The Burglar on the Prowl

by Lawrence Block
Lawrence Block

Audiobook

1 of 1 copy available

Borrow Listen to a sample Listen to a sample

1 of 1 copy available

Acclaimed New York Times bestselling author Lawrence Block returns with the extraordinary Bernie Rhodenbarr. Antiquarian bookseller by day, burglar by night, Bernie has an innate knack, a gift, for getting into places designed to keep him out.

Bernie is a gentleman who knows and loves his territory, the gloriously diverse streets of Manhattan; a connoisseur who surrounds himself with the finer things in life, including his tailless Manx tabby, Raffles, and good friends like his neighbor, Carolyn. In fact, it's a friend that gets him in his latest jam. Bernie is asked for a favor — a neat, uncomplicated bit of vengeful larceny that will reap a tidy profit — an offer the intrepid thief can't refuse.

A few days before the crime, Bernie gets restless. What does a burglar do to change his mood? Go on the prowl. This bit of prowling lands Bernie in a pile of trouble that includes four murders and the burglary of his own home. Caught in the center of a deadly mystery, he must use his wits and wiles to connect the dots and add up the coincidences. Because if Bernie doesn't catch a killer, he'll lose not only his freedom but his life.

Infused with the rich atmosphere of New York City and filled with a smart, charming cast of characters headed by the stylish Bernie, The Burglar on the Prowl is an engaging and delightfully suspenseful tale sure to be savored by Block fans old and new.

Creators
- Lawrence Block
  
  Author
- Lawrence Block
  
  Narrator
Series

Bernie Rhodenbarr
Publisher

HarperAudio

Edition: Abridged
Awards
Release date

August 3, 2004
Formats
- OverDrive Listen audiobook
  - ISBN: 9780060783174
  - File size: 143906 KB
  - Duration: 04:59:48
Languages
- English
Reviews
- AudioFile Magazine
  
  In Bernie Rhodenbarr, Lawrence Block has created a likable burglar with a heart of gold. Rhodenbarr returns in the tenth book in the series; this time the bookseller thief falls in love with a woman whose apartment he had intended to rob before she became a victim of date rape. Bernie also finds himself potentially implicated in four murders and tries to solve the crimes himself. With a surprise ending, Burglar is solid and enjoyable. Block clearly enjoys reading his whodunit, and his raspy, almost whiny, voice somehow fits the novel. While Block's fans will not be disappointed, they may need to take notes to figure out who everyone is in this choppy abridgment. D.J.S. (c) AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine
- Publisher's Weekly
  
  Starred review from March 1, 2004
  You'd think that Block, with more than 50 books to his credit, would run out of ideas, but as this 10th in his Burglar series shows (after 1999's The Burglar in the Rye
  ), he's as fresh, witty and inventive as ever. The author builds his plot on stupefying coincidences, but not to worry—everything eventually meshes. A friend asks Bernie Rhodenbarr, confirmed New Yorker, used-book dealer and gentleman burglar, to rob a mob-connected plastic surgeon who stole the friend's mistress. He agrees, and cases the doctor's house in Riverdale, the Bronx. But Bernie is restive and, uncharacteristically (because he plans carefully), he breaks into a Manhattan apartment on a whim and almost gets caught, hiding under the bed while a woman is date-raped. Next day a customer is shot near his bookstore, a mysterious émigré couple is murdered, a former Latvian war criminal is reported in New York and Bernie's apartment is ransacked. These crimes seem unrelated in such a large city, but Bernie finds a common thread. In the end, Bernie assembles 22 people (including lawmen) in the surgeon's living room and, Charlie Chan style, explains each participant's role and, where appropriate, crime. Lesser hands would not bring off this breathtaking performance, but in Block's it's seamless and hilarious. Quirky characters like Bernie's pals Carolyn Kaiser, the dog groomer, and cop Ray Kirschmann; an insider's love of New York; and a slew of wonderful puns add to the fun. (Mar. 16)
  
  Forecast:
  MWA Grand Master Block recently received the British Crime Writers' Association Cartier Diamond Dagger Award, only the third American to be so honored. A 100,000 printing and a 40-city author tour should ensure a run up most bestseller lists.
- Library Journal
  
  November 15, 2003
  The return of Bernie Rhodenbarr.
  Copyright 2003 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
- Booklist
  
  February 15, 2004
  Bernie is back! To devoted followers of genre stalwart Block's comic series starring Bernie Rhodenbarr, the dry-witted bookseller-thief, a new adventure reads like a treasured stand-up routine, with a few details altered. Sure, it's formula, but that's the fun. We know that when Bernie breaks into someone's home, he will either find a dead body or be trapped under the bed while something bad happens above him. We wait for it, like comedy fans waiting for a familiar punch line. This time Bernie's under the bed, and to make matters worse, he's spotted on a security camera outside the building, making him a suspect in a murder-robbery that took place next door. Then there's the problem of the Black Scourge of Riga, and don't forget the fat man who paid $1,300 dollars for a $12 copy of Conrad's " Secret Agent." There's more, of course, and none of it makes much sense, either to Bernie or his pal Carolyn, who offers her usual invaluable counsel while bemoaning the difficulties of finding a girlfriend online. But not to worry, by the last chapter, Bernie gets to say his favorite line, the one we wait for the longest: "I suppose you're all wondering why I summoned you here . . ." No, Bernie, I know full well: to enjoy superb light entertainment, to cackle at your devilish wit, and to relish the glee with which your creator constructs his confoundingly clever, coincidence-cluttered plots.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2004, American Library Association.)
- AudioFile Magazine
  
  Bernie Rodenbarr is a professional burglar. On the side, he owns a used bookstore. Although the police know he's a burglar, they often treat him with the awed deference shown to Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe. Why this should be is not clear, but never mind. In the current case, Bernie commits a profitable burglary, which the police never solve. All sorts of mayhem result from the burglary, which, money in hand, Bernie also brings to a satisfactory resolution. All of the characters are New Yorkers of one stripe or another, and Nick Sullivan does an excellent job of placing them in one or another of the five boroughs. For a male narrator, he is also unusually good with female voices. His rhythm and pace reflect the fast action without exaggerating it. R.E.K. (c) AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine
- Library Journal
  
  Starred review from August 1, 2004
  Block's tenth Bernie Rhodenbarr mystery finds the bookseller/burglar in what might be his most complicated intrigue. After a friend asks Bernie to burglarize the house of a prominent plastic surgeon, in revenge for the doctor's stealing the friend's mistress, Bernie becomes entangled in a labyrinthine plot involving a serial date rapist, Latvian patriots, a linguistics professor, assorted gangsters, and a seemingly ordinary copy of Joseph Conrad's The Secret Agent. Bernie, the Poirot of home invasion, gathers everyone even remotely connected to the various crimes at the surgeon's home for a terrific showdown. While not as polished an interpreter of his material as Robert Forster and Joe Mantegna, Block calls attention to the sometimes subtle ironies of his self-mocking story. Highly entertaining; recommended for popular collections. Michael Adams, CUNY Graduate Ctr.
  Copyright 2004 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.