The Elephant of Surprise
A Hap and Leonard Novel
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Narrated by:
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Christopher Ryan Grant
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By:
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Joe R. Lansdale
About this listen
The latest roaring, rollicking adventure from Edgar Award-winner Joe R. Lansdale, featuring odd-couple PIs Hap and Leonard.
Hap and Leonard are an unlikely pair - Hap, a self-proclaimed white-trash rebel - and Leonard - a tough-as-nails black, gay Vietnam vet and Republican - but they're the closest friend either of them has in the world.
After years of crime-solving companionship, something's changed: Hap, recently married to their PI boss, Brett, is now a family man. Amid the worst flood East Texas has seen in years, the two run across a woman who's had her tongue nearly cut out, pursued by a heavily armed pair of goons. Turns out the girl survived a mob hit, and the boss has come to clean up the mess.
On a chase that blows even the East Texas swamp grass back, Hap and Leonard must save the girl and vanquish her foes before the foes get them first.
With a new case to solve and a brand-new challenge to their relationship, will Hap and Leonard's friendship survive? Will Hap and Leonard survive?
The Elephant of Surprise is rich with Lansdale's trademark humor, whip-smart dialogue, and plenty of ass-kicking adventures.
©2019 Joe R. Lansdale (P)2019 Hachette AudioListeners also enjoyed...
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Critic reviews
"The Elephant of Surprise is the read of the year thus far for adrenaline junkies, action-hero aficionados and, as is always the case with Lansdale's novels, fans of clever and unexpected similes and metaphors."—BookPage
"Hap and Leonard remain two of the most likable characters in crime fiction."—Kirkus Reviews
"Lansdale's narrative voice is as wonderful as ever, as is the banter between the mismatched best friends as they punctuate the violence with drolly mundane observations. . . . It's always a pleasure to spend time with Hap and Leonard, even in the worst of circumstances."—Booklist
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Story
Moving from Boston to remote Bearkill, Maine, isn't homicide cop Lizzie Snow's idea of a step up. But breaking away from tragedy and personal betrayal is at least a step in the right direction. Her dead sister's fate still torments her, as does her long-missing niece's disappearance. The town is full of people who see everything, say little, and know more than they'll share with an outsider.
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Tough Police Procedural Set In Wild North Maine Woods
- By Sara on 02-16-15
By: Sarah Graves
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The Rabbit Factory
- By: Marshall Karp
- Narrated by: Tom Stechschulte, James Jenner
- Length: 14 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Marshall Karp is an acclaimed playwright known for his witty sense of humor and crackling dialogue. His debut novel The Rabbit Factory stars the irreverent LAPD detective duo of Mike Lomax and Terry Biggs. Dean Lamaar is the architect of an entertainment empire and the creator of iconic characters like Rambunctious Rabbit and McGreedy the Moose.
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Bizarre but engaging mystery.1st-rate performance.
- By MidwestGeek on 12-19-12
By: Marshall Karp
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The Damsel
- Alan Grofield, Book 1
- By: Richard Stark
- Narrated by: R.C. Bray
- Length: 4 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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The Damsel begins directly after the Parker novel The Handle. Following a wounded Grofield and his damsel on a scenic, action-packed road trip from Mexico City to Acapulco, The Damsel is full of wit, adrenaline, and political intrigue.
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Great listen!
- By Dee on 09-14-20
By: Richard Stark
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The Deep Blue Good-By
- A Travis McGee Novel, Book 1
- By: John D. MacDonald
- Narrated by: Robert Petkoff
- Length: 6 hrs
- Unabridged
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He's a self-described beach bum who won his houseboat in a card game. He's also a knight errant who's wary of credit cards, retirement benefits, political parties, mortgages, and television. He only works when his cash runs out, and his rule is simple: he'll help you find whatever was taken from you, as long as he can keep half.
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Before the A-Team, there was Travis McGee
- By Jim "The Impatient" on 11-12-16
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Persistence
- By: Marc Costanzo
- Narrated by: Bahni Turpin
- Length: 9 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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Celia Miller is the Ravencourt PD's only female officer. When she's not contending with the latest in a long line of lowlife drug abusers and wife beaters who pay more attention to her body than her badge, she has to put up with a police force that refuses to respect her. But Celia has a job to do, and for months her middle-of-nowhere desert town has been victimized by an increasingly violent gang dubbed "The Illegals". The alien masks they wear have made them an urban legend, but Celia's off-the-books investigation has uncovered the true scope of their criminal operation.
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Great Summer Thriller
- By Jill Reeves on 06-28-18
By: Marc Costanzo
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Life Among the Dead
- By: Daniel Cotton
- Narrated by: Scott Parkinson
- Length: 17 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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There's over a million people in the city of Waterloo. Today, most of them have died, and now they're hungry. Corporal Dan Williamson is caught in the middle of the outbreak, desperately trying to reach his wife who is somewhere amid the urban decay. There are other souls out there, other tales of survival among the horror. Dan will soon learn that the living may prove to be an even bigger threat than the dead.
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solid zombie story!
- By Mike Naka on 12-07-13
By: Daniel Cotton
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Cold City
- Repairman Jack: Early Years Trilogy, Book 1
- By: F. Paul Wilson
- Narrated by: Alexander Cendese
- Length: 11 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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If you've never read a Repairman Jack novel, this is the place to begin. It's 1990. A twenty-one-year-old named Jack has dropped out of college, leaving his old life behind to build a new one in New York City. Manhattan's rough edges are jagged enough to shred any unwary newcomer, but perhaps not one who is determined to stay off the grid, at any cost, in the busiest metropolis on earth. And to do so, he'll have to take jobs of a less than legal nature.
