The Burglar Who Met Fredric Brown is the 13th book by Lawrence Block to feature mild mannered bookseller by day - accomplished cat burglar by night, Bernie Rhodenbarr. Originally released in 2022, this reformat and re-release in special edition from Subterranean Press is 280 pages and available in two limited editions (one edition limited to 15 copies and signed by the author).
I've loved Bernie Rhodenbarr
since he first debuted 40+ years ago. It's a series I revisit regularly
whenever I need a short and humorous uplifting read. They're
wonderfully undemanding and hugely entertaining. This story is not precisely in the regular Bernie-verse and lies outside the regular continuity, so readers should be willing to switch gears a bit.
This one will likely hit better with fans of the series who are willing to take a leap into the science fiction beyond into an alt universe setup. "Our" Bernie suddenly finds himself in a world without so many sophisticated anti-theft electronics and where booksellers can still make a living. As always, he still interacts with Carol, he still philosophizes, he still pulls the odd caper, and he still solves a mystery along the way. It's a meta-story, but still has all the bones of a regular Bernie novel.
Five stars for Block fans, four for everyone else.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
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