The Black Marble Audiobook By Joseph Wambaugh cover art

The Black Marble

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The Black Marble

By: Joseph Wambaugh
Narrated by: Oliver Wyman
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He is a damned good cop -- a burned-out homicide detective wrapped around a Smith & Wesson .38 and a vodka bottle. She is his partner -- twice divorced, nursing a grudge against men, obsessed by the awful temptation of love.

©1978 Joseph Wambaugh (P)2010 Audible, Inc. Crime Thrillers Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Mystery Police Procedurals Romantic Suspense Thriller & Suspense
Captivating Storytelling • Authentic Characters • Humorous Moments • Nostalgic Setting • Engaging Vocal Performance
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Love the gritty truth of the time period.
His books are so authentic. You feel like your are in the story.

Classic

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The most amazing aspect of Black Marble is the narration I listen to a lot of books on audible. But I have never heard a better expression of many different characters, male and female, various ages and accents. They come to life and are so easily recognized when each reappears. And what story! Police procedurals abound in book and film, but you will never experience one like this. There is a ton of humor and pathos. I will now check out another Wambaugh novel! The film is great too

Fantastic narration, hilarious book

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My husband is a huge fan of the author and has been for numerous years. He suggested The Black Marble and I was not disappointed!

Loved it!!

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Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Wambaugh's characters are a bit over the top and can startle you initially. This narrator held my attention throughout. He made you feel part of the story. He made me laugh out loud at times and sad at others. A good story and a great team.

Hard to put down

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If you do not like animal cruelty, racial slurs, strong language then do not listen to this book. The ending was strange. The beginning was ok, but just went downhill from there.

The end was lacking

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The black marble spends most of the book developing character and less time on the caper.

Wambaughs tormented characters

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This book was a family favorite when I was in my 20's. The book was read by my sister, dad, mother, aunt and so many more. Being poorly bound we held the book together with a rubber band as we passed it to yet another person. All of us loved it.

A fan of Joseph Wambaugh from that day forward.

We told everyone that read the book to wait for it, you'll be glad you did. This holds true today too. But now, after rereading it 30 years later I was taken back to the '70s like no other book can take you back. Things that were common to say and do are here for you to laugh at and reminisce. Yes, we have gotten more sophisticated and polished but we once were very politically un-correct.

Listen to a great detective finds his way back to sanity and a '70s gal blow fizz out of her eyes. (Yep, those damn dog poodle perms.) Leisure suit junkies and old Pasadena run amuck in this fun romp as a would be master mind picks the black marble again and again. Mr. Wambaugh wrote true for the time with plenty of true-to-life laughs.

Needed to reread a favorite book from my 20's

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What does Oliver Wyman bring to the story that you wouldn???t experience if you just read the book?

I liked Oliver's voice for the Russian characters in this book - he also did a good job with Natalie. The depth of the voices he used helped the listener to understand the characters - why they did what they did - they became three dimensional and you actually cared about them.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes

Any additional comments?

I fell in love with the Hollywood station series - then I listened to Harbor Nocturne and found it captivating so when I stumbled onto Black marble I had to listen to it to see if Joseph Wambaugh's first novels were as good as his later ones. I found the writing to be good - Joseph has definitely matured in his writing - I would recommend all of his works as I said he is a great story teller.

Wambaugh is a great story teller

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A lively story that I didn't want to put down. The kennel scene was hold your breath suspenful!

My favorite fiction book by Joseph Wambaugh

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an excellent story, perhaps best understood by old cops. read it along time ago. this performance was better than reading it. mr Wyman does this book justice!

a performance!

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