Plain Heathen Mischief

By: Martin Clark

Narrated by: David Aaron Baker

Length: 19 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's summary

Plain Heathen Mischief ups the existential ante, as Joel King, a defrocked Baptist minister, finds life even more bedeviling once he's served six months for a career-ending crime he might not even have committed. Now his incommunicado wife wants a divorce, the teenage vixen of his disgrace is suing him for a cool $5 million, a fresh start in Montana offers no hope for ex-cons of any religious persuasion, and the refuge provided by his sister turns as nasty as his parole officer. Talk about a crisis of faith.

On the upside,a solicitous member of Joel's former congregation invites him into a scam that could yield some desperately needed cash, and soon the down-on-his-luck preacher is involved with a flock of charming con men, crooked lawyers, and conniving youth.

In a feat of bravura storytelling, Martin Clark ranges from the cross to the double cross, from Virginia to Las Vegas, from jail cells to trout streams, as he follows his Job-like hero through dubious choices and high-dollar insurance hustles to a redemption that no listener could possibly predict. Wildly imaginative, at times comic, at times profoundly sobering, and even more audacious than his wonderfully idiosyncratic debut, Plain Heathen Mischief is a spiritual revelation of the first order.

©2004 Martin Clark (P)2015 Recorded Books

Not Awful

Not a horrible book, but strange and a little dark. The title and blurb had me hoping for a bit of a romp. This tome is not a romp.
The narrator did a good job, better when I bumped the speed up a bit.

satisfactory

started really slow, but became interesting. Storyline was pretty well conceived. I'd recommend for those who don't have string feelings avout religion...either way.

The con is good but the religion is too much

Like another review I exited a romp in the usual style of the author. This is more of a Job and redemption and sports a fair amount of religion.
Characters and the cons on which the story is built are all interesting.
If you’re new to this author try a different title first.

Joel’s naivete

Narrator was terrific but there were loose ends that did not get resolved, especially with the deposition in Virginia

Loved It!

This book was very well written. It caught my attention right away and kept it so well, I listened to the book straight through in one long marathon listen!

Amazingly good

This is my third book by Martin Clark and while the other two were very good, Plain Heathen Magic was extraordinarily so.
i can't understand why this author doesn't get more attention. He's three times as good as Grisham.
David Aaron Baker is the perfect narrator for Clark's characters: he's understated, and never steps over the line to call attention to his talent.
Buy this audiobook. You'll love it.

Not My Favorite of Clark's

I really love the way Martin Clark writes. Even his lesser books are very, very good. That having been said, I didn't love this one. His characters are compelling because they make such messes, and then you get to watch them weave their way out of them. Usually, that makes them really engaging. In this one, not so much. By the middle, I was getting a bit tired of Joel and beginning to wonder if maybe he wasn't too bright? Still, the writing is as engaging as ever, and Clark's dialogue is always great.

Interesting and Thought Provoking

There are a number of interesting philosophy questions to ponder. I must say that Joel is the perfect dimwit pastor. He is a master at justifying his behavior which I see as the perfect model of religion.

I highly recommend the book. Worth the credit.

Vulnerability of the protagonist kept me interested…

I surprised myself with how much I liked this one… I usually don’t have the patience for a 19 hour read and this kept me interested though every hour… The book was more of a farce than I expected and way more churchy but not in an overbearing way… the only part that I didn’t care for was David Aaron Baker’s version of female voices which was cartoonish… he did a great job of the male voices though… overall I’d recommend listening to the book if you’re into a modern day farce on the subject of good and evil…

Brilliant!

I think I lost 10 yrs in 20 hrs. Very intense at times ie, wth is Joel doing NOW?! The ups, downs and mind blowing BAD decisions ol Joel makes is a ride. Clark is a masterful story teller and Baker the cherry on top! I found myself rooting for Joel then yelling at his arrogance, ignorance and naïveté . Clark has captured human nature at our ability to deceive ourselves. How Preacher Joel can convince himself he’s still righteous above others as he cheats, lies and deceives himself into a huge cluster-f because he’s doing it for “good” and “the Lord”. I had to laugh each time Baker said it, with just the right bit of piety. Brilliant writing, memorable characters. My Lord, i wish there was a sequel! Onto the next Clark book, there are TOO FEW!