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The Burglar on the Prowl (Block, Lawrence)
by Lawrence Block
Product Group: Book
Publisher: William Morrow (2004-03)
ISBN: 0060198303
EAN: 9780060198305
Dewy Decimal #: 813.54
Hardcover: 304 pages
Edition: 1st
Release Date: 2004-03-16
SKU: 05045
Condition: Collectible: Very Go
Comments: First edition book, sticker on the inside front cover, otherwise in great condition
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Editorial Reviews
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Product Description
"I don't play cards with men named Doc, or eat at places called Mom's. Or drink before I burgle. . . . It is, I should point out, not a career I would recommend for anyone. The fact that I evidently can't give it up doesn't mean I'm not well aware of the disagreeably sordid nature of what I do." -- Bernie Rhodenbarr Acclaimed New York Times bestselling author Lawrence Block returns with one of his most inspired and popular characters: the extraordinary Bernie Rhodenbarr. Antiquarian bookseller by day, burglar by night, Bernie has an innate knack, a gift, for getting into places designed to keep him out. Sophisticated yet down-to-earth, philosophical yet practical, Bernie is a gentleman who knows and loves his territory, the gloriously diverse and electric streets of Manhattan; a connoisseur who surrounds himself with the finer things in life, including his tailless Manx tabby, Raffles, and good friends like his neighbor Carolyn. In fact, it's a friend who gets him in his latest jam. Bernie is minding his own business when he's asked for a favor -- a neat, uncomplicated bit of vengeful larceny that will reap a tidy profit -- an offer the intrepid thief can't refuse. But with a few days to go before the crime, Bernie gets restless. So what does a burglar do to change his mood? Go on the prowl, of course. Though not the best way to do business, as he well knows. This bit of prowling lands Bernie in a pile of trouble that includes four murders and the burglary of his own home. Caught in the center of a deadly mystery, he must use his wits and wiles to connect the dots and add up the coincidences. Because if Bernie doesn't catch a killer, he'll lose not only his freedom but his life. Infused with the rich atmosphere of New York City and filled with a smart, charming cast of characters headed by the stylish Bernie, The Burglar on the Prowl is an engaging and delightfully suspenseful tale sure to be savored by Block fans old and new.
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Amazon.com Review
Bernie Rhodenbarr, burglar with a heart of gold, returns for this 10th installment in a reliable series from the versatile and prolific Lawrence Block (70-plus books to date). In Burglar on the Prowl, Bernie is recruited by an old friend to burgle the home of a crooked plastic surgeon, removing some off-the-books cash from a wall safe. A simple enough job, but Bernie complicates matters by going "on the prowl" one restless evening―-randomly cruising for an easy job. While he's pawing through a woman's empty apartment, she returns home; Bernie hides hastily, only to overhear an act of violence that draws him into a hunt for the perpetrator and a deepening role in the victim's life. Lawrence Block's prose is merely serviceable, but his plotting and storytelling are first-rate. He constructs a complex puzzle, yet weaves in each new development so seamlessly that you almost don't see it happen. Like its Bernie predecessors, The Burglar on the Prowl is droll and charming, and at times you can feel Block trying a bit too hard with the charm. However, a few truly horrific bad guys and some ugly violence keep the sweetness from cloying. And it's impossible not to like Bernie, a gentleman criminal with few peers in contemporary fiction. --Nicholas H. Allison
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Customer Reviews
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Another good book
Rating  (5)
Date: 2008-02-08
As always Lawrence Block has another exciting quick read book. It is a shame he has taken a break for both his series. But will wait patiently for the next one to hit the shelves.
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Bloch's Burglar is first class mystery literature.
Rating  (4)
Date: 2006-11-03
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
Bernie (the burglar) is always witty, inventive and in trouble. His fast-paced mysteries are a joy to read and Mr. Bloch's dialogue keeps the memory of Rex Stout alive. I have all the Bernie adventures and hope that his creator loves him as much as I do and will keep on writing for years and years.
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Huh?????
Rating  (2)
Date: 2006-08-05
1 out of 2 customers found this reveiw helpful
I like Block and Rodenbarr and have read many in the series. This one is a real letdown. Recently authors appear to be having more and more problems bringing their tales to a satisfactory close. That's true in spades in this book. At the end the author actually has Bernie review what the police will say happened, what really happened, and what could have happened. It is all jumbled and unintelligible. The book ends with a classic showdown in a drawing room like some '30's series. That's no problem but the reader doesn't really know who half the people are or why they are there. It's just too much confusion for a story that's pretty dull to begin with. The author does take time to praise Bernie's illegal immigrant doorman. Apparently Block feels that the high crime rate, astronomical High School drop out rate and appalling illigitimacy rate are nothing compaired with the joy that comes from rich Manhattanites being able to find good menial help who know their place. People don't get much dumber than upper west side liberals.
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A Great Roller Coaster Ride!
Rating (5)
Date: 2006-02-09
4 out of 5 customers found this reveiw helpful
I've just finished reading THE BURGLAR ON THE PROWL, my third Lawrence Block book in the continuing adventures of master burglar, Bernie Rhodenbar. I have to say that I've enjoyed them all tremendously. The charactors are thoroughly enjoyable and the stories, though wildly improbable, are just too much fun to miss.
Mr. Block writes in a style that is quick but deliberately paced, keeping those pages turning well into the evening. The characters are funny, sterotypical, completely predictable, and absolutely marvelous. That perhaps is the great charm of these books - they are like riding a roller coaster. You can see what's coming a mile away, you anticipate the plunges, dips, swerves and loops. You know they're coming, you're absolutely delighted as you go through them, and you are always satisfied with the result once you're done.
Granted, these stories do not rise to the level of a really engaging John Le Carre, P.D. James or Collin Dexter mystery. Actually, they put me more in mind of a Lilian Jackson Braun "Cat" novel or a really funny episode of Monk on the television. If you want a dark, brooding mystery with gritty realism, leave Block's books on the shelf. If, on the other hand, you want a great experience of light reading on a cold winter's evening or while lounging on a sunny beach - these are the books for you.
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What a coinky-dince!
Rating  (3)
Date: 2006-02-07
3 out of 5 customers found this reveiw helpful
In a series of unbelievable coincidences, a burglar breaks into a random woman's apartment to relief her of some of her possessions. Before he can make good his escape, the woman comes home with a man. The man date rapes the woman while the burglar hides under the bed. Meanwhile, an apartment upstairs in the same building is burglarized and Bernie (the coward that hid under the bed) is blamed. Now, the two people in the upstairs apartment die (as does the doorman) and it turns out that the murder is connected to a plastic surgeon that Bernie burglarized the night before. Another unbelievable coincidence. Not as unbelievable as the fact that Bernie starts dating the woman that he burglarized and when he tells her he hid under the bed as she was raped, this woman decides to continue dating him. How understanding! Most women hold grudges for petty things, how did this guy get away with that?!
The author has a good writing style, but the story is just too unbelievable.
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