Curious Toys
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Narrated by:
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Carol Monda
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By:
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Elizabeth Hand
About this listen
An intrepid young woman stalks a murderer through turn-of-the-century Chicago in "this rich, spooky, and atmospheric thriller that will appeal to fans of Henry Darger and Erik Larson alike" (Sarah McCarry).
In the sweltering summer of 1915, Pin, the 14-year-old daughter of a carnival fortune-teller, dresses as a boy and joins a teenage gang that roams the famous Riverview amusement park, looking for trouble.
Unbeknownst to the well-heeled city-dwellers and visitors who come to enjoy the midway, the park is also host to a ruthless killer who uses the shadows of the dark carnival attractions to conduct his crimes. When Pin sees a man enter the Hell Gate ride with a young girl and emerge alone, she knows that something horrific has occurred.
The crime will lead her to the iconic outsider artist Henry Darger, a brilliant but seemingly mad man. Together, the two navigate the seedy underbelly of a changing city to uncover a murderer few even know to look for.
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Critic reviews
"An atmospheric crime novel.... A phantasmagoric time trip tailor-made for fans of The Devil in the White City." (Publishers Weekly)
"Elizabeth Hand is a national treasure. Sinister sideshow hustlers, back alley intrigues, and brilliant outsiders: Turn-of-the-century underworld Chicago comes alive in this rich, spooky, and atmospheric thriller that will appeal to fans of Henry Darger and Erik Larson alike." (Sarah McCarry, author of All Our Pretty Songs)
"A well-crafted and deliciously unsettling period thriller." (Booklist starred review)
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From the best-selling author of the Sandman Slim series, a lush, dark, stand-alone fantasy built off the insurgent tradition of China Mieville and M. John Harrison - a subversive tale that immerses us in a world where the extremes of bleakness and beauty exist together in dangerous harmony in a city on the edge of civility and chaos. The Great War is over. The city of Lower Proszawa celebrates the peace with a decadence and carefree spirit as intense as the war’s horrifying despair.
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Kadrey does it again!
- By Lilah Quinn on 06-14-19
By: Richard Kadrey
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Koko
- Blue Rose Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Peter Straub
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 22 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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KOKO. Only four men knew what it meant. Now they must stop it. They are Vietnam vets — a doctor, a lawyer, a working stiff, and a writer. Very different from each other, they are nonetheless linked by a shared history and a single shattering secret. Now, they have been reunited and are about to embark on a quest that will take them from Washington, D.C., to the graveyards and fleshpots of the Far East to the human jungle of New York.
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7 hours in and I am done
- By bionichands on 01-26-12
By: Peter Straub
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The Third Daughter
- A Novel
- By: Talia Carner
- Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld
- Length: 10 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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The turn of the 20th century finds 14-year-old Batya in the Russian countryside, fleeing with her family endless pogroms. Desperate, her father leaps at the opportunity to marry Batya to a worldly, wealthy stranger who can guarantee his daughter an easy life and passage to America. Feeling like a princess in a fairytale, Batya leaves her old life behind as she is whisked away to a new world. But soon, she discovers that she’s entered a waking nightmare. Her new “husband” does indeed bring her to America.
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brilliant novel based on shocking truth
- By Rochelle Jewel Shapiro on 07-05-20
By: Talia Carner
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The Confessions of Al Capone
- By: Loren D. Estleman
- Narrated by: Luke Daniels
- Length: 19 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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In 1944 Al Capone, the most notorious Mob boss in history, has already been released from prison. Though Capone is no longer the enormously powerful force who dominated Chicago’s underworld for years, he is still a thorn in the side of J. Edgar Hoover. The FBI chief knows that if he can somehow manage to get Capone to reveal details of crimes he and his Outfit committed, the Bureau has a good chance of nailing key members who now are active in the wartime black market.
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Interesting story
- By Michael on 02-07-17
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Lady Oracle
- By: Margaret Atwood
- Narrated by: Lorelei King
- Length: 11 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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From fat girl to thin, from red hair to mud brown, from London to Toronto, from Polish count to radical husband - Joan Foster is utterly confused by her life of multiple identities. She decides to escape to an Italian hill town to take stock of her life. But first, she must organize her own death.
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A Feminist Romp
- By annkpowers on 07-02-22
By: Margaret Atwood
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Night Life
- By: David C. Taylor
- Narrated by: Keith Szarabajka
- Length: 11 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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New York City, 1954. The Cold War is heating up, Senator Joe McCarthy is running a witch hunt for communists in America, the newly formed CIA is fighting a turf battle with the FBI to see who will be the primary United States intelligence agency, and the bodies of murdered young men are turning up all over the city.
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terrific in every way
- By Martha on 04-12-16
By: David C. Taylor
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The Folded Leaf
- By: William Maxwell
- Narrated by: Mark Boyett
- Length: 9 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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Here is a classic novel from one of our most honored writers - the author of such acclaimed works as So Long, See You Tomorrow and All the Days and Nights. The Folded Leaf is the serenely observed yet deeply moving story of two boys finding one another in the Midwest of the 1920s, when childhood lasted longer than it does today and even adults were more innocent of what life could bring.
