The Great Train Robbery

By: Michael Crichton

Narrated by: Michael Kitchen

In teeming Victorian London, where lavish wealth and appalling poverty live side by side, Edward Pierce charms the most prominent of the well-to-do as he cunningly orchestrates the crime of the century. Who would suspect that a gentleman of breeding could mastermind the daring theft of a fortune in gold? Who could predict the consequences of making the extraordinary robbery aboard the pride of England's industrial era, the mighty steam locomotive? Based on fact, as lively as legend, and studded with all the suspense and style of a modern fiction master, here is a classic caper novel set a decade before the age of dynamite - yet nonetheless explosive....

Michael Crichton wrote and directed the screen adaptation of The Great Train Robbery, starring Sean Connery and Donald Sutherland.

©1975 Michael Crichton; Copyright renewed 2003 by CrichtonSun LLC (P)2015 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved

Wonderfully researched novel based on true story

This 1975 novel was only the third published by Michael Crichton using his own name. It is not a techno-thriller like most of his novels, but the marvelous Victorian England trivia clearly demonstrates the normal quality of Crichton research obvious in all of his novels. I do not believe The quality of the story of The Great Train Robbery deserves 5 stars, but the Victorian trivia does. So does the narration.

A halting performance for a superb book

I love this book. This is one of my all time favorite books with an entertaining and true story interspersed with fascinating background vignettes that add historical context and interest. The problem is the narrator. He makes long pauses in the middle of phrases. This makes the performance feel very halting and overall is distracting to the story. I am disappointed as I am consistently annoyed by the narrator and I am having difficulty enjoying the book at all.

What a fun ride!

I really loved this book! It reminded me of a Sherlock Holmes book from the thief's perspective. Crichton does an amazing job giving you a feel for the era and the background info is what makes this book such a pleasure. Michael Kitchen is awesome in his narration, although it took me awhile to warm to his style.

My only criticism is that, after reading the book, I found out that Crichton had fictionalized the account and I wish I had known that from the start. I actually thought his account was completely factual (it is for the most part) and I felt kind of duped. But I would highly recommend this book!

Fascinating tale-don't believe everything you hear

This is a fascinating tale but I was disappointed to learn that it is far from the true story of the Great Train Robbery of 1855. That being said I enjoyed every minute of it and Michael Kitchen is an excellent narrator.

best book I've listened. ever. wow.

ok, start to finish this was an amazing ride. these guys were the original ocean's 11. way ahead of their time.

This is a very fun read I highly recommend it

This was an awesome book! It kept me on the edge of my seat for nearly all of it. The old English cockney criminal slang was marvelous and I learned a number of fun words. One of the best books I've read this year.

Great read, even better performance

fantastic book with an even better performance. you are almost instantly engaged in what happens and you feel as if you are there witnessing the planning and execution of it all.

One of My Favorite Books

This has been one of my favorites since I found my first copy in a used-book store years ago. It’s one of the best and liveliest social histories of the 1850s, on top of being an excellent, lively, and colorful novel. I have even used it as assigned reading in one of my college history classes. Absolutely delightful.

Entertaining

I do admire an author that can take a historic event, do research and weave a story that is entertaining and well written. In this tale the robbery took place during the reign of Queen Victoria in the year 1855. The mastermind of the gold theft was Pierce, who planned the caper and hired specific criminals to pull it off. The story does have it's mishaps, even the best laid plans don't always come off without a hitch. I find it fascinating that even when caught and during the trial Pierce escaped and faded into history. The gold was never recovered so sometimes “crime does pay”. I thought the audio narration performed by Michael Kitchen was well done.

A great listen, lots of historical trivia

This was a fantastic listen, lot of fascinating historical trivia with a very clever build up of the story.

Loved this book! Others have criticised the narrator, and although their reviews did make me aware of the pauses in his reading, his voice and accent were perfect for the genre and style. I didn't find the pauses annoying, I pictured him as a a Victorian citizen standing on a street corner narrating what he was seeing and hearing. It gave the book character and authenticity.