
The Pale Criminal
Berlin Noir
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Narrated by:
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John Lee
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By:
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Philip Kerr
About this listen
In this second book of the Berlin Noir trilogy, The Pale Criminal brings back Bernie Gunther, an ex-policeman who thought he'd seen everything on the streets of 1930s Berlin - until he turned freelance, and each case he tackled sucked him further into the grisly excesses of Nazi subculture.
Hard-hitting, fast-paced, and richly detailed, The Pale Criminal is noir writing at its blackest and best.
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Critic reviews
"Echoes of Raymond Chandler but better on his vivid and well-researched detail than the master." ( Evening Standard)
Excellent WW2 war/crime story
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This book evokes a thrilling story of good and evil with lots of great characters and plot twists. Enjoy.
Another classic by Kerr
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Esxcellent Historical Fiction; Gripping ...
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Very good
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Where does The Pale Criminal rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?
As above.rates better than average but the story varies from semi-believable to fairly absurd.What was one of the most memorable moments of The Pale Criminal?
The author is good at evoking the era and was clearly influenced by The Thin Man, in a good way.Did John Lee do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?
Pretty good but one character is differentiated by a corny New York accent that was grating to the ears.If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?
I wouldn't...a ridiculous question.Any additional comments?
As I mentioned is reviewing the first of the trilogy, the tough guy dialogue becomes VERY tiresome, almost a caricature of Dragnet-style terse catchy stuff that is corny beyond belief. Also, the sex scenes....hit fast forward for those, you're not missing anything....a major detraction from these books, and I'm not a prude.better than some and worse than others
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Another Bernie Gunther adventure...
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If you could sum up The Pale Criminal in three words, what would they be?
Complex, interwoven and compelling story.Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
NoAny additional comments?
The story of a series of grisly murders committed during the years just before WW II in Germany is riveting. Kerr beautifully creates the sense of being in that time and place with a memorable, flawed hero, in the main character. This book was one of the best audio books we've purchased and is recommended for anyone who likes, murder, misdirection, flawed characters and the historic time period (Berlin, late 1930s).An outstanding listen!
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While I liked the way the case started resolving itself two-thirds of the way in, I've developed a serious dislike for forms of entertainment which centre on serial rapes and murders of women, and the details in this case were truly horrendous. Perhaps because of this, I focused more on little things that bothered me with the first book; endless questionable similes and a main hero who is a typical macho male, which is accurate enough for the period portrayed and amused me the first time around, but here set off against the background of these female victims was distasteful to me. Is that reverse sexism on my part? All the same, solid writing overall (except those similes—why?) and a crime story which places the reader firmly in the heart of Nazi Germany just before WWII. I'll be listening to the third book to see what trouble Bernie gets into next.
What Trouble Will Bernie Get Into Next?
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great book
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Not only does the author give the reader/listener a taste of what life was like in pre-WWII Nazi Germany, a fictional tale built around actual historical characters is always one I truly enjoy.
I am looking forward to moving on to the third book in this series. For those who enjoy this book I would also recommend Ken Follet and several of his books such as, Eye of the Needle, Hornet Flight, and Jackdaws.
John Lee, the narrator is one of the best and does not disappoint in this effort. He is top notch as usual!
Overall Highly Recommended!!
Second Book in the Series - Better than the First
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