The Good Thief's Guide to Amsterdam

By: Chris Ewan

Narrated by: Simon Vance

Length: 7 hrs and 16 mins

Publisher's summary

Charlie Howard travels the globe writing suspense novels for a living. To supplement his income - and keep his hand in - Charlie has a small side business: stealing for a very discreet clientele on commission. When a mysterious American offers Charlie 20,000 euros to steal two small monkey figurines to match the one he already has, Charlie is suspicious; the job seems too good to be true, and of course, it is. He soon finds the American beaten nearly to death, while the third figurine has disappeared. Back in London, his literary agent, Victoria (who is naive enough to believe he actually looks like his jacket photo), tries to talk him through the plot problems in both his latest manuscript and in his real life - but Charlie soon finds himself caught up in a caper reminiscent of a Cary Grant movie, involving safe-deposit boxes, menacing characters, and a beautiful damsel in distress.

©2007 Chris Ewan (P)2011 AudioGo

Starts strong but really fizzles

Interesting plot and action to start .. really bogs down with an overly expository latter half. The final section is a lonnnnng discourse where the protagonist is basically giving a speech to wrap things up. Then it ends and you’re like, wait, what?

A bit convoluted and the ending format spoils it

A good cast of characters and an interesting story although a lot is left untold until the end when the main character - a thief - summons all others - including a couple of police inspectors - to a Poirot-style grandiose finale where all is revealed.
While this type of ending worked beautifully for Agatha Christie's beginning of the XX century master detective stories, here it completely destroys the necessary suspension of disbelief.

To catch a thief

A nice modern remake of the to catch a thief concept. The characters were well developed and the story was quite entertaining.

Nice Little Mystery!

This was plain fun! The premise is an old standby but it is wonderfully done. The characters come to life in full color. No lessons to be learned here, no moral to the story really, just a merry band of criminals going about the business of being criminals. Completely enjoyable.

Solid if Predictable

A bit too easy to guess before the end. But solid enough writing and good story telling. Got me through a day of gardening.

Wow, no.

Would you try another book from Chris Ewan and/or Simon Vance?

Not likely. I wouldn't disqualify a book if it were narrated by Vance but I also wouldn't search them out.

Would you ever listen to anything by Chris Ewan again?

I doubt it. His main character was unbelievable, the thieves were flat, the woman was there to have sex with the main character, the plot was convoluted and never made me care about any of the characters or the outcome.

Which character – as performed by Simon Vance – was your favorite?

The female police person. She was not insipid and did not exist merely as a foil. That said, the character was super minor so there wasn't a lot about her.

Did The Good Thief's Guide to Amsterdam inspire you to do anything?

Return it...

Any additional comments?

The unveiling of the 'bad guy' was horrendous. It was filled with detailed descriptions of how he physically appeared to be angry while making him completely non-threatening. Ridiculous. Also, during that scene the thieves step in front of the main character, ostensibly to protect him from the bad guy, but there is zero reason for them to care if he dies. They don't know him and don't owe him anything. It's like he just threw a bunch of characters into an empty building and then drew cards to see who the killer would be. I kept having to replay parts because it kept putting me to sleep...:/

Read to me, Simon Vance!

Any additional comments?

What a hoot! I love our burglar/hero and his droll sense of humor, and I found myself chuckling even as I teased through the many threads of this intricate plot. In fact, I wasn't paying enough attention to the mystery here, and was surprised to find how many details I'd missed as I arrived at the final chapter.

I look forward to the next in this series, and I promise not to let my puzzle mind get distracted by this charming thief!

Entertainment

Loved the narrator and I would definitely look for a book by this author again

Good Story, Great Narration

Would you listen to The Good Thief's Guide to Amsterdam again? Why?

Probably not. I'm not one to re-read. Though I am extremely pleased that I did pick this book. I enjoyed it VERY much, and I do plan to read others in the series.
I have always really enjoyed these kind of mysteries. In the case of this series, I look forward to the different international locations. The author tells you about the location, without droning on, but weaves the colour of the area in quite seamlessly. ,

Who was your favorite character and why?

I really enjoyed, Charlie, the lead character. Not just because he was the lead, but because he has many layers. I found myself seeing him as a friend I'd like to have. He has his faults and can be, when necessary, has no problem being quite honest about the certain less known.... yet he still has his one confidant that he can trust. That's more and more unlikely as far as my reality, as I grow older. He is charming yet, your always aware that he's very much hu(man). Smart at his craft as a thief, yet, will admit occasionally, "why didn't I think of that."

Which character – as performed by Simon Vance – was your favorite?

Other than Charlie the lead...I can't say one, but the variations in his Dutch accent were quite awesome.

Any additional comments?

SIMON VANCE, narrator, is very talented. I was impressed with his abilities. I could tell very soon in the book, which character was speaking immediately. I very much enjoyed that part of my experience. That's saying a lot considering how many different characters. He had a lot of different degrees of dialects to master....KUDOS to Mr. Vance and his talents.

story keeps one listening

The narrator is very good, which always helps. That said, the protagonist is a mystery book writer and a thief (not a spoiler, the title says it). He is not truly evil, he doesn't murder or physically harm people, he doesn't steal from the poor, but he doesn't give to them either (he's no Robin Hood). If you want your protagonist to be a good guy, this one isn't. Though compared to most of the characters he runs into, he is the best of the lot. The story is well told and maintains one's interest.