New York Dead

Stone Barrington, Book 1

By: Stuart Woods

Narrated by: Richard Ferrone

Length: 8 hrs and 56 mins

Publisher's summary

Everyone is always telling Stone Barrington that he’s too smart to be a cop, but it’s pure luck that places him on the streets in the dead of night, just in time to witness the horrifying incident that turns his life inside out. Suddenly he is on the front page of every New York newspaper and his life is hopelessly entwined in the increasingly shocking life (and perhaps death) of Sasha Nijinsky, the country’s hottest and most beautiful television anchorwoman.

No matter where he turns, the case is waiting for him, haunting his nights and turning his days into a living hell. Stone finds himself caught in a perilous web of unspeakable crimes, dangerous friends, and sexual depravity that has throughout it one common thread: Sasha.

©1991 Stuart Woods (P)2012 Recorded Books, LLC

Critic reviews

"Hollywood slick and fast-moving." ( Los Angeles Daily News)

Ridiculous

If you like a book that is 25% sappy sex scenes and 25% profane and vulgar language and 50% actually story plot, this is the book for you!

Mr. Woods should expand his horizons.

Stuart Woods has written books set in Manhattan and Florida. Early in his career he was entertaining. Now, however, he is boring. His protagonist is named Stone Barrington, This right away should put you on your guard. The name sounds just like a soap opera character, doesn't it? The book is set in the extremely cloistered environment, in which Manhattan is the only place in the world that counts. Or, as the cartoon once said, everything west of the Hudson is Pitttsburgh. The action, such as it is, involves the suicide or murder of Sasha Nijinski, a news reader on one of the TV news programs. From that point on, the plot is stale. There is no suspense. Of course the sleek Mr. Barrington becomes sexually involved with a woman who is just as sleek as he is, and they have sex until it hurts. I began to lose interest about a third of the way through. I mean, does Mr. Woods actually believe that we care whether his hero can get a good table at Elaine's? Or, do we really care if they can get into Robert DeNiro's new hangout? Puuullllease! Woody Allen has worked this tiny plot of land for his entire life, and it is thoroughly wrung out by now. A new generation of writers might be able to pull fresh material from the same milieu, but Mr. Woods is by now simply knocking these out because his publishers demand it. It is possible that the publishers and Mr. Woods are still making money at this, but, frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn.

A good start for the series

This is the first book of the Stone Barrington series, and I really enjoyed it.
A woman falls to her death? in front of Stone as he was walking down the street. She disappears, as he runs 12 stories up to her apt. to see if it's murder or suicide. Someone runs away, and the mystery and suspense begins. The book is full of twists and turns, full of clues that never fully give away just what happened to the falling lady, meanwhile Stone searches for answers, making some poor personal choices and gets himself in all kinds of trouble leading up to a nail biting ending.
The story kept me thoroughly interested, with good narration, so I listened and listened, and am now looking forward to the next of the series.

There were a few good twists

But many of the subplots seemed contrived and unrealistic, Overall it was a good book but not a great one. Now that the main character has been developed, I look forward to reading the next one.

A Good Read

Fast, easy read. Nothing complicated. After the victim turns out to be a society climber with aspirations on news anchor, I was afraid that it would be one of those conspiracies built around hoidy-toidy New York society and that Sherlock Holmes would appear with a briar and a funny hat. But it turned out to be a reasonable cop drama. Not everyone is portrayed in a good light but that adds to the drama in it. It was light and fun; think I'll try another.

NOT PREDICTABLE

What made the experience of listening to New York Dead the most enjoyable?

RICHARD FERRONE IS AN EXCELLENT READER AND HAS A GREAT WAY WITH HIS CHARACTERS.

Which scene was your favorite?

THE PART WHEN HE IS BEING FIRED.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

NO

Too much sex and cursing.

The sex and cursing is gratuitous. The story line was interesting in and of itself.

Great

I started out of order, I’ve listened to probably 20 Stone Barrington books and love them. It was nice to hear how he started out.

Surprise ending

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

yes; entertaining. Keeps you on the edge of your seat

What other book might you compare New York Dead to and why?

DC Dead - same characters different locale

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

Good character differentiation and voice continuity.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

1st chapter- body falling right in front of Stone

Any additional comments?

The story evolved smoothly but didn't give away the suprise ending.

Excellant read..a great start to the series

Where does New York Dead rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I feel New York Dead ranks at the top with others I have read

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

at every turn

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

no

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

neither , but kept me interested and on the edge of my seat..kept listening till the end and then the next day read it again

Any additional comments?

none