Texas. For nearly a century, Chickasaw has relied on the jobs and goodwill of Hogan Consolidated, a family-run manufacturer of industrial parts. Now East Coast lawyers and investment bankers have taken aim at the company. The citizens of Chickasaw fear it may be acquired or bankrupted, leading to massive layoffs - effectively destroying the town. 

Durwood and his trusty bluetick coonhound, Sue-Ann, fly to Texas to see what can be done. They find a young CEO born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Factory workers with hammers. A good woman, Carol Bridges, who knows her town is being cheated but can’t get to the bottom of how. And lawyers. 

Dirty, good-for-nothing lawyers.

©2020 Jeff Bond (P)2020 Jeff Bond

Fletch-Like Main Character

This is not my first book from Jeff Bond, but it’s definitely a different genre than the last book I read (Blackquest 40).

Dear Durwood is one of those books that you can’t judge by its cover. And it’s funny that I say this because in the time that I’ve had two other books from Jeff Bond – the covers have changed on them quite a bit. The only reason I call this out is because the cover on this one (at the time of writing this) makes it feel like it’s going to be an old-timey western sort of book. When, in reality it takes place now (or near now) with modern everything in it.

Saying that, it did have an older feel to it. What I mean by that was it felt a little bit like the Fletch novels (which I love!). Durwood Oak Jones was one of those characters that definitely jumps off of the page. He fights for what’s right and basically doesn’t let anyone or anything stand in his way. I liked him as a character even meeting him in book two instead of book one (where I’m sure I missed some descriptions of who he is and why he’s the way he is.

The story itself flew by and there were a few times that I kept thinking “I genuinely don’t know how this is going to end”. Bond kept me guessing and definitely wrote an interesting style of book to do it.

"Paper burns. "

for me, this is difficult to grade and assess as I have been unable to follow the book, in part because the initial recording production was poor, making the narration indistinct, then, when the sound clarified, the heavily accented American narration was, for me, too rapid to understand. Jarret Lemaster has a very pleasant voice and his character interpretation is good, but for my English ear, his delivery left me struggling to follow the story and several reruns have left me still unable to fully appreciate the story.
Consequently, I have now an ebook version to read alongside a later listening attempt.
The book was a freely gifted complimentary copy from the rights holder, at my request, via Audiobook Boom. Thank you. It sounded an excellent read and I look forward to the ebook