
The World Played Chess
A Novel
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Narrated by:
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Robert Dugoni
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Todd Haberkorn
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By:
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Robert Dugoni
About this listen
“A fearless and sensitive coming-of-age story. I loved it.”—Mark Sullivan, bestselling author of Beneath a Scarlet Sky and The Last Green Valley.
Bestselling author Robert Dugoni returns with an emotionally arresting follow-up to The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell.
In 1979, Vincent Bianco has just graduated high school. His only desire: collect a little beer money and enjoy his final summer before college. So he lands a job as a laborer on a construction crew. Working alongside two Vietnam vets, one suffering from PTSD, Vincent gets the education of a lifetime. Now forty years later, with his own son leaving for college, the lessons of that summer—Vincent’s last taste of innocence and first taste of real life—dramatically unfold in a novel about breaking away, shaping a life, and seeking one’s own destiny.
©2021 by La Mesa Fiction, LLC. (P)2021 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.Listeners also enjoyed...
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I’ve been in this life for fifty years, been trying to work out its riddle for forty-two, and been keeping diaries of clues to that riddle for the last thirty-five. Notes about successes and failures, joys and sorrows, things that made me marvel, and things that made me laugh out loud. How to be fair. How to have less stress. How to have fun. How to hurt people less. How to get hurt less. How to be a good man. How to have meaning in life. How to be more me. Recently, I worked up the courage to sit down with those diaries.
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Love this!
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Critic reviews
“With his usual narrative mastery, Dugoni takes on the often-overlooked ordeal of boys becoming men and does so fearlessly and sensitively, chronicling the coming-of-age stories of three different men linked by war, friendship, and family. I loved it.” (Mark Sullivan, best-selling author of Beneath a Scarlet Sky and The Last Green Valley)
“A riveting story of boys becoming men and the risks they take along the way.” (Library Journal)
“The World Played Chess is a shining example of a writer at the top of his game, and a deeply thought-provoking take on a man’s coming of age.” (Authorlink)
“Wondrously brilliant and poignant.... While not a Vietnam novel per se, the book resembles Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried and Philip Caputo’s A Rumor of War in its sheer emotional resonance. Dugoni, though, seems to be channeling the lyrical storytelling magic of the great Pat Conroy more. The World Played Chess is this generation’s The Prince of Tides and a candidate for best novel of 2021.” (Jon Land, Providence Journal)
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Story
Former CIA case officer Charles Jenkins is a man at a crossroads: in his early sixties, he has a family, a new baby on the way, and a security consulting business on the brink of bankruptcy. Then his former bureau chief shows up at his house with a risky new assignment: travel undercover to Moscow and locate a Russian agent believed to be killing members of a clandestine US spy cell known as the seven sisters. Desperate for money, Jenkins agrees to the mission and heads to the Russian capital.
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Excellent Genre cross of espionage&legal thriller!
- By shelley on 04-10-19
By: Robert Dugoni
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When We Were Young & Brave
- A Novel
- By: Hazel Gaynor
- Narrated by: Rosie Jones, Imogen Church
- Length: 11 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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China, December 1941. Having left an unhappy life in England for a teaching post at a missionary school in northern China, Elspeth Kent is now anxious to return home to help the war effort. But as she prepares to leave China, a terrible twist of fate determines a different path for Elspeth, and those in her charge. Ten-year-old Nancy Plummer has always felt safe at Chefoo School, protected by her British status.
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heart wrenching And inspiring!!
- By Justin Drogoszewski on 11-22-20
By: Hazel Gaynor
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Chasing Fireflies
- A Novel of Discovery
- By: Charles Martin
- Narrated by: Adam Verner
- Length: 10 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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On a stifling summer day, an old Chevy Impala ignored the warning signals and was annihilated by the oncoming train. What no one realized until much later was that the driver had paused just before entering the tracks and kicked a small boy out of the car. A small boy with broken glasses who is clutching a notebook with all his might...but who never speaks.
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A Minority Opinion
- By Stephen on 10-03-20
By: Charles Martin
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My Sister's Grave
- Tracy Crosswhite, Book 1
- By: Robert Dugoni
- Narrated by: Emily Sutton-Smith
- Length: 10 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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Tracy Crosswhite has spent 20 years questioning the facts surrounding her sister Sarah’s disappearance and the murder trial that followed. She doesn’t believe that Edmund House - a convicted rapist and the man condemned for Sarah’s murder - is the guilty party. Motivated by the opportunity to obtain real justice, Tracy became a homicide detective with the Seattle PD and dedicated her life to tracking down killers.
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Story not for me--but that's just my taste
- By Kathi on 01-30-17
By: Robert Dugoni
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Her Deadly Game
- Keera Duggan, Book 1
- By: Robert Dugoni
- Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld
- Length: 11 hrs
- Unabridged
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Keera Duggan was building a solid reputation as a Seattle prosecutor, until her romantic relationship with a senior colleague ended badly. For the competitive former chess prodigy, returning to her family’s failing criminal defense law firm to work for her father is the best shot she has. With the right moves, she hopes to restore the family’s reputation, her relationship with her father, and her career.
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Legal thriller filled with twists!
- By Wayne on 03-28-23
By: Robert Dugoni
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Honor
- By: Thrity Umrigar
- Narrated by: Sneha Mathan
- Length: 11 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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Indian American journalist Smita has returned to India to cover a story, but reluctantly: long ago she and her family left the country with no intention of ever coming back. As she follows the case of Meena—a Hindu woman attacked by members of her own village and her own family for marrying a Muslim man—Smita comes face to face with a society where tradition carries more weight than one’s own heart, and a story that threatens to unearth the painful secrets of Smita’s own past.
