Moonlight Mile

By: Dennis Lehane

Narrated by: Jonathan Davis

Length: 8 hrs and 40 mins

Publisher's summary

Acclaimed New York Times best-selling author Dennis Lehane delivers an explosive tale of integrity and vengeance - heralding the long-awaited return of private investigators Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro.

Amanda McCready was four years old when she vanished from a Boston neighborhood 12 years ago. Kenzie and Gennaro risked everything to find the young girl - only to orchestrate her return to a neglectful mother and a broken home.

Now Amanda is 16 - and gone again. Haunted by their consciences, Kenzie and Gennaro revisit the case that troubled them the most. Their search leads them into a world of identity thieves, methamphetamine dealers, a mentally unstable crime boss and his equally demented wife, a priceless, thousand-year-old cross, and a happily homicidal Russian gangster. It's a world in which motives and allegiances constantly shift and mistakes are fatal.

In their desperate fight to confront the past and find Amanda McCready, Kenzie and Gennaro will be forced to question if it's possible to do the wrong thing and still be right or to do the right thing and still be wrong. As they face an evil that goes beyond broken families and broken dreams, they discover that the sins of yesterday don't always stay buried, and the crimes of today could end their lives.

©2010 Dennis Lehane (P)2010 HarperCollins Publishers

Clever Revisit

Odd small inconsistencies among the characters here and past Kenzie and Gennaros. But I don't agree with those who found this so disappointing. I like it that the characters have grown in a decade... No evolved. Like it that they tied together the ends from the past. Definitely felt closure and an end to an extended multi novel epic.

Only one BUT.... don't start with Moonlight MIle. Begin this series from the beginning. It is so cleverly and richly constructed that you'll cheat yourself of a great deal of pleasure if you don't drive this path from its start.

Hard to listen to

If you can't do a passable Boston accent, please don't do it. Mr. Lehane, I would expect you to know better. I am having a hard time taking this book seriously with the this narrator.

Continues Lehane's storyline but a weaker attempt

If you???ve listened to books by Dennis Lehane before, how does this one compare?

This is my least favorite Lehane so far, Still a decent listen but seemed to lack the suspense and depth of the others. Without providing a spoiler it was a weaker ending then I have grown to expect from Lehane.

Good story

I have gotten hooked on this series by Lehane. Patrick and Angie, the excellent dialogue, the characters are wonderful. However, this particular book seems to have been recorded first in the series in spite of being the last written. The result is that Jonathan Davis, whom I loved in the other books, sounds a bit more like Elmer Fudd than Dorchester...the Bostonian R's and other pronunciations are just wrong. But in the later books, the accent is more subtle and Davis' narration really makes for a terrific listening experience. I hope Dennis Lehane hasn't permanently abandoned Boston as a setting for his wonderful writing.

Decent Lehane Story

Is there anything you would change about this book?

I was somewhat disappointed, but it was not a terrible book. I'm not sure I wanted them to have a kid and be "grown ups"

Would you be willing to try another book from Dennis Lehane? Why or why not?

Yes, he is one of my favorite writers.

Which character – as performed by Jonathan Davis – was your favorite?

I liked him as all characters except the little girl, he didn't pull that off very well.

Do you think Moonlight Mile needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

No.

Boston accent

Jonathan Davis did a great job narrating the five previous books. He shouldn’t have attempted the Boston accent in this one. Huge fail and very distracting to readers who actually have a Boston accent. The attempt added nothing to the story.

Edgy and thrilling

This was a great story, and keeps the reader enthralled the whole time! The narration was superb and brought it all home.
Must read.

Not a believable ending

What was most disappointing about Dennis Lehane’s story?

Patrick and Angie were not believable as parents, but I suppose having children does change you.

Have you listened to any of Jonathan Davis’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

He has more of a Boston accent here than any of his other Kenzie-Genaro books. Other than that, I found it nearly the same as the other performances which were remarkable.

Any additional comments?

It feels like everything was a little too convenient. Really predictable--not at all what I'm used to with Lehane's work.

Why, Jonathan Davis, Why??

My main point of contention with this book was that the narrator attempted a Boston accent. After five books, you really get used to the way a person's voice sounds, and I liked his voice in all of the other Kenzie-Gennaro books. There was no need to change it up--it totally detracted from the story!

As for the story, I thought it was just OK--a bit of a low note in one of my favorite series, but I did feel like it was nice to wrap things up and tie up some loose ends.

A Fitting Sequel and Excellent Ending

Any additional comments?

I was introduced to Kenzie and Gennaro through the Ben Affleck directed film version of Gone Baby Gone. I loved the film and decided to read the series of books where these characters originated. I instantly connected to all of the characters as well as the Boston setting. I've paced myself a little through the year but have finally finished this 6 book series and have no complaints. I enjoyed the whole ride.

However I was nervous taking on this last book. The reviews and comments are really less than stellar and I worried that the whole experience would be ruined by a sub-par conclusion and let's face it bringing back Amanda McCready and making her go missing again is a questionable premise. But I finally dove in and finished this book in 3 days with 75% of it today in one sitting. I really enjoyed it and any hesitations I had regarding the series disappeared. It was awesome to see Gone Baby Gone's broken characters back again for a second time. I was entertained the whole way through and while I would love to read more adventures involving Patrick and Angie I felt this was a really good way to end their saga.

If I had one detraction it would be Mr. Davis trying to adopt a Boston accent for Patrick this time around. Not that he did it poorly it just wasn't there in previous Kenzie + Gennaro novels. He also really nailed the Eastern European accent here as well.

I know I am in the minority here but I highly recommend it, just make sure you read Gone Baby Gone first.