From AudioFile
Though Roberts is an expressive, earnest narrator, fans of Block's endlessly satisfying Matthew Scudder mysteries will find the tone of this reading somehow off. Block's writing is understated and restrained, reflecting his hero's resigned acceptance of humankind's darker nature. Scudder is not surprised by the failings of people, including himself. Roberts's reading is showy, infused with an incredulity that is simply not in keeping with Scudder's informed fatalism. Still, this is a Scudder mystery, and listeners will enjoy his relentless investigation into the brutal nine-year-old murder of a pregnant woman. The novel is early in the Scudder series, by the way, and an important stepping-stone on his way to sobriety. M.O. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine


Book Description
Louis Pinell, the recently apprehended "Icepick Prowler," freely admits to having slain seven young women nine years ago -- but be swears it was a copycat who killed Barbara Ettinger Matthew Scudder believes him. But the trail to Ettinger's true murderer is twisted, dark and dangerous...and even colder than the almost decade-old corpse the p.i. is determined to avenge.


About the Author
A Mystery Writers of America Grand Master, Lawrence Block is a four-time winner of the Edgar Allan Poe and Shamus Awards, as well as a recipient of prizes in France, Germany, and Japan. The author of more than fifty books and numerous short stories, he is a devout New Yorker who spends much of his time traveling.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Matthew Scudder, ex-cop and recovering alcoholic, has finally gtten his life together. Suddenly, trouble arrives in the form of and old enemy, psychotic James Leo Motley, who is brutally murdering anyone close to Scudder--with Scudder's name on the list!

SYNOPSIS

Louis Pinell, the recently apprehended "Icepick Prowler," freely admits to having slain seven young women nine years ago - but be swears it was a copycat who killed an eighth victim attributed to him.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

This is as near perfect as a private-eye thriller can get. Block is the utter professional, a master who holds the reader in the palm of his hand for as long as the pages need to be turned. His hero is former cop Matthew Scudder, now coasting as a part-time investigator and faithfully attending AA meetings on the side. A former flame, a savvy call girl, tells him that a psycho who came into her life many years ago (and whom Scudder helped send to jail) is out and seeking revenge on both of them. A friend, a call girl gone straight, is killed along with her whole family in Ohio, and Scudder gets on the case, fighting for his own life and, as the killer's murderous capabilities become apparent, for the lives of everyone he knows. The New York settings are superbly authentic, the dialogue is hip, sometimes touching but never mawkish, and the resolution--after Scudder's old cop buddies decline involvement in what looks too much like a personal vendetta--is hair-raising. Almost anyone writing suspense fiction could learn a great deal from Block; and those in search of sophisticated thrills need look no further. BOMC alternate. (Sept.)

Library Journal

Former New York City detective and now informal P.I. Matthew Scudder appears in the precursor to Eight Million Ways To Die (Audio Reviews, LJ 6/1/98). Scudder investigates the death of Barbara Ettinger, thought to be a victim of an ice pick-wielding serial killer. Caught nine years after the last murder, the killer confessed to all but Ettinger's death. Through considerable legwork and discussion with a range of characters, Scudder locates the true killer. However, as with Eight Million Ways To Die, the more interesting aspect of the work is Scudder's alcoholism. Not yet bottomed out, he engages in morning eye-openers and all-day benders and attacks a possible mugger. Though his lover enters Alcoholics Anonymous at the end of the work, Scudder continues his heavy drinking. William Roberts's reading of the story is quite good. A required purchase for all detective story collections.--Stephen L. Hupp, Urbana Univ., OH

Marilyn Stasio

The murders are as savage as they come, their horrific nature intensified by the clarity of Mr. Block's pristine prose....He has a fine nose for the pungencies of New York's after-dark street life, and he gives his hero wonderful opportunities to swap syllables with the city's most articulate riffraff.

AudioFile - Michael Ollove

Though Roberts is an expressive, earnest narrator, fans of Block's endlessly satisfying Matthew Scudder mysteries will find the tone of this reading somehow off. Block's writing is understated and restrained, reflecting his hero's resigned acceptance of humankind's darker nature. Scudder is not surprised by the failings of people, including himself. Roberts's reading is showy, infused with an incredulity that is simply not in keeping with Scudder's informed fatalism. Still, this is a Scudder mystery, and listeners will enjoy his relentless investigation into the brutal nine-year-old murder of a pregnant woman. The novel is early in the Scudder series, by the way, and an important stepping-stone on his way to sobriety. M.O. ￯﾿ﾽAudioFile, Portland, Maine

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING

A powerhouse...a tough, lurid, sharp-edged thriller that packs a whallop from page one. — William J. Caunitz