George Washington's Secret Six

By: Brian Kilmeade, Don Yaeger

Narrated by: Brian Kilmeade

Length: 5 hrs and 54 mins

Publisher's Summary

From the cohost of Fox & Friends, the true story of the anonymous spies who helped win the Revolutionary War.

Among the pantheon of heroes of the American Revolution, six names are missing. First and foremost, Robert Townsend, an unassuming and respected businessman from Long Island, who spearheaded the spy ring that covertly brought down the British…before they, or anyone else, could discover their names.

Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger finally give Townsend and his fellow spies their proper due, telling the fascinating story of how they passed information to George Washington that turned the tide of the war. Using a network of citizen operatives that included a longshoreman, bartender, newspaper editor, housewife, tailor, and femme fatale, and employing a series of complex codes, the so-called Culper Spy Ring used sophisticated tactics to subvert the British.

Based on previously unpublished research, George Washington's Secret Six is a gripping history of these amazing, anonymous Patriots who risked their lives for our freedom.

©2013 Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger (P)2013 Penguin Audio

Good story, boring reader

Great story but Brian is not a great reader. He places inflections and emphasis in odd places, and doesn't seem to know how to pause for dramatic effect. This is one a professional reader would have done better.

10 of 10 people found this review helpful

Interesting story. Poor narrator

Is there anything you would change about this book?

Story is intriguing and historically relevant. A bit dis jointed on how it is flows but interesting non the less. It made me revisit my basic knowledge of the revolutionary war and its players.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of uncredited?

The narrator was one of the worst I have ever encountered. I almost stopped listening as a result but ultimately got through it as the story was interesting. The narration tone is very sensational and leading. I would have liked a narrator who honored the seriousness of the story and the risks the spies and the continental army had to take.

13 of 14 people found this review helpful

Great Expectations Left Unfulfilled

Would you try another book from Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger and/or uncredited?

No, I wouldn't. This book could have been exciting and had a great underlying story. However, it was written in a lifeless fashion and I was never pulled into the story. I found it boring.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

I think it would have needed different writers and most certainly a different narrator.

How could the performance have been better?

The narration was terrible. The reader spoke much too fast and did not enunciate clearly.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

The best part of the book was the hype leading up to it. I couldn't wait to hear more about these men.

Any additional comments?

Waste of money.

13 of 15 people found this review helpful

This is no David McCullough...

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

The story was quite interesting, but I found myself constantly distracted by the terrible narration. The narrator's voice was fine, but seriously?? Wasn't he one of the writers?? It is beyond me, why if that is indeed the case, he couldn't read his own sentences with the correct phrasing or emphasis on the phrasing.
This would have been far better if I had read it in a conventional form rather than listened.

7 of 8 people found this review helpful

Horrible narrator

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

Good basic story, but hard to follow at times.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

This is the worst Audible narrator I've listened to. Break-neck speed most of the time, and very choppy delivery. Really detracted from the book.

Could you see George Washington's Secret Six being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

Not really.

10 of 12 people found this review helpful

Great Read

What did you love best about George Washington's Secret Six?

It's amazing to hear this piece of American and local history presented in a comprehensive form. I now currently live in the Setauket area, and only learned of the Culper Spy Ring from the road signs posted by the local historical society. Thanks for illuminating this most important piece of American History.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The Six Patriots !

10 of 12 people found this review helpful

The Performance Wrecked the Cause

What disappointed you about George Washington's Secret Six?

Kilmeade is a very terrible narrator. I finally gave up listening after struggling through 2/3 of it. The story is not uninteresting. It is just hard to follow and extremely tedious - I had to concentrate on what the words were, not on the speakers tone, inflection and his constant dramatic emphasis on the less significant words. I relistened to sections of it to get clearer on what was being said, but generally realized if I was going to get thru the book, it would be with only a general understanding of what was being said, and not a detailed or nuanced understanding, and since it was the only available audible book I possessed at the time, I contented myself with that for awhile. Kilmeade is supposedly the co-author, but sounded like he hadn't even read it prior to recording it. It sounded, too, as if he had just pulled an all-nighter and was reading something he did not comprehend in the least but was faking his way through it with constant misplaced dramatic emphases. Even the new paragraphs were quite hard to puzzle out. I cannot believe the publisher let this out to the public. It needs to be redone by a professional narrator. Then at least it could be listened to. I cannot possibly describe how bad this work is. Stay far, far away!

