1934. Businesses went under by the hundreds, debt and foreclosures boomed, and breadlines grew in many American cities. In the midst of this misery, some folks explored unscrupulous ways to make money. Angel-faced John Partlow and carnival huckster Ginger LaFrance are among the worst of this lot. Joining together they leave their small time confidence scams behind to attempt an elaborate … elaborate kidnapping-for-ransom scheme in New Orleans.
In a different part of town, Curtis Mayhew, a young black man who works as a redcap for the Union Railroad Station, has a reputation for mending quarrels and misunderstandings among his friends. What those friends don’t know is that Curtis has a special talent for listening… and he can sometimes hear things that aren’t spoken aloud.
One day, Curtis Mayhew’s special talent allows him to overhear a child’s cry for help (THIS MAN IN THE CAR HE’S GOT A GUN), which draws him into the dangerous world of Partlow and LaFrance.
This gritty depression-era crime thriller is a complex tale enriched by powerfully observed social commentary and hints of the supernatural, and it represents Robert McCammon writing at the very top of his game.
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A new novel by McCammon that stands among some of his classics (Gone South, The Wolf’s Hour, and Mine). McCammon is a treasure, and I highly recommend The Listener.
The more I pondered a review for this book, the more I realized that The Listener deserves 5 stars. McCammon just has a way of writing that causes a visceral reaction in me. I am pulled into the story and seem to find myself bracing for whatever comes next.
My initial rating was 4 stars and I did have a reason. I struggle with animal abuse terribly when I read any book and this book starts off with a rather horrific incidence of animal torture. It was bad enough that I considered not going on with the book. I know that I love McCammon’s work, so I put on my big girl britches and carried on. I am glad I did but be warned: this book has quite a few things happen which have the potential to really tug at the heart strings.
Set in the time period following the 1929 stock market crash, John Partlow is a con man. He peddles bibles to families by reading obituaries and claiming a loved one has placed an order for the Golden Bible. The family just needs to pay the remaining balance (which is what their deceased loved one would have wanted). Partlow gets by but it isn’t until he meets Ginger that the true con man comes to life. Ginger has a scheme to kidnap the children of a very wealthy man and demand a large ransom for their return.
Curtis Mayhew is a black man who works as a redcap for the railroad. Curtis has a special ability. He can sometimes hear what others are saying, even if they are nowhere near him. What Curtis doesn’t know is that he is about to become an integral part of one of the biggest kidnapping plans to ever be attempted.
The great thing about McCammon is he is a pro at creating characters. They come alive and it is impossible not to develop feelings about them. Some you love, some you hate. In this book, I was repulsed by Partlow and intrigued by Ginger. She is utterly fascinating. Likewise, my heart broke for Curtis. McCammon reminds us that racism was alive and blacks had virtually no rights. The injustice and violence Curtis endures is shocking, especially when one recognizes that it was (is) a harsh reality in America. Also, McCammon draws a vivid picture demonstrating the disparity between the wealthy and the poor and the dramatic consequences that can result from such.
The Listener is an enticing read and one I highly recommend.
I’m always amazed at how McCammon can draw the reader in with one character and thinking the story will go one way only for him to flip it on its head and go somewhere completely different and always incredible!
Such a great story!
McCammon’s writing is so engaging he could write the phone book and you wouldn’t be able to put it down. His descriptive prose paints a picture of the 1930’s in the deep south that you can touch, smell and even feel the sweltering heat. Each character is developed so well through their actions and dialogue you can’t help to jump on board and follow wherever the story takes you, and the increase in tension had me white knuckling the rest of the way. This is McCammon at his best.
The characters were very well drawn, and the era was realistically portrayed. Could not put this book down. I read it in one sitting, and wanted more……..
Mccammon is one of the best authors of fiction out there. He does it all. Horror, science fiction, post apocalyptic, and like this one-/historical fictiion/thriller/horror. He does not get enough love and I don’t understand why. Now I love king, but some of his endings are predictable. With RM this is not the case if you haven’t read any his books before, you need to start and the listener is not a bad place to start. And if you enjoy as much as I think you will, you then need to start the Matthew corner series.
