The Woman in Blue

Nick O'Brien Case Files

By: David G. Johnson

Narrated by: Rick Murphy

Length: 6 hrs and 37 mins

Publisher's summary

Ever try finding a virtuous man in the Big Apple circa the 1930s? A fool's errand, right?

Well, Nick O'Brien is no fool. The war vet and former cop turned in his badge and then turned his back on the crooked criminal justice system. He's got a new mission: to be that good man in a bad city. With honesty and compassion, Nick hangs out the shingle of his own private detective agency to aid the victims of evil. He's out to crush corruption, case by case.

When a mysterious beauty with a missing brother seeks his services, Nick finds himself working a real onion of a mystery with each layer peeling away to reveal deeper levels of darkness, deception, and murder. No matter how deep he has to go, Nick will find out the truth and solve the enigma of The Woman in Blue.

©2014 David G. Johnson and Faith X Fiction Press (P)2015 David G. Johnson and Faith X Fiction Press

This 1 is for all the fans of the Prohibition Era!

Would you consider the audio edition of The Woman in Blue to be better than the print version?

Audio book is easily accessible anytime and anywhere

What did you like best about this story?

The suspense was definitely an attention grabber that kept you reading for more.

Which character – as performed by Rick Murphy – was your favorite?

All were done exceptionally well and made feel as if you were on the streets of New York!!

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

No

Any additional comments?

i would recommend this title to fellow readers.

A REMAKE OF ALL THE NOIR STORIES

If you could sum up The Woman in Blue in three words, what would they be?

Nothing original here

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

Cut down on the lingo of the 30's. Yes, people used their own slang at that time, but not every 30's slang was required to be used in this story.

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

This is the first time I've listened to Rick Murphy's performance. He did a good job.

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

No, the story was predictable from begining to end.

A Choppy Mystery

The author's storyline was basic, a typical stab at a criminal mystery that a skilled writer of mystery could write down within an afternoon. This sounds harsh but I believe it's fair. It may be an observational criticism of the delivery. I believe Mr. Johnson's protagonist has potential and with real guidance can be delivered in a more fluid manner with all the historical characters and period included.

My impression of the reader was very poor, his delivery and transition between characters was a bit broken. I am more accustomed to delivery and character quality from readers such as Simon Vance, Nadia May, Hugh Fraser, etc. I believe this is because these readers are professionally trained actors and actresses which present the transitioning and character qualities with script-like precision.

The afterword of the novel kind of threw me off a bit, I wasn't certain why this had to be included in the novel and, in my opinion, needlessly tried to explain wasn't a character question to explain.

Overall, this author has potential to create a sophisticated storyline within a dramatic environment and detailed characters. However, I feel this novel was a push through book by a publisher in a small niche market in which this author has most definitely written other genre for.