These are the first two books in a long-running series about burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr. Bernie is a cool character, perfectly immoral when it comes to other people’s property, daring, professional and charming. The books are a light-hearted blending of the traditional cozy mystery and the rogue genre, because the sleuth is a criminal. Being a criminal, he has obvious problems. The only cop likely to take him seriously is bent and needs to be bribed before he will do anything for him, and in both these books Bernie is a suspect in the murders, so has to go not only undercover to solve the murders, but on the lam as well to avoid being arrested for them.
I have read a fair number of rogue stories (e.g. Raffles, Arsene Lupin) but Bernie is the first of the rogue heroes I have really liked. I hated the Raffles stories – Raffles is mean and Bunny such a wimp that it’s a wonder anyone likes them at all, plus the stories are badly written, and several other rogue heroes are into tricking and taunting the police who of course are always dumber than jellyfish. Bernie is the first I have come across who seems to simply make a living off crime without wanting to attract attention or taunt the authorities, and the stories do not hinge on anyone being unnaturally stupid.
In Burglars can’t be choosers, Bernie is hired to steal a small box that’s supposed to be hidden in a desk. He doesn’t bother to peep into every room of the apartment before he starts to look for the box, which turns out to be a mistake, because when two cops rush into the apartment, one of them finds a recently murdered man in the bedroom. Bernie manages to make a quick escape, and spends the next several days hiding out and desperately investigating the murder, which looks very much like a set-up.
In The burglar in the closet, he is again hired to perform a burglary, and is actually in the apartment when the owner comes home unexpectedly, lets in someone she knows and is murdered. Suspicion falls on him when his (innocent) “employer” is arrested for the crime (the victim was his ex wife), and decides to save his own skin and give Bernie to the cops as a possible suspect. Again, Bernie has to hide out and investigate in order to avoid going to jail. The Whoopi Goldberg movie Burglar was lightly based on this story.
Rating: Light-hearted and entertaining murder mysteries with a likeable “hero”. 3+ stars.
posted by: jmfausti (reply)
post date: 06.22.05 (5:03 am)
I love the Burglar books! I particularly love that he owns a bookstore on the side and pokes fun at his own genre.
The bookstore thing was what got the Burglar books recommended to me - I was looking for bibliomysteries and someone recommened the series. I haven't got to the bookstore part yet, but I have books 3 and 4 lined up, so it's probably coming up.
posted by: jmfausti (reply)
post date: 06.23.05 (5:14 am)
Definitely keep reading. There is a lot to enjoy in this series. He even takes on a locked room mystery in one of the most recent books. Lawrence Block made Bernie a very enjoyable character. I also like his "hitman", but I'm not so crazy about Matthew Scudder, his recovering alcoholic detective.
posted by: WM (reply)
post date: 06.23.05 (2:00 pm)
Excellent series keep reading!!
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About me
What this blog is about:
Reading and books.
If you’re wondering about the name 52 books, it stems from a book-a-week reading challenge I set myself. The challenge is over, but I'm still reading, and will continue to blog about the books I read and my reading experiences, and other stuff connected with books and reading.
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