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Fun, as long you don't think too much
- By Andrew Pollack on 01-17-14
By: F. Paul Wilson
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The Hunter
- By: Richard Stark
- Narrated by: John Chancer
- Length: 5 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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You probably haven't noticed them. But they've noticed you. They notice everything. That's their job. Sitting quietly in a nondescript car outside a bank making note of the tellers' work habits. Lagging a few car lengths behind the Brinks truck on its daily rounds. Surreptitiously jiggling the handle of an unmarked service door at the racetrack. They're heisters.
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A dark story
- By Dave Nelson on 04-06-13
By: Richard Stark
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Rogue Warrior II: Red Cell
- By: Richard Marcinko, John Weisman
- Narrated by: Richard Marcinko
- Length: 2 hrs and 32 mins
- Abridged
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When Richard Marcinko wrote his best-selling autobiography, Rogue Warrior, he and co-writer John Weisman were bound by government restrictions and could only tell a fraction of his incredible story. Now the tales he could not tell, the secrets he could not reveal explode in Rogue Warrior II: Red Cell - a riveting ne novel with Marcinko himself as the hero.
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Good story, but...
- By StreetMedic on 06-11-11
By: Richard Marcinko, and others
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The Last Dead Girl
- By: Harry Dolan
- Narrated by: Michael Kramer
- Length: 12 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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On a rainy night in April, a chance encounter on a lonely road draws David into a romance with Jana Fletcher, a beautiful young law student. Jana is an enigma: living in a run-down apartment and sporting a bruise on her cheek that she refuses to explain. David would like to know her secrets, but he lets them lie-until it's too late. When Jana is brutally murdered, the police consider David a prime suspect.
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A great, dark read, appropriate reader too.
- By Karen on 05-01-14
By: Harry Dolan
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Liars & Thieves
- Tommy Carmellini, Book 1
- By: Stephen Coonts
- Narrated by: Guerin Barry
- Length: 10 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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Tommy Carmellini is sent to post guard duty at a farmhouse in Virginia's remote Blue Ridge Mountains, where top government operatives are debriefing a star defector: the ultimate KGB insider, a man with records on every operation and every dirty trick the shadowy intelligence agency has ever run, from Lenin to Putin.
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Fast Paced - Good Read!
- By Andrew Stone on 01-11-09
By: Stephen Coonts
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Fourth of July Creek
- A Novel
- By: Smith Henderson
- Narrated by: MacLeod Andrews, Jenna Lamia
- Length: 15 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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After trying to help Benjamin Pearl, an undernourished, nearly feral 11-year-old boy living in the Montana wilderness, social worker Pete Snow comes face-to-face with the boy's profoundly disturbed father, Jeremiah. With courage and caution, Pete slowly earns a measure of trust from this paranoid survivalist itching for a final conflict that will signal the coming End Times. But as Pete's own family spins out of control, Pearl's activities spark the full-blown interest of the FBI, putting Pete at the center of a massive manhunt from which no one will emerge unscathed.
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The Ghost of Tom Joad & the Wrath of Grapes
- By Mel on 06-30-14
By: Smith Henderson
What listeners say about The Elephant of Surprise
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- NKosbob
- 03-20-19
Love these dudes
But this seemed a little less entertaining than the rest of the books have been. I’ll be reading the next tho.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Parker Clark
- 08-21-20
Great Book. Love me some Hap and Leonard...Great
Great quick Read
Another Great Hap and Leonard. I can't get enough!! I'm working my way through all of the books!!
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- Meme
- 03-02-20
if you're into Hap and Lenard ....
you'll listen to this book either way it's not the the usual exciting Hap and Lenard ride but I enjoyed it. seems like Joe r might be getting tired of the series. it's a shame because I'm not.
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- Karen Powell
- 12-29-22
Love the Hap and Leonard series!!!
I am an avid audible books listener and, in my opinion, this is one of the best series available. I download every book as soon as it is available and listen to it multiple times. Very unique characters that get into some crazy situations. I love the relationship between the main characters and the way their family by circumstance has come together and becomes more developed in each book. I also enjoy other stand alone books by the author. So far, even though the books have had several different readers, all have been excellent. Can’t wait until the next book is available.
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- Matt Reed
- 04-12-21
Short but good
Definitely not slow. One of the fastest paced books from Lansdale. If you're a fan of Hap and Leonard do not let the length discourage purchasing this.
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- Cameron Lowe
- 04-01-23
Great story, stilted narration
The book itself is fantastic, with lots of action and the usual banter and introspection that makes the series great. But the narration for this one is lifeless and the cadence feels almost off-putting. It's like someone reading something they really don't want to for a class project.
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- Tod M. Clark
- 03-20-19
Hap and Leonard at it again.
Hap and Leonard waste no tome at all to find themselves mixed up in some extreme non stop action that does let up the entire book. Fans of series will not be disappointed by THE ELEPHANT OF SURPRISE.
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1 person found this helpful
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- RueRue
- 04-13-19
For Hap and Leonard fans
Long on action, short on plot. Probably only enjoyable for Hap and Leonard fans. The narration was great; Audible, please have all entire Hap and Leonard series re-recorded by Christopher Ryan Grant.
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- Nomad
- 08-10-19
My Kinda Guys
Hap and Leonard are the greatest duo in history. They are opposites but make one hell of a team. I can't get enough of these guy!! Keep them coming Joe Lansdale, please.
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- John
- 07-14-21
A Great Story...
Lansdale is a fantastic storyteller. The plot, our intrepid, aging heroes try to protect a young woman who saw and knew too much from a boss with lots of resources and powerful killers at his disposal set against the backdrop of hurricane barreling into east Texas from the Gulf. There's so much darkness and water as the boss makes his assault. Lansdale paints a great tale with the color and vibrancy as he works Hap and Leonard through this terrible storm of destruction. It's definitely worth a listen.
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