From Publishers Weekly
Those who long for another new exploit of the immortal Bernie Rhodenbarr, Greenwich Village bookseller by profession and burglar by avocation, should be warned that their wait must be extended. For this is a reissue, after 17 years, of what was originally the third in the series. It's therefore likely to be a new pleasure to Rhodenbarr fans won over by his recent rebirth (The Burglar Who Thought He Was Bogart) and to fans of Block's Matt Scudder novels. In it, Bernie has just opened Barnegat Books, has just got to know his deeply endearing friend, the lesbian dog groomer Carolyn, and is pressed into service to steal a rare book, allegedly a lost anti-Semitic work of Rudyard Kipling. As usual, he finds himself saddled with a dead body and a maze of twisted motives. And also as usual, Block's stylish narrative flow, humor and pitch-perfect feeling for New York life make getting to the end much more fun than the ultimate solution of the mystery. Until then, it's unalloyed pleasure?and, yes, we're ready for another new one. Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Block seems to relish the chance to write about the other side of the law when he's not detailing the straight-and-narrow exploits of investigator Matthew Scudder (e.g., A Long Line of Dead Men, Morrow, 1994). Here, the literature-loving burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr (e.g., The Burglar Who Thought He Was Bogart, Dutton, 1995) is framed for murder after pilfering a Kipling manuscript.Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From AudioFile
Bernie Rhondenbarr is back. The loveable guy, who is an antiquarian bookseller by day and a sometimes burglar at night, makes his fifth appearance on audio with this reading by his creator, mystery writer Lawrence Block. As with all the Bernie audiobooks, the plot matters little. Bernie pilfers an itemÐin this case, a rare edition of a Kipling book once owned by a well-known person (who shall remain nameless so as not to spoil the fun)Ðand ends up being charged with murder. After the first three sides, Bernie, wryly performed by Block with the perfect New York accent, rounds up all the suspects. This is the fourth Burglar book Block has read. In a brief interview the author explained that he records his own books "because I'm a ham. I enjoy doing readings on promotional tours." Block also explained that he doesn't write the condensed versions but touches them up before the recordings are made. As to how much of Bernie is really Block himself, the author said, "Not too much. I haven't knocked off any apartments lately." What's up next for Bernie? Block would only reveal that in the next book "Bernie leaves the city and winds up in a country house outside New York." S.I.R. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine

FROM OUR EDITORS

Heading up a secondhand bookstore, lovable burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr tries to go legit, but can't resist making a bundle by pilfering a rare Kipling edition. It's only when he tries to return it that the real trouble begins.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Bernie's tried to go legit by opening up a secondhand bookstore down in Greenwich Village but still can't resist his passion: stealing. Especially when the price is right, and this time it certainly is. Here's what he has to do: pilfer a rare Kipling edition and make off with a bundle. That's the easy part. The hard part, Bernie finds, is returning the priceless volume to his employer. His instructions are to turn the book over to a lovely femme fatale, but before Bernie can, the femme is suddenly a fatality. And of course the cops are close behind. With best pal, Carolyn, at his side, and a surprising ally found in police detective Ray Kirschmann, Bernie tries to get himself out of the stickiest jam of his life. It will take all the tricks and tools of the burgling trade to uncover a clever plot by some very dangerous men. But dangerous is nothing when you're dealing with the hilarious hijinks of Bernie Rhodenbarr.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Those who long for another new exploit of the immortal Bernie Rhodenbarr, Greenwich Village bookseller by profession and burglar by avocation, should be warned that their wait must be extended. For this is a reissue, after 17 years, of what was originally the third in the series. It's therefore likely to be a new pleasure to Rhodenbarr fans won over by his recent rebirth (The Burglar Who Thought He Was Bogart) and to fans of Block's Matt Scudder novels. In it, Bernie has just opened Barnegat Books, has just got to know his deeply endearing friend, the lesbian dog groomer Carolyn, and is pressed into service to steal a rare book, allegedly a lost anti-Semitic work of Rudyard Kipling. As usual, he finds himself saddled with a dead body and a maze of twisted motives. And also as usual, Block's stylish narrative flow, humor and pitch-perfect feeling for New York life make getting to the end much more fun than the ultimate solution of the mystery. Until then, it's unalloyed pleasureand, yes, we're ready for another new one. (July)

Library Journal

Block seems to relish the chance to write about the other side of the law when he's not detailing the straight-and-narrow exploits of investigator Matthew Scudder (e.g., A Long Line of Dead Men, Morrow, 1994). Here, the literature-loving burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr (e.g., The Burglar Who Thought He Was Bogart, Dutton, 1995) is framed for murder after pilfering a Kipling manuscript.

AudioFile - Steven I. Ramm