Stop the Presses!

By: Robert Goldsborough

Narrated by: Peter Berkrot

Length: 6 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's Summary

There are few people Nero Wolfe respects, and Lon Cohen of the New York Gazette is one of them. So when Cohen asks for a favor, Wolfe is inclined to listen.

According to Cohen, someone wants to kill the Gazette's gossip columnist, Cameron Clay. Death threats are a regular hazard for Clay, who's hurled insults and accusations at every bold-faced name in the five boroughs. But the latest threats have carried a more sinister tone. The columnist has narrowed his potential killers down to five people.

When Clay turns up dead, the cops deem it a suicide. The bigwigs at the Gazette don't agree, so they retain Wolfe to figure out which of the suspects had the mettle to pull the trigger.

©2016 Robert Goldsborough (P)2016 Dreamscape Media, LLC

Decent story, read by Baron Harkonnen on a bad day

What would have made Stop the Presses! better?

Another narrator. Literally any other narrator. Yes I know what literally means.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

Not sure, though I tend to like all Nero Wolfe novels, Stout and Goldsborough.

How could the performance have been better?

I don't know where to start. I stopped the playback in less than 10 minutes. The faux British Archie is simply terrible. It sounds as though the narrator may be British but trying out a semi-north American accent without ever having heard us speak? Just terrible. His Lon Cohen was lousy and his Nero Wolfe was depressingly sad.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Primarily disappointment. While Mr. Ganser wasn't quite up to the standard of Michael Pritchard as Archie (just my opinion of course), I felt he was very capable and after I began Silver Spire I found his narration style to be entertaining, if noticeably different from the "traditional" Archie of Pritchard. This narrator is a step down in every way. I won't say he's the worst narrator ever, or something silly like that. I can think of another audiobook with an objectively worse narrator for sale on this site. I do feel he is utterly and completely wrong for this book. Just... I cannot finish the first chapter.

6 of 6 people found this review helpful

Narrator so Distracting I Couldn't Finish

I love Rex Stout and enjoy this author also. I will finish this book in the printed version so I will be able to give the story proper attention. This narrator clearly has no familiarity with Nero, Archie, Lon, or any of the other beloved characters. Do yourself a favor and listen to the sample first to determine if you'll be able to immerse yourself in this performance.

6 of 6 people found this review helpful

Plot is ok, narrator is terrible

I fully concur with the other reviewers. The plot is ok, but the narrator at times affects a variety of accents (Southern US, Midlands English, vaguely Dublin Irish, Transatlantic) while delivering every sentence with an unwarranted short-of-breath theatricality. It is very distracting and only a determined listener will soldier through until the end.

5 of 5 people found this review helpful

Arrrghhhh!

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

LJ Ganser or Michael Pritchard reading.

What did you like best about this story?

It was Nero Wolfe.

Would you be willing to try another one of Peter Berkrot’s performances?

Not particularly.

What character would you cut from Stop the Presses!?

None.

Any additional comments?

Sometimes hard to tell who is talking. Archie often sounded like Lily Rowen.

4 of 4 people found this review helpful

Good book, wrong reader

I like the way the author keeps to the spirit of Nero Wolfe and Archie and the rest of them. He is true to the spirit. Alas the book would have been more enjoyable with a different reader. I swear I heard an occasional Irish lilt in Archie's portrayal..and that's when he didn't sound like Albert Campion or Lord Peter. The reader is perfect for the British cozy. He should stick to that and the publisher should find a reader who can do Archie, Saul, Lon and the rest of the city dwellers in the voice Stout .. And now Goldsborough...meant them to have.

9 of 10 people found this review helpful

No No No!

This is NOT the voice of Archie Goodwin. Archie is Ohio-born and with years of New York City under his belt.. if this book were from Nero' s point of view the narration would have been fine. As it was, midway through I had to stop listening.. the voice just ruined it.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Worst narrator ever !!!!!!!

The author created a quite acceptable plot. Overall, it is worth the read. I am not, however, sure it is worth the lisyen

7 of 8 people found this review helpful

Read it if you wish, but don't listen!

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

I can't imagine who would enjoy this, or how this reader was hired, or who could have approved him. It clearly wasn't anyone who had listened to the original recordings by Mr. Prichard. Even the readings by Mr. Gancer, inferior as they were, weren't offensive, as these are.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

I couldn't make it to the ending. After just a few chapters I gave up on the Audible version. The written version, as others have noted, is disappointing in comparison to prior books, but it was tolérable.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

His portrayals bore no resemblance to either how the characters were described in the books or how they were portrayed in the original audible series...nor even in the high-quality tv series with Timothy Hutton and Maury Chaykin. I won't buy another Audible book read by him.

What character would you cut from Stop the Presses!?

Aside from the reader, none were both objectionable and disposable

Any additional comments?

Please replace the narrator in future books. I'll be skipping the next two, which are already out, and hope they will go back to one of the prior two narrators or someone else for the books coming after The Battered Badge.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Wrong reader

What did you love best about Stop the Presses!?

The book is another in the Rex Stout tradition that feels true to the form

What other book might you compare Stop the Presses! to and why?

Others by Robert Goldsborough

How could the performance have been better?

The reader does not appear to be at all familiar with the Rex Stout tradition. The reading is all wrong

Any additional comments?

Michael Pritchard best. LJ Ganzer very good. This narrator completely off on the voices, characters and tone.

5 of 6 people found this review helpful

Unfortunate narrator

Would you consider the audio edition of Stop the Presses! to be better than the print version?

No

What other book might you compare Stop the Presses! to and why?

Rex Stout books narrated by Michael Prichard are much better.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

His interpretation of the characters and their 'voices' just didn't ring true to the characters. Michael Prichard does a much better job. This narrator works way to hard at acting the book and distracts from the story. He actually makes the characters seem silly.

5 of 6 people found this review helpful