Richard Davidson has just the gravelly tough-guy voice to bring Breslin's Mafia story to life. But THE GOOD RAT is an unnecessarily complicated story about a good fella named Burt Kaplan who testifies against two NYPD detectives who murdered for the Mob. For authenticity's sake, Breslin has included actual testimony from the trial--which, unfortunately, slows down the pace of the story. The plot also suffers from too much jumping around. Breslin is at his best when he tells a story strictly in his own words and delivers the flamboyant language and colorful characters he's known for--like Tommy "Three-Finger" Brown and Sammy "The Bull" Gravano.
Pub Date: Feb. 5, 2008
Duration: 7 hrs
Publisher: BBC Audiobooks America
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
The events of the Tom Capano-Anne Marie Fahey case are not unusual. A philandering, self-centered man has relationships with women who are easily controlled. He seduces them, provides the gentle concern they crave and, once caught, demeans them until their self-esteem is gone, leaving them completely dependent upon him. Sadly, this scenario happens all too often. This time, the result is a brutal murder. Because the principals were prominent in Delaware politics, the story attracted media attention. Rule handles the sensational details crisply, professionally, and with a storyteller's flair. Narrator Laura Hicks provides exactly the reading Rule's book demands, keeping listeners riveted. She manages to maintain interest through necessary passages of mundane exposition. Some of her pronunciations are suspect, but with her pleasing voice, Hicks gives a balanced, nonjudgmental performance.
Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2003
Duration: 21 hrs, 30 mins
Publisher: BBC Audiobooks America/ Sound Library
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Is this book for burglars, or those who fear them? It's a little hard to tell, which is a problem. Another is that it is more a padded blog or magazine piece than an audiobook with a coherent thesis. While much of the material is interesting the first time you hear it, the second and third times tend to pall, as do lists of things like shapes of lockpicks we will never see or care about. Scott Aiello, so good at fiction, here gets in the way as he tries to breathe drama into material that has no emotional content, and overplays any hint of wit or irony, as if he were performing a snarky SNL skit instead of letting the listener hear what's there.
Pub Date: April 5, 2016
Duration: 8 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781524702212
Publisher: Random House Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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