I found myself truly rooting for the main character. RM does a great job of transitioning back and forth between characters points of views without frustrating the reader. Not all authors can do that as well as RM
***Some Spoilers***
I just finished reading Robert McCammon’s The Listener. Though I enjoyed it, I wish there had been more to the plot and more shading given to his characters.
This was unexpected. I have read sixteen McCammon novels. Whether involving the supernatural, an alien invasion or the exotic criminal world navigated by 18th Century New York detective Matthew Corbett, McCammon’s novels offer detailed settings and lots of characters in a good story.
The Listener takes us to the Deep South of the 1930’s.
A charming grifter, John Pearly, a bible salesman with the face of a choirboy and the soul of a snake is on his way to fleece a widow and her children.
But the steely-eyed widow knows a liar when she sees one and sends him on his way.
In a rage, John kills a litter of puppies belonging to the widow’s children. No redemption there. And time to move on. Destiny calls when John stumbles in to a “sex education” course in another county.
A voluptuous woman named Ginger is doing illustrations on a blackboard, information much appreciated by a crowd of horny farmers who give her their rapt attention. Ginger’s waiting for the seriously intoxicated “doctor” to show up and continue the “lesson” when she spots John, a kindred soul of the grifter persuasion.
When it comes to evil, meanness and all related concepts, Ginger was at the front of the line when the Devil passed them out. So of course, John is somewhat smitten, though he knows that she is like a black widow spider, and wouldn’t hesitate to enjoy him as a tasty meal after sampling his smarmy charms. In all his evil deeds, John has never murdered anyone other than puppies.
With breathtaking efficiency, Ginger completes John’s bad guy training. The doctor’s last appointment is with the business end of a gun. John is officially a murderer. What could go wrong?
Soon after the doctor’s demise, Ginger ditches John. Outraged, he tracks her to New Orleans and a new identity. Ginger is impressed enough to clue John in on a get-really-rich-quick project. There’s a wealthy businessman with two children. What if someone kidnapped those rich brats? Their rich father would pay a lot to get them back. If John helps her, he can go to Mexico and live like a king.
Okay then. We’re introduced to Curtis, a sweet natured nineteen-year-old black kid who works as a red cap for the Union Railroad, helping passengers with their bags.
Curtis is a “Listener,” a term he learned when he was a small child. His mother took her strange little boy to a local shaman (or is it shay-woman—the shaman was a she). Regardless, Curtis kept talking to people in his head and his mother feared he was hallucinating. We learn that Curtis is telepathic.
Throughout his life, Curtis has linked minds with other telepaths. Occasionally, when encountering someone less than hinged, he would leave his telepath receiver off the hook.
When he links minds with Nilla, an eleven-year old girl, he knows he has a friend.
His mother, a widow in her thirties, has become a childlike hypochondriac, demands too much of his attention.
When a girl breaks Curtis’s heart, it is Nilla who comforts him. And it is Nilla and her little brother Jack who are the rich man’s children, soon to be kidnapped by Ginger and John Pearly.
I’ll leave the spoilers there.
If this were any other writer, I would end by saying that The Listener was a pleasant read,a perfect way to spend the weekend on the couch. But it’s Robert McCammon and there’s something missing for me.
There’s very little depth to any of it. Curtis lets nothing deter him in his efforts to rescue Nilla. In the process, he endures a savage beating, a byproduct of the racism of the 1930’s South. And he still keeps going. Curtis is angelic, self-sacrificing and a perfect hero.
He does finally set his mother straight, telling her she’s not sick and that she should get a life. Other than that, Curtis’ unrelenting goodness puts me off.
John Pearly resembles a character from McCammon’s alien war story, The Border. Pearly’s character reminded me of the preacher who becomes a sex slave to an alien whose cartoon sexuality reminds me of Ginger’s voluptuous black widow venom. And like The Border characters, they engage in ritualistic twisted sex.
Although Pearly is given an abusive childhood that explains his character, I never did get a sense of what drove Ginger’s hate.
If you’re looking for something good to put on your kindle, a straightforward story of good and evil, consider The Listener, a pleasant way to spend an afternoon.