Small Town

By: Lawrence Block

Narrated by: Lawrence Block

Length: 5 hrs and 12 mins

Publisher's summary

The author of dozens of acclaimed novels including those in the Scudder and Keller series, Lawrence Block has long been recognized as one of the premier crime writers of our time. Now, the breathtaking skill, power, and versatility of this grand master are brilliantly displayed once again in a mesmerizing new thriller set on the streets of the city he knows and loves so well.

That was the thing about New York; if you loved it, if it worked for you, it ruined you for anyplace else in the world.

In this dazzlingly constructed novel, Lawrence Block reveals the secret at the heart of the Big Apple. His glorious metropolis is really a small town, filled with men and women from all walks of life whose aspirations, fears, disappointments, and triumphs are interconnected by bonds as unbreakable as they are unseen. Pulsating with the lives of its denizens (bartenders and hookers, power brokers and politicos, cops and secretaries, editors and dreamers) the city inspires a passion that is universal yet unique in each of its eight million inhabitants, including:

John Blair Creighton, a writer on the verge of a breakthrough; Francis Buckram, a charismatic ex-police commissioner, and the inside choice for the next mayor, on the verge of a breakdown; Susan Pomerance, a beautiful, sophisticated folk-art dealer plumbing the depths of her own fierce sexuality; Maury Winters, a defense attorney who prefers murder trials because there's one less witness; Jerry Pankow, an ex-addict who has turned being clean into a living, mopping up after New York's nightlife; and, in the shadows of a city reeling from tragedy, an unlikely killing machine who wages a one-man war against them all.

Infused with the raw cadence, stark beauty, and relentless pace of New York City, Small Town is a tour de force Block fans old and new will celebrate.

©2003 Lawrence Block (P)2003 HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Here is one of those fairly rare cases in which an author's voice marvelously fits the story and characters of his own book." (AudioFile)

"This is a novel at once profoundly disturbing, graphically erotic, satiric, and above all, entertaining. A fascinating effort by a writer who never fails to exceed expectations." (Booklist)

Great Story, Terrible Narration

I listened to this through Audible. I should have checked the sample before buying it. The author, Lawrence Block, has written a very compelling and complex story. The tie-in to the terrorist attack on 9/11 is a great catalyst for the actions of the antagonist, and quite believable. In fact, all the characters are realistic and interesting.There is a sexual encounter that feels gratuitous which is why I gave the story only 4 stars. My low rating is for the audio version. Lawrence Block is clearly no actor. He reads in a monotone, no differences in character voices, and the sex scenes are therefore dull and comical. The author, and in particular this book, was recommended to me and is my introduction to Block's work. I will definitely check out some other titles, but will skip the audio if he is the narrator.