Murder Season

Lena Gamble, Book 3

By: Robert Ellis

Narrated by: Coleen Marlo

Length: 8 hrs and 39 mins

Publisher's summary

Detective Lena Gamble knows how to handle the hottest cases - do it fast and keep her head down because if it all goes south, the department won’t hesitate to make a scapegoat out of her. So when she gets called to the scene of a double murder at Club 3 AM, the A-list hangout for Hollywood celebs, she knows the fun is only beginning.

And she's not wrong. It's just much worse than that. As expected, one of the victims is club owner Johnny Bosco, one of the most well-connected men in Hollywood politics. But the shocker comes when Lena sees the other: 25-year-old Jacob Gant, acquitted just days ago of murdering his 16-year-old neighbor, after L.A.'s latest trial-of-the-century. But are these victims of a father's righteous anger or is something bigger at play?

Robert Ellis's third white-knuckled thriller delivers all the twists and turns fans have come to expect, with plenty more to spare.

Crack another case with Lena Gamble.

©2011 Robert Ellis (P)2011 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Ellis and Lena Succeed Again

If you are like me and are a fan of either (or all of) Michael Connely, Robert Crais, TJ Parker, Thomas Perry, Joseph Wambaugh, Robert Ferrigno, Ross Macdonald or Sue Grafton then Robert Ellis and Lina Gamble are for you. Not only has Ellis created a great central character in Lena but he uses the LA/Southern California backdrop as a supporting actor (or shall I say actress) in the tradition of the greats listed above. The plot twists will keep you guessing till the end. This was my first experience with Coleen Marlo and her voice was pleasant and easy to listen to. My only wish was that she would have exhibited a greater range of emotion when the plot situation call for some. I hope you enjoy this listen as much as I did.

Best of the series

Any twists and turns. A dynamite ending. The best of the Lena Gambill series. I loved this one and highly recommend it.

Kissed By Fate

l was hesitant to buy this 3 rd book as l have 3 older books Ms Marlo narrated and l had not liked her narration of them. However, time makes some narrators get better with cadence and timing as it has with Ms Marlo. Frankly l was very surprised by the great improvement and how she interpreted this novel. l will now seek out books l had previously skipped with her narration. I did use the 1.2 speed to match the author adventure. Give it a try.
As l said in my two other reviews of this series, it is about the journey with this author and not just solving a mystery. This author is not overly wordy! He just does not write like he was a reporter on the crime beat like Michael Connelly. Frankly , l wish Micheal Connelly fans would be a bit more gracious in their reviews of other authors. I appreciate Connelly‘s fans being frustrated that he doesn’t write a book a month, but only one every 10 months! However, to blast other good authors out of the water with comparison's leaves a big hole in the mystery genre boat.
Were my comments of help?

Wow, very good.

Didn’t get bogged down in detail or background information. Kept me guessing. Kept my interest. Story about murder but not so much about murder. Great story.

Avery good listen.

The story was well done and over all well presented. The performance was easy to understand also.I will listen to more from this author.

The BEST of Robert Ellis!

I really really enjoyed this book. It was the best in the "Lena Gamble" series and I hope it's not the last. Coleen Marlo did a great job in her performance for sure. For me the writing style in this book was such that I could really feel "murder season" and why it was happening as well as all the twists and turns of the plots.

Without giving the end away there is one section where the listener may feel that the author is wrapping up the plot and winding down the story line....it is done in a very clever way such that I was lulled into complacency while driving and listening, the speaker speaking rhythmically when a 180 degree turn in the plot is thrown in.....(with 15 min left in a 12 hour book) I sat straight up in the car seat having been slouching after driving for 3 hours. It sure woke me up!

Fantastic mystery/thriller!

Robert Ellis is the best-better than Patterson n I can't wait for his next books in this series n in the Matt Jones series. I can never guess the endings n I love that.

very Good Storyline!

loved the book. not crazy about narrator. Worth reading on a rainy day or maybe on a beach somewhere. Could stop till it was over

Here goes my credits......

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Started out w/The Dead Room and progressed to the Lena Gamble series. As with Scarpetta, Bosch, Reacher, Spillane, Bauer, Pendergast, Penn Cage and the like, the protagonists become familiar enough that I Iook forward to reading what they come upon next. If you like the 'same cast, different script' books - then I would recommend the Lena Gamble series and Ellis' two other books.

Any additional comments?

Robert Ellis doesn't have a large collection of works, however; am looking forward to the next Gamble read...plenty of twists and turns on this ride!

A Little Disappointed

I have reviewed this author's previous books and rated them a BIG 5 star! I even said that he was one of my new favorite authors. Don't get me wrong; I think Robert Ellis is an incredible new author and will continue to buy his books. I enjoy the Lena Gamble series. His characters are likeable and are real. The stories are believable and complex. I waited all of last year for this book and built so much hype over it that when it did not top the previous Lena Gamble books I was a little disappointed. The book started out saying "Murder Season" way too much making it sound almost "hokey". What I would like to say is if this is your first Robert Ellis book, please read at least one of the first two books in the series. Each book is a stand alone book with its own story so no need to read these in order. This book is my least favorite of the three.