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Keller's Fedora

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Keller's Fedora

By: Lawrence Block
Narrated by: Lawrence Block
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About this listen

In this brand-new novella, Keller, everyone's favorite assassin for hire, is Chicago-bound on Amtrak's City of New Orleans, ready to do what he does best. But it's complicated. Usually there's someone ready to point him toward the target. Or he'll have a photo, say. Or, bare minimum, a name and address.

Not this time. When he gets to Baker's Bluff, Illinois, he'll have to play private detective before he can get down to business. Well, okay. He knows how it works. So before he boards his train, before he even packs his suitcase, Keller buys a fedora.

Keller, a faithful husband, doting father, and dedicated philatelist, has become a guilty pleasure for an increasing number of listeners. They don't think they should like the guy - but they just can't help themselves.

Cover design by Adil Dara.

©2016 Lawrence Block (P)2016 Lawrence Block Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Mystery Suspense Thriller & Suspense Fiction Transportation

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No need to rehearse any background story here as the synopsis has given a very thorough outline. What it does not convey, however, is the total delight of the interplay of the protagonists in both action and words, starting with the erstwhile hitman's purchase of a fedora and including his reading of a detective novel, bought at the railway station, for tips on how to be a P.I. Written largely as conversation, this flows naturally, if rather quirkily, with wry, often hilarious humour as Keller chats with his wife, his friend Dot, or himself as he embarks on the curious assignment.

Lawrence Block is both author and narrator, often a mistake but in this instance perfect. He knows all of the nuances and, with excellent timing and dead pan innocence of performance, brings everything vividly alive. He becomes the stamp collecting dealer, family man and hired killer, tying all together as if this were the most natural thing in the world, and gentle voicings of each of the characters adds to the illusion.

Intriguing, amusing, sometimes laugh out loud funny, it is impossible not to like Keller and the two plus hours of the book were over all too quickly. I first read Block's books some decades ago and now that I have rediscovered him, I am hungry for more.
For a quick, enjoyable and frequently funny read, Keller's Fedora is highly recommended

Dead as a white alligator.

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It’s Keller and as ever, he’s brilliant. Block is a master at the crime and thriller game and this novella has only one thing wrong with it; it should be 5 times as long. Wonderful.

Brilliant

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To me Keller is always a morally debatable person, but I can’t help loving him. I noticed he’s a bit pedantic, and for me it’s his most endearing quality

A Keller nouvella

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Second time around for this one, audible this time and just as good as the first, if not better. Narrated by Lawrence Block himself and I really enjoyed hearing him speak for the first time. Reminded me of Willem Dafoe, having just recently seen the man in a couple of films. His narration adds an intimacy to the story.

Keller's retired from the hit man game, only all of a sudden he is isn't but in an amusing diversion from previous tales he has to play detective to identify his target. Fortunately it's not the grocery boy at the local mall, the surprising recipient of a sneaky hand shandy from the amoral wife of his employer. Keller has to track down the man who has been enjoying the favours of his employer's wife while the man's away at work.

I liked the frequent trips to and from Baker's Bluff, the casual rapore with the train conductor and the familiarity that develops between the two. I liked Keller's acquisition of a fedora, the chats with the shopkeeper who sold him it, his wife and the guys in the bar who noted his wearing it and its subsequent absence.

Keller proves to be an accomplished detective and gets to have a couple of bites of the cherry in respect of earning Dot, his handler and himself a couple of decent paychecks. The second one after Keller proverbially pulls the pin from the hand grenade and walks away.

5 from 5

Read - (listened to) April, 2020
Published - 2016
Page count - 96 (2 hrs 25 mins)
Source - Audible download code received from author's assistant
Format - Audible

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* THOUGHTS FROM MARCH, 2018 BELOW.....

The Block and Keller double act again with plenty of the mundane included. Mundane in Block’s hands is entertaining and amusing as opposed to dull and dreary. We have a bit of hat-buying, a discussion or two on stamp collecting – Keller’s hobby, a bit of home life background – when he’s not killing people Keller has a normal life as a husband and father and a house renovator-cum-painter and decorator and a few train journeys to Baker’s Bluff.

The train journey’s and possibly the hat-buying are job related, Keller’s assignment is to kill a cheating wife’s boyfriend. Only thing is the cuckolded husband doesn’t know who the other man in his wife’s life is. Keller’s playing PI, hence the fedora. A bit of a stakeout ensues and one thing Keller’s sure of is that it isn’t the grocery boy who got a $2 tip and a quick five-knuckle shuffle with a happy ending in the car park of the supermarket for his helpfulness in loading up the lady’s groceries.

Keller – without spoilers - gets his man, doesn’t he always. But our tale has a twist and a bloody sting in the tale. The lady who isn’t a lady at all is still hungry for men and still playing the field. Keller again identifies the culprit and having compromised himself by ending up drinking with the guy, employs a bit of lateral thinking and subterfuge to ensure the deed gets done.

No happy endings for anyone really – apart from Dot and Keller – who won’t be refunding any money.

4.5 from 5

Read in February, 2018
Published – 2016
Page count – 96
Source – Kindle Unlimited
Format - Kindle

https://col2910.blogspot.com/2020/05/lawrence-block-kellers-fedora-2016.html

Better second time around

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Would you listen to Keller's Fedora again? Why?

How lovely to once again hear Lawrence Block read, beautifully, his own work! Unmissable and very enjoyable. Maybe I'll listen to it again, maybe a couple of times, just to be absolutely sure .......

What did you like best about this story?

Absorbing characterisations, tightly-plotted storyline, never predictable, always gripping.

Have you listened to any of Lawrence Block’s other performances? How does this one compare?

I had already read 'Keller's Fedora' on Kindle, but when I heard the author had done his own narration I couldn't resist! Although there are other excellent author-approved narrations of Lawrence Block novels and short stories (Scudder, Rhodenbarr, Ehrengraf) it's always a joy to hear this author read his own work. Highly-recommended - and if this is your first Block/Keller experience you're in for a treat!

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Moral dilemma? What moral dilemma? Oh. Right.

Any additional comments?

Now I want to re-read all the Keller novels again. And listen to them. And the Rhodenbarrs. And the Ehrengrafs.

Master storyteller in word and voice.

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