There Was a Crooked Man, He Flipped a Crooked House

By: David Erik Nelson

Narrated by: David Sadzin

"Downtrodden architect Glenn Washington and his none-too-bright sidekick Lennie help a crooked real estate baron flip houses in downtrodden Detroit. A house comes up that is too good to gut for parts. Too good to be true. Waaaay too good. Thing is, nothing leads where it should - go through the front door, step out the door on the back porch. Best library ever. And why are the cops nosing around? Non-Euclidian architectural petty-crime adventure, and all that implies." (Adrian Simmons, writing for Black Gate magazine)

"This is a very entertaining and readable story, and what makes it even better is the sheer amount of incidental detail that Nelson includes. At the end, just when I thought it was coming off the boil a little, there is a neat little twist that pulls it back up again, as well as allowing for sequels. One for the ‘Best of the Year’ collections." (Paul Fraser, writing for sfmagazines.com)

"Absorbing horror novella." (Rich Horton, Locus)

©2017 David Erik Nelson (P)2018 David Erik Nelson

A surprisingly erudite, creepy story...

This is somewhat reminiscent of an HP Lovecraft tale, crossbred with John Steinbeck...but with modern updates. Very weird, and Very well done!

David Sadzin gave us a fantastic narrative performance. And I truly hope that he'll be doing more genre fiction in the future...

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Enjoyable short book with paranormal elements

I really liked this book. If I had to complain about anything, it would be the frequent use of the F-bomb. I just didn't think it was necessary. I requested a copy of this book and agreed to review it.
I liked the narration as well. It didn't detract from the story and it didn't lull me to sleep either. I have read this book twice now. I enjoyed it just as much the second time.

I loved this book soooo much!

This book is nearly perfect!!!! It was funny - the kind of funny that catches you off-guard and you smirk and then howl when you reflect on it. It was incredibly unique - I had no idea where this story was going and that was most of the enjoyment. I absolutely loved the pop references - I never even heard of Wheatons Law. I. Loved. This. Book. The only bad thing is that it was too short.

The narrator was perfection on a stick! This is my first book by David Sadzin and now I'm jonesing for another. He was soooooo good!

This was a fun, semi-scary, sci-fi "Twilight Zoney" type listen and was the source of some of the best laughs I've had in audiobooks all year.

I keep coming back for more.

There Was a Crooked Man, He Flipped a Crooked House is an awesome short story. It's well written and compelling with excellent narration by David Sadzin. Whenever I hit the doldrums on Audible, I recollect past stories I really enjoyed and always remember this one. Short, yes, but fascinating. I wish there was more available by David Erik Nelson, it'd be in my library too. So if you want a story that grabs you and doesn't let go, even long after you've finished it, look no further.

Great writing, great narration...definitely a win!

Writing a successful short story or novella can be a tall order. The author has to create characters and a plot that engages the reader, give sufficient description and explanation, and still keep the story focused and moving forward at an appropriate pace. Many stories don’t do enough, or go overboard, but Nelson does it right.

A haunted house story is a classic for a reason, and Nelson does great things with the premise. His characters are well-developed and engaging, the plot unfolds at a perfect rate, and information is revealed at just the right time and with the right amount of detail. I also loved the modern cultural touchstones, such as the world of flipping houses and the references to Wheaton’s law. It made the story feel unique, and added a fresh feeling to the concept. It also prompted me to look up several things that the characters mentioned, not because I needed to know more to enjoy the story, but because the great writing piqued my interest in the things they discussed. That definitely reflects a high level of engagement.

I absolutely loved David Sadzin’s narration. I love to read and definitely read more than I listen, so I’m really looking for a narrator to enhance the experience I could get from reading something on my own. Sadzin delivers a fantastic listening experience, and I’ll be looking for more from him.

I was given a free review copy of the audiobook, at my request, and am leaving this review voluntarily. All opinions expressed are my own.