This Doesn't Happen in the Movies

Reed Ferguson Mystery, Book 1

By: Renee Pawlish

Narrated by: Johnny Peppers

Length: 5 hrs and 32 mins

Publisher's summary

A wannabe private eye with a love of film noir and detective fiction.

A rich, attractive femme fatale.

A missing husband.

A rollicking ride to a dark and daring ending.

Reed Ferguson's first case is a daring adventure, complete with a dose of film noir, and a lot of humor. With a great supporting cast of the Goofball Brothers, Reed's not too bright neighbors, and Cal, Reed's computer geek friend, This Doesn't Happen in the Movies is detective noir at its best. Follow Reed as he solves crime akin to his cinematic hero, Humphrey Bogart.

©2011 Renee Pawlish (P)2014 Renee Pawlish

Good Story. Great Title.

I don't want this to be a spoiler, but the title and book art does scream film noir with a twist. Now I want to watch a few old films I missed, and then read Renee's next book in this series. I co u 'd have a crush on Reed.

A satire of film noir.

I thought this book was okay. I wasn't totally sold on the plot lines or the characters, but it had enough going on to keep me interested. While the plot seemed to have gone over my head (mostly my fault for not paying close attention), I felt that the characters' actions and reactions were true to life. If something seemed overly exaggerated, I assumed it was satirizing the film noir genre.

I think Johnny Peppers did a pretty good job embracing the noir feel of the book. His pace was good and his voice was clear.

A satire of film noir.

**I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.**

Raymond Chandler would have liked this book! :)

Would you try another book from Renee Pawlish and/or Johnny Peppers?

Yes. I like detective stories.

If you’ve listened to books by Renee Pawlish before, how does this one compare?

I never listened to her books before. This was the first one.

Which character – as performed by Johnny Peppers – was your favorite?

Amanda! He had her path down. :)

Could you see This Doesn't Happen in the Movies being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

I think so. Reed Ferguson should be played by Liam Neeson.

Any additional comments?

My Review:
I always loved the old detective film noir. This book has that flavour with a modern twist. I enjoyed the story and the characters. I particularly enjoyed the grand finale which was worthy of a Raymond Chandler's The Big Sleep ending.

This was a fun story filled with action and surprising twists. Great book!

Great read.

I am a big fan of the noir detective movies and books. This is a great story and I am looking forward to more stories from the author.

Great Start to a New Mystery Series

My Review
First up, if you take this book seriously then you probably won't like it, I could be

wrong (what?) but I reckon it's a wry take on noir. The writing and narration style

will take you straight back to those old detective films, the difference being in

the dry humour.

This is Reeds' very first case, his Dad doesn't think it's a real job, so he has to

prove him wrong, not that he needs the money as Reed hails from a very wealthy

family. He just wants to be a P.I., he has read all the books and watched all of the

films so is well prepared for his new career!

First client measures up well as a film noir player, well coiffed, lipsticked and

perfumed she also has a strange tale to tell, he did think her story was a tad odd,

but how could he refuse?

The adventure begins! Reed is to look for a man who may or may not be dead, he

simply didn't come home at the expected time. At this point in the "whodunnit" we

don't as yet know what was actually done, let alone who actually did it.

This is what makes the story a little different and as its a short listen of 5 hours

thirty minutes, there's not a lot I can say without revealing spoilers.

There are some interesting characters, but as the first book in a series and a short

one at that, they will become more interesting as they are developed. It's all there

though, the making of a darned good series, I look forward to learning a whole lot

more about Reed, his family and his crazy friends. Oh! And was that just a hint of

a budding romance at the end?

Narrator
My first "Johnny Peppers" listen, and I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. I

thought he was just the perfect performer for this role. Good timing, rhythm and

pace along with good quality editing and recording added to my enjoyment.

This is my Kind of Book!

A Bogie book, a Marlow story, and the foibles of a New detective! Reading is great, voices easy to follow. what can I say Noir and funny!

quirky, fun mystery

A fun listen, (at 1.25 speed or faster) with quirky characters, humor, and a great setting.

Entertaining book

Would you listen to This Doesn't Happen in the Movies again? Why?

I enjoyed the story very much, but I generally don't listen to books more than once.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

The plot was very good. The story flowed so well that I was not in a hurry to know exactly what was going on.

What does Johnny Peppers bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Mr. Peppers has a great voice and he added accents and pitches which added value to the characters.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

There's only one take in reel life.

This Doesn't Happen...

Any additional comments?

This was an ok read.It did follow in the vein of old timey noir.I lost the thread of what it was about somewhere and never did pick it up again.
The narrator,Renee Pawlish,did a fine job."I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author in exchange for an unbiased review via AudiobookBlast dot com."

Bogart Comes Alive!

Would you consider the audio edition of This Doesn't Happen in the Movies to be better than the print version?

Definitely, I put this on my cell phone and went out shopping all day and I must have looked like a freak because I found myself laughing out loud in Wal-Mart.

What was one of the most memorable moments of This Doesn't Happen in the Movies?

For me there were several being a big film noir buff, mainly every time there was a slight reference to a movie etc. that only film noir buffs would know.

Which scene was your favorite?

There really wasn't one favorite scene in this book. I was just getting to know the characters.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Laugh!!!

Any additional comments?

I usually listen/read psycho/horror/gore thrillers.This is a nice change. Especially since no one I know likes or knows about film noir, so I feel at home reading these. I just hope she keeps up, there are so many great movies out there."Dark Passage!!"
Keep up the good work Johnny Peppers!