• The Redbreast

  • By: Jo Nesbø
  • Narrated by: Robin Sachs
  • Length: 16 hrs and 40 mins
  • 4.2 out of 5 stars (2,347 ratings)

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The Redbreast  By  cover art

The Redbreast

By: Jo Nesbø
Narrated by: Robin Sachs
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Publisher's summary

1944: Daniel, a soldier, legendary among the Norwegians fighting the advance of Bolshevism on the Russian front, is killed. Two years later, a wounded soldier wakes up in a Vienna hospital. He becomes involved with a young nurse, the consequences of which will ripple forward to the turn of the next century.

1999: Harry Hole, alone again after having caused an embarrassment in the line of duty, has been promoted to inspector and is lumbered with surveillance duties. He is assigned the task of monitoring neo-Nazi activities; fairly mundane until a report of a rare and unusual gun being fired sparks his interest. Ellen Gjelten, his partner, makes a startling discovery. Then a former soldier is found with his throat cut. In a quest that takes him to South Africa and Vienna, Harry finds himself perpetually one step behind the killer. He will be both winner and loser by the novel’s nail-biting conclusion.

The Redbreast won the Glass Key prize for the best Nordic crime novel when it was first published, and was subsequently voted Norway’s best crime novel. The Devil’s Star, Nesbø’s first novel featuring Harry Hole to be translated into English, marked Nesbø as a writer to watch in the ever more fashionable world of Nordic crime.

©2007 Jo Nesbo (P)2011 Random House Audio

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What listeners say about The Redbreast

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Harry does it again!

What about Robin Sachs’s performance did you like?

Robin Sachs does a great job! I hope he continues to read the earlier books as they are republished.

Any additional comments?

Looking forward to Nesbos earlier books in the Harry Hole series. Hope they are all in the works for republishing.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Loved it!

An excellent story well written and narrated, I really like the plot twists. Enjoyed it very much.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Poor casting...

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

Jo Nesbo is a wonderful mystery/chrime novelist. I would recommend him to anyone who loves the genre.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Harry Hole, the protagonist of the series.

Would you be willing to try another one of Robin Sachs’s performances?

No

Was The Redbreast worth the listening time?

With the surging popularity in Nordic Noir fiction, many audio books are springing up. Nemesis, I believe was for a long time the only audio book of Nesbo, narrated by Thor Knai. I am not sure why they used two other narrators for the remaining books. Neither Sachs nor Barrett come close to the reading of Knai. In fact I would rank them Knai, Barrett, and a distant last to Sachs. Unfortunately, Sachs got to narrate 5, Barrett 1 and Knai 1. Not sure what the producers were thinking, but this was a MAJOR blunder.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

better narrator

Read the bat then this one then Nemesis. The first two flowed better and didn't drag on.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Love the telling of this story

The street names pronunciation alone will make you want to listen to this tale of intrigue. Well done as always.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Nesbo is Phenomenal!

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

He's an outstanding narrator, and really brings the story to life.

Any additional comments?

This is the third Jo Nesbo book I've listened to, and look forward to hearing them all. He's a rich and engrossing painter of people and scenes, and the stories are addictive.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Huuummmm

New author for me so I'm not sure if I really likeed the book. Since I started in the middle of the series, perhaps that's part of the challenge, or because with the unfamiliar names it was difficult to keep the characters separate, except Harry and Rachel. I had to rewind many times to try to understand the story.

I purchased, based on readers comments, the next book to see if I can get a better understanding of the series. The narator was very good, assuming he pronounced the Norwegian names correctly, which I'm clueless about.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

LOVE!!

Excellent story. Harry does it again. Four teen words remain in the review. It is a four three two one

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Norwegian neo Nazis run amok.

relationship explored between Germany and Norway in 1942 with effects to present day crimes. interesting.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

An absolute must have of a book

Truly an amazing work of writing and narration. I would recommend this novel and audiobook to everyone.

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