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Midwestern Misfits
- By David on 03-17-15
By: William Maxwell
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Inherit the Bones
- A Detective Gemma Monroe Mystery, Book 1
- By: Emily Littlejohn
- Narrated by: Harper Landry
- Length: 11 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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Secrets and lies can’t stay buried forever in Cedar Valley. In the summer, hikers and campers pack the small Colorado town’s meadows and fields. And in the winter, skiers and snowboarders take over the mountains. Season by season, year after year, time passes, and the lies, like the aspens and evergreens that surround the town, take root and spread deep. Now, someone has uncovered the lies, and it is his murder that continues a chain of events that began almost 40 years ago.
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intriguing
- By Anonymous User on 06-26-19
By: Emily Littlejohn
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Cop Hater
- 87th Precinct Series, Book 1
- By: Ed McBain
- Narrated by: Dick Hill
- Length: 6 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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When a sniper begins gunning down cops from the 87th Precinct in cold blood, it’s up to Detective Steve Carella to solve the case. With three cops already dead, Carella delves into the city’s underworld to search for the killer.
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Dang, it's about time for the 87th Precinct
- By Eric J. Toll on 05-17-14
By: Ed McBain
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A Beautiful Place to Die
- By: Malla Nunn
- Narrated by: Saul Reichlin
- Length: 12 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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Unfolding in 1952 South Africa, A Beautiful Place to Die is a riveting international mystery that flows from the pen of author Malla Nunn. Police officer Emmanuel Cooper is dispatched to a remote town after a police captain is found murdered in a creek. Even though Cooper judges the crime open and shut, the government's feared Special Branch is summoned, making for an intrigue that will titillate any mystery fan.
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Police Procedural & The Pain Of Apartheid
- By Sara on 09-30-15
By: Malla Nunn
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The 42nd Parallel
- By: John Dos Passos
- Narrated by: David Drummond
- Length: 13 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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This first entry in John Dos Passos's celebrated U.S.A. trilogy paints a grand picture of the United States at the dawn of the twentieth century.
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Powerful document of an all-too-familiar past
- By Ryan on 06-01-13
By: John Dos Passos
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The Golden Hour
- A Novel
- By: Beatriz Williams
- Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell, Saskia Maarleveld
- Length: 16 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
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The Bahamas, 1941. Newly widowed Leonora “Lulu” Randolph arrives in Nassau to investigate the governor and his wife for a New York society magazine. After all, American readers have an insatiable appetite for news of the duke and duchess of Windsor, that glamorous couple whose love affair nearly brought the British monarchy to its knees five years earlier. What more intriguing backdrop for their romance than a wartime Caribbean paradise, a colonial playground for kingpins of ill-gotten empires? Or so Lulu imagines.
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Stick with it!
- By Colleen on 07-17-19
By: Beatriz Williams
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The Rosary Girls
- By: Richard Montanari
- Narrated by: Scott Brick
- Length: 13 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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A devious serial killer lays siege to the city of Philadelphia, brutally sacrificing pretty young Catholic girls on the altar of insanity. As the body count rises, an exceptional investigating partnership struggles to stop him. Detective Jessica Balzano, Philly's Homicide Unit's newest rookie, is teamed up with veteran cop Kevin Byrne, respected for his solve rate and known for his unorthodox methods.
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Excellent Read
- By Paw Paw T on 03-06-05
What listeners say about Curious Toys
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Petrea Burchard
- 12-14-22
Awesome in the true sense of the word.
I'm awed by this audiobook. The skill of the writing, the artistry of the narration, the combination of narrator and text, the production—all of it is brilliant, absorbing, dark and perfect.
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- Lu
- 07-06-21
What a dark ride it was!
What a dark ride it was! Highly recommended to fans of historical thrillers, strong female leads, and twisty plots.
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- Eric Mochnacz
- 02-13-20
A period piece, but with a young, fun sensibility!
Note - Listened to it on Audible - and the narrator, Carol Monda - was impeccable. She had the perfect scratchy, smoky voice that absolutely fit the setting of a 1930s carnival.
Pin is a teenage girl, forced to dress like a boy, to make extra money to support her and her mother, who works as a fortune teller at the Riverview Amusement Park in 1930s Chicago. Pin is precocious and smart...and still trying to find her way in the world. She earns money by delivering dope to the local S&A film studio, where she longs to be a camera girl. Her work leads her to cross paths with Charlie Chaplin and a young starlet named Glory - who she begins to feel feelings for that she hasn't ever felt. Rounding out the cast of characters are Max, the "shemale" Circus Performer, Lionel the screenwriter, and Francis "Fatty" Bacon, a carnival cop who was disgraced and discharged from the "real" force after going after the ever present criminal force "The Black Hand." Pin also meets the unique and relatively suspicious Henry Darger, who claims he is part of the Gemini Girl's Protection Agency - but his ticks and quirks may point to something more sinister.
