The Best Revenge

Alan Gregory, Book 11

By: Stephen White

Narrated by: Dick Hill

Length: 10 hrs and 46 mins

Publisher's summary

Psychologist Alan Gregory is living through a season of discontent. With a new daughter, a wonderful wife, and a prospering career, he has little to complain about but lots of regrets: past cases that won't let him go, patients who don't get better, and a growing unease with keeping secrets. But Gregory has two new patients who will drag him out of his introspection and dare him to enter a storm of injustice and revenge.

FBI special agent Kelda James is a hero, a woman who, as a rookie agent, made a choice, saving one life by taking another. Now Kelda is hiding from the world a secret pain that is gradually crippling her body - and she has turned to Alan Gregory to help her be free from the prison of her pain. Then Kelda refers a patient to Gregory, who is terrifyingly dangerous to them both.

Tom Clone served 13 years on Colorado's death row for a crime he claimed he didn't commit - until an FBI agent dug up evidence that set him free. The agent's name: Kelda Jones. With both Kelda and Clone telling him their innermost secrets, Alan Gregory becomes the one person who can piece together an extraordinary puzzle - of two unsolved violent deaths of vulnerable women, of a man who may be innocent or may be very lucky, and of the strange, fatal attraction between two people trapped in a horrific plot to get revenge - at any price.

©2003 Stephen White (P)2004 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Starts good, ends in insanity.

Not even close to Stephen White's earlier books in quality -- characters are so muddled, everybody so confused, it's hard to tolerate. Bad cops, bad FBI agents, then good cops, mysterious men living alone in the forest, with menace everywhere, and everyone -- most certainly including Dr. Gregory himself -- making so many stupid decisions that you start to wonder how he managed to survive this long.

Oh -- and that shtick where Dr. Alan Gregory carries on and on and on ... and on... about what he can, or should, disclose about his patients? When either they or someone else is in deep doo-doo? Geez, that's getting old. We get it, Dr. Gregory. No need to detail your anguished mental processes ad infinitum over the matter every single time. It's starting to reek of "filler".

This story line was a problem for narrator Dick Hill, too -- who, as one of the audiobook industry's old stalwarts, should know better. There's one character who -- trying not to disclose a spoiler of any kind, here -- is attacked by bees, and is stung all over, including inside his mouth, which renders his speech muffled, incomprehensible and in general, hard to understand. Unfortunately, this character also shouts a lot. The problem is, Hill seems to feel the need to read these parts with absolute accuracy -- or at least what we assume a character like that WOULD sound like, with a bee-stung mouth. It becomes painful to listen to -- on and on, this horrible mutilated voice, shouting things it's difficult to understand. All of this consumes at least 45 minutes of the book, then on and off again to the end. This isn't the first time Hill did this -- he used that same "horrible mouth injury" voice in one of the Lee Child books, too, "A Wanted Man", I think. I almost had to turn it off there, too. It's just very unpleasant to listen to.

Narrators should exercise some common sense, it seems to me. There should be some balance between letting us know that a character is injured, without making the voice so painful to listen to that it scorches the ears. Dick Hill, at least in these two books, is giving us way too much accuracy. It doesn't help the books he's reading, it makes it hard to tolerate.

Best advice, for Best Revenge? Skip it, stick with the earlier Stephen Whites. When he's good, he's very very good. But when he's mediocre, it's best to remember the good ones.

The Best Revenge

This book was painful to finish and I almost didn't. Characters were stupid & unbelievable.
Plot didn't flow. Stephen WHites' early books were better.

What would you do for "Revenge"?

This is a Mystery Thriller , and a good audible book.. Dick Hill the narrator always does a good job.
Alan Gregory is Psychologist, with a prospering career. Alan has two new patients. Kelda James who's an FBI agent with a secret. She suffers from a crippling disorder to her legs..But is it all in her head? Then there's Tom Clone who has been on death row for 13 years.. And gets a pardon with Kelda James help.
Kelda then refers Clone to Alan Gregory. With both Kelda and Clone telling him their innermost secrets, Alan Gregory is able to piece together this puzzle - of two unsolved murders.Is Tom Clone innocent or just or is he just one lucky man?
Unknown to Tom Clone,there are two obsessed people after him. And they have plotted a
terrible fate for Tom at all cost..
This book is fast paced.. And entertaining..
Enjoy!

Wow! What a storyteller!

Where does The Best Revenge rank among all the audiobooks you???ve listened to so far?

I love you Stephen White; you are absolutely one of the very best storytellers in the world. This book, The Best Revenge, I believe, is one of the best mystery thrillers written. The plot turns this way and that and is always surprising with its twists and turns. The characters are well drawn and the book draws you in from the very beginning; impossible to put down until finished. I was immensely satisfied and, once again, the narrator, Dick Hill, did an excellent job.

What other book might you compare The Best Revenge to and why?

I can't think of any books in particular however the Dr Alex Delaware series comes to mind written by Jonathan Kellerman. Kellerman's Dr Delaware plays a similar role to White's Dr Gregory in the series and is a forensic psychiatrist. Both series are excellent and I highly recommend them.

Which character ??? as performed by Dick Hill ??? was your favorite?

While Dr Gregory is. as always, an intelligent analyser, and most of the story unfolds through his perceptive eyes, it would have to be Tom Clone, on whom the story focuses. I just loved the way White cleverly toys with the reader who can't help but change his or her mind continually as to Clone's guilt or innocence. The range of emotions this character elicits is quite phenomenal.

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

Yes, the portrayal, the story and the thoughts of the beautiful and empathetic character Bokor (spelling?) - towards the end of the book and as described by Dr Gregory - serves to highlight the essence of the story; the terrible devastation wrought by humans on others individually as in Tom, and in numbers - as in 9/11.

Any additional comments?

thought provoking book........

Great story

I love Stephen White, his writing is great with just enough twists & turns. The man who performed the book is terrible ! His fake voice for women was painful to hear. I almost stopped listening because of him.

Botch-Job

This book was ridiculous from start to finish. I should’ve known not to try and expect anything from an author who churns out a fresh book [turd] a year…they’re always rushed, superficial nonsense. Boo!

Great, thrilling book!

I love this book! The end was so unexpected!! I took a small break in the middle because it did slow down with the excitement, but I am SO grateful that I finished it! Love Stephen White books and Dick Hill's voice on them is so amazing. I wouldn't recognize the characters if anyone else narrated these, so I'm very thankful that Dick Hill has read all the books so far. Hoping he does all of them!!

Face Paced!

What did you love best about The Best Revenge?

Not a dull moment in this novel. Sometimes Steven White leaves me wishing he'd just get on with the story but not this time. I finished listening to it in record time because I listened every chance I got. The suspense is great and there are lots of unexpected twists and turns.

What did you like best about this story?

That the intensity kept up and didn't sag somewhere in the beginning, middle or end.

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

He allows me to focus on the story instead of his reading, that's why I look for books he's reading.