Killing Castro

by Lawrence Block Narrated by Henry Leyva

Overview

There were five of them, each prepared to kill, each with his own reasons for accepting what might well be a suicide mission. The pay? $20,000 apiece. The mission? Find a way into Cuba and kill Castro. This breathtaking thriller, originally published the year before the Cuban Missile Crisis under a pen name Lawrence Block never used before or since, is the rarest of Block's books-and still a work of chilling relevance all these years later, with Castro and Cuba once again commanding headlines.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

Shortly before the Cuban missile crisis, mystery Grand Master Block (Hit and Run) donned a pen name to publish this absorbing yarn about five men vying for a $100,000 prize put on Fidel Castro's head by a mysterious guy named Hiraldo. Bounty hunter Ray Garrison only works on his own; hardened murderer Michael Turner is paired with 19-year-old Jim Hines, avenging his brother's execution; and Earl Fenton, longing to do some good before he dies of cancer, teams up with jack-of-all-trades Matt Garth, who just wants the money. As they make their way to the Cuban coast, sympathetic locals support the five would-be killers in their titular goal despite their penchant for rape and mayhem. Passages discussing Castro's life and times add depth to this intense, taut thriller, just as good now as it was in 1961. (Jan.)

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From the Publisher

Praise for Lawrence Block:

"There is only one writer of mystery and detective fiction who comes close to replacing 
the irreplaceable John D. MacDonald...The writer is Lawrence Block." - Stephen King 

"Unfailingly entertaining." - The New York Times 

"One of the very best writers now working the beat." - The Wall Street Journal 

"Lawrence Block is a master of crime fiction." - Jonathan Kellerman 

JANUARY 2009 - AudioFile

Thank heavens for audiobooks; you can get one of Lawrence Block's first thrillers, published in 1961, enhanced by Henry Leyva with some perspective you couldn't get from a reprint. The story, which was probably supposed to take place after Castro's revolution, but before the Bay of Pigs, centers on five Americans who answer an ad posting a reward of $100,000 (not much money these days) for Castro's head. A young fellow seeking revenge, a dying banker, a hit man, a loner, and a mercenary agree to split the reward five ways. Leyva portrays five markedly different characters, each with the right intonations. He plays the loner, hit man, and mercenary with the toughness you'd expect, and the two amateurs with great sympathy. He makes this short thriller a pleasure to listen to. A.L.H. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine

Product Details

BN ID:	2940169518306
Publisher:	Blackstone Audio, Inc.
Publication date:	01/06/2009
Edition description:	Unabridged

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