Bill Pronzini, Camouflage, Narrator, Nick Sullivan

Camouflage
A Nameless Detective Mystery
Number: 36
Author: Bill Pronzini

Narrator: Nick Sullivan
Publisher: AudioGO
Time: 6 hours 50 minutes 

Narrator Nick Sullivan

Narrator Review:

I enjoyed listening to Nick Sullivan, narrate Bill Pronzini's, Camouflage. His assortment of voices is inexhaustible. His voice is clear and eminently suited to the character, Nameless, the detective. He is expressive and every individual is distinct and identifiable by Sullivan’s assortment of styles. He reads the text in an enthralling and well-developed manner. Many of our best narrators both male and female have no limits to their variations and rich dramatizations. Sullivan conveys excitement and emotion into each character, often to a feverish pitch. It’s wonderful. Consider it ear candy, and let him immerse you into the excitement of Bill Pronzini's, Detective Series, Nameless.

Audiobook Review: Camouflage by Bill Pronzini

Almost feeling beads of sweat forming on your brow, your heart will hammer faster, you will, want to pull something over your mouth and nose to muffle the stench of death.

Nameless's latest case to solve, is simple, find David Verdin's missing ex-wife. Simple, a run of the mill case, Fast, and easy? Not so. Verdin is seeking his first ex-wife to have her sign a decree from the Catholic Church saying their marriage did not constitute a sacramental bond. 

David Verdin wants to marry again but his new bride is Catholic and she can’t marry him unless his previous marriages are annulled as approved or sanctioned by the church. When Nameless, tracks down Roxanne McManis, she gives Nameless, a bad time. She sends him off with a bug in his ear to not bother her again and refuses to sign the papers. Nameless is put off with her attitude and liked her dog Thor, even less.

Author Bill Pronzini

Unsettled by the low rumble in Thor’s throat and his glaring yellow eyes, Nameless, heads back to his office. He informs Verdin, of Roxanne’s refusal to sign, and gives him her address. Verdin, goes to see her himself, and calls Nameless, he is outraged, and informs him, that this woman is not his ex-wife. He has no idea who the women is. He threatens to go to a different agency, and demands a refund .

 Nameless’s, sassy and outspoken right hand woman, Tamara, thinks something strange is going on since she has done her research and is positive that it is, the right woman. Tamara, is not about to let it go or let go of the retainer fee either. Nameless and Tamara suspect identity theft.

I personally think this is one of Pronzini's best books and one that is sure to keep you gripping the arms of your chair late into the night. I thank AudioGo for sending the 6 CD set of this wonderful audio book for review. It's always a pleasure to listen to a book that has an excellent melding of narrator and author.

The Mist by Carla Neggers, narrator Carol Monda

The Mist
Carla Neggers
Narrated by: Carol Monda
Time: 10 hours 22 minutes
Recorded Books

Carla Neggers

Carol Monda Narrator

                                         








Carol Monda, does some very good renditions for the different characters but I definitely felt like even she lost track of who was who. I would have liked Ms. Monda to pick up the pace a little bit as she seems to dwell too long on each word and pauses to long at the end of a sentence. It would flow better if she read a bit faster and didn't seem to worry about pronunciation. This particular book does not give Ms. Monda the opportunity to express the wide variety of voices she is truly capable of. It was a difficult book to read and Carol Monda does try to make it more interesting. Alas, it just was to convoluted and too many characters to make it either an enjoyable read for Monda or to give her the platform to show her talents. Her narration of Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult is far superior, as is her reading of She Always Wore Red by Angela Elwell Hunt.

The Mist is the first and only book I've listened to by Carla Neggers and no doubt will be the last. The vague story line is so choppy, with so many characters it's impossible to keep track of them all. Never, have I read about so many fake people under one book cover. I could be wrong but it seems common sense would inform an intelligent, thinking human that the FBI is not going to have a nineteen year old girl be an informant for them. Placing her in potentially dangerous situations. I care less that her father works for them and has taught her all he knows about self defense and a myriad of information from the time she could talk. The FBI has too many trained and qualified people to draw from to even remotely consider such folly.

It was not far into the book that it was clear that there were previous books and The Mist was part of a series.I was very disappointed with the poor character development, I felt not a drop of interest for any of the them. The conversations were stilted and phony sounding, if there was romance it was scanty, and police procedures and conversations were so out of touch with reality that it was laughable. So to say what the book was about, it was a young girl with an FBI father who goes to Ireland to inform her friend that a psychopathic millionaire has her in his sights to be murdered. Since her friends husband is in the FBI, she should have informed him before informing her friend. Why not email, or phone, why go all that way to tell them in person. Oh, yes, I forgot, it's so she could have a fight with an assassin and she could show off her hand to hand combat training. Even getting to that point was long and tedious. Too many characters that have zilch personality, too many fake conversations, and to many poorly intertwined story lines.

The Mist by Carla Neggers  Narrated by Carol  Monda