The Crevice


Read by J. M. Smallheer

(4.6 stars; 340 reviews)

The sudden death of wealthy and prominent financier, Pennington Lawton from an apparent heart attack, followed by the shocking revelation of his impending bankruptcy, leaves his sole heir and only daughter, Anita, distraught and nearly penniless. Nonetheless, she is determined to unravel the mystery surrounding her father’s death and the loss of his great fortune. To this end she engages the famous detective, Henry Blaine who is determined to unravel the tangled web of deception and restore both her father’s reputation and Anita’s inheritance.

Isabel Ostrander, who also wrote under the pseudonyms Christopher B. Booth, Robert Orr Chipperfield, David Fox, and Douglas Grant, was a prolific author of early American crime fiction. In The Crevice she collaborated with coauthor, William J. Burns, who served for three years as director of the Bureau of Investigation (a predecessor of the FBI)and was also famous for his exploits as a private detective. His cases served as material for the “true” crime stories he later wrote and published in detective magazines in the early 20th century. (summary by J. M. Smallheer) (8 hr 16 min)

Chapters

01 - Pennington Lawton and the Grim Reaper 23:54 Read by J. M. Smallheer
02 - Revelations 21:10 Read by J. M. Smallheer
03 - Henry Blaine Takes a Hand 14:27 Read by J. M. Smallheer
04 - The Search 23:25 Read by J. M. Smallheer
05 - The Will 21:20 Read by J. M. Smallheer
06 - The First Counter-Move 17:58 Read by J. M. Smallheer
07 - The Letter 30:33 Read by J. M. Smallheer
08 - Guy Morrow Faces a Problem 8:33 Read by J. M. Smallheer
09 - Gone! 18:44 Read by J. M. Smallheer
10 - Margaret Hefferman's Failure 29:01 Read by J. M. Smallheer
11 - The Confidence of Emily 31:50 Read by J. M. Smallheer
12 - The Cipher 26:32 Read by J. M. Smallheer
13 - The Empty House 32:40 Read by J. M. Smallheer
14 - In the Open 22:34 Read by J. M. Smallheer
15 - Checkmate! 26:55 Read by J. M. Smallheer
16 - The Library Chair 23:51 Read by J. M. Smallheer
17 - The Rescue 23:39 Read by J. M. Smallheer
18 - The Trap 29:24 Read by J. M. Smallheer
19 - The Unseen Listener 31:02 Read by J. M. Smallheer
20 - The Crevice 27:08 Read by J. M. Smallheer
21 - Cleared Skies 12:15 Read by J. M. Smallheer

Reviews

Wonderful!


(5 stars)

I loved Mr. Mastermind, and the way he satisfies every point the reader may have by the end. Although not in any straight forward or boring manner. The time flew by listening to this interesting book. Well read & well recorded. Thank you to the volunteers who made this book part of the library!

Five stars


(5 stars)

Very enjoyable mystery ~ well written and well read. It held my attention to the end. Can't do much better than the summary above without spoiling it.

Good, with funny blooper


(4 stars)

I really enjoyed this novel. The plot was interesting, I liked or disliked characters as appropriate and it had some decent surprises. I got a chuckle out of one blooper. At one point they talk about an important industrial city to the North of NYC, named Grafton. I just so happen to have lived about 15 minutes from Upstate NY's Grafton. It is not and never has been an industrial city. It's little more than a crossroads with a gas station/convenience store! :-D. There's a beautiful state park there and that's about it.

Good mystery - a bit confusing


(5 stars)

I had to jot down a few names and notes to tie it all together. The summary covers the plot nicely; the story is a mystery surrounding the death of a wealthy banker. I'd love to hear more stories of the detective in this novel; he is a very interesting person. Reader is excellent, as are the quality of her recordings. Enjoy!

Good Mystery - Excellent narration


(5 stars)

This story seems to twist and turn quite a bit. I did sometimes get a bit confused with it at points. It is a pretty good mystery. J.M. Smallheer is a wonderful narrator and she is what kept me listening. Thanks for a wonderful job as usual. I would give the story a 4 and the narrator a 5!


(4.5 stars)

Kept me awake at night because I wanted to know how the next puzzle was resolved. If I fell asleep,I had too go back and catch up because I didn't want too miss any action. Complex, but not confusing. A good story with interesting characters. Reader did a great job!!

Second listening even better


(4 stars)

I like the complicated plot in this book. I must admit, at times, it was hard to remember who did what. The added love interests were a good touch for an otherwise grim mystery. Detective Blaine is great. The reader is one of the BEST.

Excellent!


(5 stars)

It is a bit confusing, Pennington, Pennel, Paddington . . . but it's an excellent mystery with a detective and heroine who are engaging and believable. Jo does an excellent job on this solo Librivox reading. You can find her other solo works <a href="http://librivox.org/newcatalog/search_advanced.php?title=&author=&cat=&genre=&status=all&type=Solo&language=&date=&reader=knotyouraveragejo&bc=&mc=&action=Search" rel="nofollow">here</a>