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Wow.
- By Robert Bryant on 01-19-22
By: Thrity Umrigar
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Take Your Breath Away
- A Novel
- By: Linwood Barclay
- Narrated by: Joe Knezevich, George Newbern, Hillary Huber, and others
- Length: 10 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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One weekend, while Andrew Mason was on a fishing trip, his wife, Brie, vanished without a trace. Most everyone assumed Andy had got away with murder—it’s always the husband, isn’t it?—but the police could never build a strong case against him. For a while, Andy hit rock bottom—he drank too much to numb the pain, was abandoned by all his friends save one, nearly lost his business, and became a pariah in the place he once called home.
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Good solid novel from Linwood Barclay…
- By shelley on 05-26-22
By: Linwood Barclay
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Damage Control
- A Novel
- By: Robert Dugoni
- Narrated by: Christopher Lane
- Length: 10 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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A rising star at her prestigious Seattle law firm, Dana Hill knows all about stress. She pours herself into her work and family with all the energy she has. But her carefully balanced life is about to be turned upside down. First a frightening medical diagnosis forces her to reassess her roles as a lawyer, mother, and wife to a man she suddenly no longer trusts. Then her life is rocked further by the shocking and brutal murder of her twin brother.
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Better than average mystery/thriller
- By T. McCloskey on 10-08-15
By: Robert Dugoni
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The Orphan's Tale
- A Novel
- By: Pam Jenoff
- Narrated by: Jennifer Wydra, Kyla Garcia
- Length: 12 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Sixteen-year-old Noa has been cast out in disgrace after becoming pregnant by a Nazi soldier and being forced to give up her baby. She lives above a small rail station, which she cleans in order to earn her keep. When Noa discovers a boxcar containing dozens of Jewish infants bound for a concentration camp, she is reminded of the child that was taken from her. And in a moment that will change the course of her life, she snatches one of the babies and flees into the snowy night.
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Sappy and tedious
- By Churchill on 03-23-17
By: Pam Jenoff
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Deal Breaker
- The First Myron Bolitar Novel
- By: Harlan Coben
- Narrated by: Jonathan Marosz
- Length: 8 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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Sports agent Myron Bolitar is poised on the edge of the big-time. So is Christian Steele, a rookie quarterback and Myron's prized client. But when Christian gets a phone call from a former girlfriend, a woman who everyone, including the police, believes is dead, the deal starts to go sour. Suddenly Myron is plunged into a baffling mystery of sex and blackmail.
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Deal Breaker
- By Lisa on 07-02-08
By: Harlan Coben
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The Moonflowers
- A Novel
- By: Abigail Rose-Marie
- Narrated by: Abigail Reno
- Length: 12 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Tig Costello has arrived in Darren, Kentucky, commissioned to paint a portrait honoring her grandfather Benjamin. His contributions to the rural Appalachian town and his unimpeachable war service have made him a local hero. But to Tig, he’s a relative stranger. To find out more about him, Tig wants to talk to the person who knew her grandfather best: Eloise Price, the woman who murdered him fifty years ago.
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Excellent
- By Jen Novak on 12-28-24
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The Maddie Castle Series, Books 1-3: The Handler - Tracking Justice - Hunting Grounds (Maddie Castle Box Sets Book 1)
- By: L.T. Ryan, C.R. Gray
- Narrated by: Katie Hagaman
- Length: 27 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Dive into the world of Maddie Castle, a retired K9 handler turned private investigator, in this heart-pounding collection of the first three novels in the bestselling series. From gripping mysteries to life-threatening pursuits, Maddie and her canine partners battle danger, corruption, and their own pasts to bring justice to those who need it most.
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just enjoyed the story line..
- By Gretel on 06-17-25
By: L.T. Ryan, and others
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Fast Girls
- A Novel of the 1936 Women’s Olympic Team.
- By: Elise Hooper
- Narrated by: Karissa Vacker, Kristyl Dawn Tift, Reba Buhr, and others
- Length: 12 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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Acclaimed author Elise Hooper explores the gripping, real-life history of female athletes, members of the first integrated women’s Olympic team, and their journeys to the 1936 summer games in Berlin, Nazi Germany. In the 1928 Olympics, Chicago’s Betty Robinson competes as a member of the first-ever women’s delegation in track and field. Destined for further glory, she returns home feted as America’s golden girl until a nearly fatal airplane crash threatens to end everything.
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Don't skip epilog
- By Zona Trahan on 03-23-21
By: Elise Hooper
Robert has a gift for these relationships- this book and also Sam Hell, which is extraordinary.
I completely recommend this book and you will not regret the credit or your precious time.
Author has gift to tie history and for connections
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A MUST READ FOR VIETNAM VETS
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Wow 👏
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great book
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Loved it
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Thoughtful book
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Loved it
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I loved that the author narrated the book. You know it’s read in the exact inflection that he wanted it heard.
William , the marine- they were so misunderstood after the Vietnam war. You felt such compassion for him, what he went through…
❤️5 stars!!
I laughed, I cried…
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Very Good Read
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the young Vincent and the father Vincent were inspiring characters.
William and his journal brought great depth and understanding to me of the war and the people who fought it.
Robert Dugoni is an incredible writer. I've read everything he's written and he just gets better and better!
Inspiring Page Turner
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