Especially since "Curious Toys" is a combination queer coming of age story, a historical fiction with a commentary on classism and racism from the era in which it takes place, and a suspenseful whodunnit serial killer thriller. Hand adeptly moves through these genres and writes a thoroughly entertaining book. She shifts from the perspective of Pin, Darger, Bacon and the mysterious killer who is obsessed with the doll he purchased, and the victims' dresses he dresses her in. The shifts can be a little confusing, especially between the killer and Darger (as you are led to believe they are one in the same.) But overall, it was a strong, well-written and enjoyable listen.
Pin finds herself involved in the murder mystery through the fact that her autistic sister Aubrianna went missing years ago, and now she found a dead body on the carnival Hell Gate ride, after she saw a man and girl enter the ride - but only the man exited. Are they connected? And who is the murderer?
The only drawback was Hand's need to include Charlie Chaplin in the story. I'm not sure if he was included to further enhance the time setting, but his involvement didn't seem all that germane to the story - unless Hand was trying to use him as a red herring and expose Chaplin for more than he was. Although he is painted as a bit of a scoundrel with a taste for young girls with whom he acted. Also, the epilogue is a bit too "Disney" for me, but is still a sweet conclusion to a story that I was fully invested in.
With so many mystery series that follow the same rote formula and stock characters, "Curious Toys" stands out as a unique story with a unique characters we don't encounter often. The book had a modern sensibility while still transporting you back to the past. It was a period piece, but didn't feel dusty. There is also an appeal for young and old readers alike.
I'm glad I saw a friend post her ARC copy to Instagram. It was definitely worth the read.
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7 people found this helpful
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- ezriel
- 05-11-20
Terrific Story
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, very engaging, great characters, beautifully written as is true of all Liz's books.
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3 people found this helpful
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- Frugalshopper
- 05-18-22
A fun and interesting read
Curious Toys is a book with twists and turns that keep you guessing and along for the fun (yes, I said fun when discussing a book that features a gruesome series of murder). The book takes a look at the lives of people on the outskirts of society due to race, class, and gender and the ways they navigate the world they live in prior to and during the appearance of a serial killer in their lives. Many of the motivations of the characters, even the ones that seem far-fetched on the surface, ring true if you think about the realities of the people featured. As for the murder mystery itself, it is interesting and written in a way that kept me wanting to keep reading/anxiously awaiting the next chance I would have to dive into the story again.
I definitely recommend taking a chance on this wonderfully narrated book.
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- Claire E.
- 03-02-23
Delightful
Wonderful characters and great narration make this curious story an enchanting listen. Definitely worth the credit.
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- Jake Marley
- 10-07-20
A dervish of a thriller
Elizabeth Hand is one of the best authors we have, and this stand-alone mystery is a charming, shocking, and gorgeously-written example of her greatest strengths. Hand is a world-builder who has turned her eye for the fantastic toward the era of silent movies, straw boaters, and early amusement parks. She's also interested in complex heroes who dream of breaking free of societal "norms" and living life on their terms.
Carol Monda is an incredible reader. She's the perfect voice to pair with Eiizabeth Hand's words, and any of the audiobooks available here are well-worth a listen.
I'd been saving this one since its release, and it was worth the wait. If you're looking for something unique, give this book a shot. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
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2 people found this helpful
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- E. W. Sawyer
- 10-25-20
I wanted to like this more
Elizabeth Hand had 2 outstanding ideas on which to build this novel. First, using old Riverview – a native Chicagoans wonderland, which I visited as a very small girl a year before it was cruelly demolished – and second, the mysterious original outsider artist, Henry Darger, about whom very little is known. Hand could have gone anywhere with Darger, whose art and stories were highly original fantasies featuring girl armies battling evil men, and superb illustrations that established him posthumously as the first identified outsider artist. Hand had the right setting and crime to delve deeply into Darger and give us something breathtaking. She wasted the opportunity by reducing him to a mentally ill sidekick writing some children’s stories. I am so disappointed. Adding to my disappointment was the mediocre narration in which I frequently could not even distinguish the characters. I do not recommend this book.
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- Bookmarque
- 02-05-20
Inconsistent Hand (Spolers!)
Some of Hand's work I love and some I can't get through without a lot of skimming. Had this been a physical book, I'd have skimmed (I did fast forward a little though). Not enough happens in a short enough time for it to be a thriller. It's torpid and spends paragraph after paragraph with setting, details (oh the endless details) and characterization. Most of it is good, but it's very repetitive and it gets in the way of any small amount of tension she manages to build. Too many characters are too obscurely identified and it goes on and on to an obvious resolution - Pin will "come out" as a girl so she can lure the killer into attacking her and of course Henry and Bacon will be on hand for the rescue. The very last vignette, of Pin as an old lesbian lady is superfluous and I wish the audiobook contained the non fiction account of the real Henry Darger. Probably the most interesting part of the book.
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3 people found this helpful
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- Amazon Customer
- 10-14-20
lengthy teadious horror story
despite being well written prose i found the pacing slow and was only able to listen to about half before giving up on the slow paced story well chosen title and good artwork definately does not overcome the overall story.
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