• The Night Bird

  • Frost Easton, Book 1
  • By: Brian Freeman
  • Narrated by: Joe Barrett
  • Length: 10 hrs and 5 mins
  • 4.2 out of 5 stars (2,777 ratings)

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The Night Bird  By  cover art

The Night Bird

By: Brian Freeman
Narrated by: Joe Barrett
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Publisher's summary

Homicide detective Frost Easton doesn't like coincidences. When a series of bizarre deaths rock San Francisco - as seemingly random women suffer violent psychotic breaks - Frost looks for a connection that leads him to psychiatrist Francesca Stein. Frankie's controversial therapy helps people erase their most terrifying memories...and all the victims were her patients.

As Frost and Frankie carry out their own investigations, the case becomes increasingly personal - and dangerous. Long-submerged secrets surface as someone called the Night Bird taunts the pair with cryptic messages pertaining to the deaths. Soon Frankie is forced to confront strange gaps in her own memory, and Frost faces a killer who knows the detective's worst fears.

As the body count rises and the Night Bird circles ever closer, a dedicated cop and a brilliant doctor race to solve the puzzle before a cunning killer claims another victim.

©2017 Brian Freeman (P)2016 Brilliance Audio

What listeners say about The Night Bird

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Brian Freeman's "faux pas"....

Both Brian Freeman and Joe Barrett belong to the golden circle of my favorite writers/narrators and hence my expectations were high…but I felt let down.
The plot is not credible and the characters stiff and a bit of stereotype. It seems that Freeman wanted to diversify from the long (and very enjoyable) Jonathan Stride series and start all over with a new character ( Frost Easton) and new settings (San Francisco). The story is about a shrink who thinks she is helping people by erasing bad memories and a serial killer that gravitates around her. The story is creepy, at times suspenseful and, frankly, at times silly..
This is my first two-star rating to a great thriller writer with my advice to all of you to go for the good Jonathan Stride’s books.

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69 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

A bit silly

The plot was just too silly. It seems that everyone can learn how to implant memories in others. Certainly, the psychiatrist who is one of the three main characters seems to do it quite well...and gets into trouble for it. OK. It MIGHT have worked, but the character development is so shoddy that they can't make the preposterous premise believable. They're not smart enough (put themselves in ridiculous situations time and time again). The police work is shoddy as well (at one point, the main character, Frost, lets a victim do some of his research...potentially putting her in danger). Barrett is actually quite good as the narrator EXCEPT when he does the deranged voice of the killer luring his victims on. The voice that is meant to be terrifying is cartoonish (and grating), making the performance rating go from five starts to three. Ultimately, the book is boring. I had to force myself to finish it.

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62 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

I LOVED THIS BOOK!!!!Freeman & Barrett are a winning team!

WOW! This is some kind of messed up story, and I say this with total admiration for Brian Freeman.
We have a psychologist who specializes in wiping out memories that people have when the memories interfere with the person's life. She demonstrates to the police just how fragile memories are and how suggestible people are. Some love her, others find her methods too controversial.
Anyway, the good Dr.'s patients are coming to her for help with their phobias and within days to weeks later they are loosing control in the most bizarre ways and committing suicide.
This story is so multilayered with one framing another, another one having an affair, family betrayal and old hurts that never go away.
There is lots of action and drama to what I guess would be a police procedural.
If you have ever read/listened to either the Jonathan Stride or Cab Bolton series (both are Excellent) then you will like this as well. Freeman has not lost his edgy style of writing, if anything he gets better with each new book.
Joe Barrett is one of my favorite narrators. His performance could not have been better if he tried.
MOST HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!!
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51 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Just awful.

If you like hearing a male trying to scream like a women, yelling or trying to sound spooky over and over again then this is for you. I myself hated it.

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48 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A wild, wild psychological thriller!

Brian Freeman writes another great novel! I believe it is his best to date. While not part of his wonderful Jonathan Stride series, it is at least as good. Brian Freeman and Joe Barrett are a great author-narrator audio book pair. I see that Audible listener Shelley posted a review earlier today. I agree with her comments and urge you to read her review.

One of the 3 Audible reviews posted before mine ranks this novel as one star because she was unable to get the audio to play. I wish she had contacted Audible rather than post a review. Such ratings and reviews are unfair to the author and narrator for an issue they did not cause.

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42 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Super fun read

This book was very interesting. I thought I had it figured out but was surprised how it went down. The best thing about this book was NO F bombs. I'm so sick of starting a good book only to find out that the language is so crude I really hate hearing the F word. It seam like every new book that comes out the author feels like they have to throw in some token F words to make it "gritty". Glad this one didn't.

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20 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Narrators voice intolerable

Could not finish. Could not tolerate the narrators gravelly voice and inflection. Would not recommend.

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13 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Oh Come On! Will This Thing Never End?

Overwritten! Shallow! Annoying! Un-credible!

You know, I think that Brian Freeman could probably write a very good mystery, if he meets an editor with a blue pencil. And the willingness to say, "Um, no Brian... There's no one anywhere like you imagine these characters to be." Joe Barrett can do voices well, and he can do characters better. Unfortunately he lacked better characters in this wondering, endless, mess.

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A surprise thriller

Many twist and turns to grab your attention. As usual the detective has issues but these do not play a large part in the story.
Two stories for the doctor one a moral dilemma about her method of psychotherapy treatment and the second about family loyalty family abuse. There is a lot of investigative action. I'm glad a used the credit

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Keeps you wondering

This book kept wondering what was going to happen next. I could bearly put the book down. every moment I got was for reading this book. Thanks to the author.

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8 people found this helpful