Fifty Grand

A Novel of Suspense

By: Adrian McKinty

Narrated by: Paula Christensen

Length: 13 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

An illegal immigrant is killed in a hit-and-run on a frozen mountain road in the town of Fairview, Colorado. No one is prosecuted for his death and his case is quietly forgotten. Six months later another illegal makes a treacherous run across the border, barely escaping with her life. She finds work as a maid and, secretly, begins to investigate the death of her father. But she isn't a maid, and she's not Mexican. She's Detective Mercado, a police officer from Havana, and she's looking for answers to her father's death. McKinty's live-wire prose is riveting, right up to a final, shocking conclusion.

©2009 Barron's Educational Series, Inc. (P)2009 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"This amazing novel....has riveting mystery, politics of just about every shade, and thrills on almost every page. . . .This is going to be the BIG BOOK of 2009." - (Ken Bruen, author of The Guards and Once Were Cops)

Haunting

This is a very good experience. Adrian McKinty leaps the gap between reality and narrative... Hmmmm... No... Perhaps he heals it. And Paula Christensen brings Mercado's voice to haunting life... Particularly her internal voice.

McKinty exploits suspense/mystery to examine an individual's options when culture, politics, and violence exert crushing pressure upon anyone, or anything that's impelled to act - individually. Sometimes McKinty's own drive to examine the trees though, distracts us from the forest. In this case Mercado's internal monologues occasionally pulled me out of the story arc and, well.... It's not good for the magician to remind the audience that his left hand's doing things when we want to be amazed by the right hand that's abruptly full of rabbit. Y'know?

Maybe this book needed just a hair more editing and compression: hence my overall 4 rather than 5 stars. But hey... I am judging McKinley by his own standards and consequently I found this story, overall, to be unnecessarily slower than each of the others I heard before it.

Regardless... "Fifty Grand" is marvelous. McKinty and Christensen are a powerful team of artists. Buy it, listen, and feeeel.

McKinty at his best

Be in no doubt, this writer has talent. Like his other books, 50G is beautifully written. There's mountains of wit, intelligence and world-weary knowledge in this book. The intricate and entralling plot builds to a crescendo which left me stunned. Easily the best book I've listened to this year.

Hard to start

I found this really hard to get into and let it simmer in my ITunes for several attempts after starting it. But, when I ran out of most new stuff to listen too I tried this again. The protagonista, Ms. Mercado, is not Ms. Salander or even Anna Pigeon, but it finally got going and the last half of the story turned out pretty good and worth the listen.

Fabulous Story

What made the experience of listening to Fifty Grand the most enjoyable?

I have read many Adrian McKinty books. This book is a great example of his wonderful story telling, but takes it to a new and more intimate level. The story grabs you from the start and you want to know what is going to happen.

What did you like best about this story?

The heroine is complicated and very likable. You root for her from the very beginning.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I found myself finding every moment to listen so I could find out what was going to happen!

Flashback with a Lisp

You would not think there would be much call for a narrator with a speech impediment but this narrator landed this gig. The book has so many flashbacks it makes you dizzy. This is a far cry from the "Dead" trilogy but still better than most.

Exciting Suprise

As a Cuban American I am disappointed that there are so few Cuban heroes in American fiction or characters that are not idiots. I am also surprised by how writers that do write about Cuba are so ignorant of how life really is there. This crime novel did both wonderfully along with action, great written word, a terrific story, characters you can love or feel for, and mostly just great entertainment. Sam Spade looks like a wimp next to this detective. Don't miss it. The reader is also grand.

so glad i've discovered mcKinty

I'm so glad Audible editors recommended this book. What a great story. I was skeptical of an Irish writer spinning a tale set in the US from a Cuban's perspective, but Mr. McKinty pulled it off seamlessly -- with the help of a great reading by the narrator. Can't wait to read/listen to more from this author...

exciting

Exiting and fast moving but dragged some toward the end
I like McKinty's work a lot.

McKinty on his game again

What did you love best about Fifty Grand?

I liked the female protagonist. Different from his other books with male leads. I learned a lot about illegal imigration in the States. I had no idea that it amounted to slave labour. The picture of communist Cuba was very engaging if soemwhat disturbing.

Anxiously Awaited

(Review is by David's wife) I am a fan of the "Dead" trilogy and was happy to see this new book released w/o any delay on Audible.
I recommend this book, it's a great listen, the narrator is perfect for this book. This is not like the "Dead" trilogy, it's a different story told from a female POV and I thought it was spot on. The beginning starts with a great hook, I had to know how Mercado got to that point and enjoyed the flashbacks and background and waited for the story to unfold... as it always does in a McKinty novel. While I know little of Cuba and the conditions there, I feel the author did his research and the details certainly feel authentic, I was educated and entertained.
I certainly didn't feel this story was smut but is not a children's story, it's about tough situations and people, not good fairies.
I recommend this book (and McKinty's other books, as well) for well developed stories and characters that will remain with you long after you finish the book.