Would you be willing to try another book from Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger ? Why or why not?

No. Period.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

See above.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

Probably. It was an interesting tale. Just made incomprehensible by the narration.

Any additional comments?

Not recommended.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Pretty good

I read a lot of complaints in the reviews and found myself reluctant to start the book. I'm glad I did though because, it was a surprisingly good read. If you're like me and have recently become of a fan of the AMC TV show "TURN", and have become curious about the real story of the spies, then this is a great introduction to some facts about them. The story was told well and kept me very engaged.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Worst Reader Ever

Is there anything you would change about this book?

This is an interesting story performed by a reader who is so over the top as to ruin the entire presentation. Couldn't finish it by audio and had to go to the written version

11 of 14 people found this review helpful

Great Historical Review

If you could sum up George Washington's Secret Six in three words, what would they be?

New surprising information

Who was your favorite character and why?

All 6 were important, but the "unknown" female was intriguing - could have been rich; could have been poor. But was dedicated to the cause.

What three words best describe uncredited’s performance?

Great guy, but he mispronounced some words and overlooked some punctuation which serve to define better the meaning of a sentence.

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

No

Any additional comments?

Living on Long Island, it was interesting to discover a lot of history here that was crucial to the success of Washington and the group's success, and having taken place in neighboring villages but not well publicized. I think many residents both young and old will find this quite a revelation.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

passionately read

I watched the TV series Turn, and thought I would complete the experience by listening to the book. The authors have an in depth knowledge of the subject, and Brian Kilmeade, obviously has a passion for the subject, but that's the problem, I found his style of narration overly exuberant, he gets too excited and begins to get loud at times. This tends to overshadow the exellent story. If the book had been read by a trained actor, it would have been 5 stars across the board.

things they didn't teach me in school!

I've listened to this alongside watching 'Turn'. without the two i would have found this book a bit confusing ...all the names and places and story twists. but with the supporting tv show it all made sense.

i found the reader to be a bit too excitable at times and his increased tone and speed was distracting.

all in all I'm very glad i listened. I've learned new facts.

1 of 2 people found this review helpful

Passionate reader, very enjoyable

Who was your favorite character and why?

Robert Townsend, he was fascinating.

What about Brian Kilmeade’s performance did you like?

He is a very passionate reader who clearly loves everything about this story and these characters, and he puts a lot of emotion into reading, it makes even duller passages interesting to listen to.

1 of 2 people found this review helpful

too much like hard work

What did you like best about George Washington's Secret Six? What did you like least?

This should have been a great true story of one of Washington's spy ring which helped him win the "war of independence" but it not - the presentation is dreadful and ruined the whole experience for me.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

The spy ring and its ins and outs should have been fascinating - but the way it has been narrated demolishes the interest I had

Who might you have cast as narrator instead of Brian Kilmeade?

I wish that authors would leave the reading of their books to professionals - there is a certain amount of arrogance in the "I've written it so I'm reading it".

I have repeatedly said that the narrator can make or break a book and in this case Kilmeade destroyed his own work

Do you think George Washington's Secret Six needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

No, please no!

Any additional comments?

I should have loved this - it's my kind of thing - but this was just too hard.

From the narrator (who sounds like a petulant 12 year old reading his essay to the class) through the syntax (which again was that of a 12 year old and that's being generous) to the overall presentation - it was a disaster when it should have been fascinating.

Thank goodness for Audible's returns policy!

1 of 2 people found this review helpful