3.5
The Murderers
ByPublisher Description
A struggling actor, Willy Griff keeps himself entertained with the wife of a business mogul, but he wants more: He also wants the business mogul's money. The mistress, Doris, likes the idea even more than Willy does, and figures if she helps plan the murder, she can ditch the husband and keep the cash.
It's a dangerous scheme for two low-level, aspiring criminals. But Willy comes up with an ingenious, foolproof plot for pulling it off. At least, he better hope it's foolproof . . .
is a gritty tale of crime and passion from Fredric Brown, a master of noir and mystery and winner of the prestigious Edgar Award.
Download the free Fable app
Stay organized
Keep track of what you’re reading, what you’ve finished, and what’s next.
Build a better TBR
Swipe, skip, and save with our smart list-building tool
Rate and review
Share your take with other readers with half stars, emojis, and tags
Curate your feed
Meet readers like you in the Fable For You feed, designed to build bookish communitiesStay organized
Keep track of what you’re reading, what you’ve finished, and what’s next.Build a better TBR
Swipe, skip, and save with our smart list-building toolRate and review
Share your take with other readers with half stars, emojis, and tagsCurate your feed
Meet readers like you in the Fable For You feed, designed to build bookish communitiesThe Murderers Reviews
3.5
“This book has a similar plot device to Patricia Highsmith’s Strangers on a Train. (Two would-be murderers switch targets and arrange alibis). But what makes this one good is the milieu of L.A. actors, musicians, and beatniks. It’s real hip, daddio.
The ending is a bit abrupt, and for that I knock off a star. But it’s good enough to make we want to grab any Fredric Brown book I can get my hands on.”
“The shape of this story is more rewarding than the story itself. That is the writing not the plot is why this crime novel from 1961 is worthy of being placed in a curated volume of crime novels from the 1960s.
This line is typical of the writing: “Why shouldn’t I face the world with arrogance, seeing that it’s a lousy world I never made. I could have done a better job”, and on or about every page the listener (reader) will be rewarded by the writing. Dames are meant to be loved and then forgotten according to the narrator, so perhaps the fairer sex might be forever grateful that we no longer live in 1961.
I found this book because I saw a review in the WSJ (Wall Street Journal) for Crime Novels of the 1960s to me it seemed a must have curated set of nine novels. My preferred way to read books is by listening to them. Amazon had this set available thru Kindle in two volumes, and I would have bought the Kindle version and listened to them that way, but Kindle is clunky to listen to on my Iphone, and I noticed that the first five novels were available on Anna’s Archive, so I downloaded them to my Iphone and listened to them through my preferred voice reading app. I mention this in order to highlight how great this book is when it is read aloud with a computer-generated voice that doesn’t add inflection or emotion that distracts from the reading experience at least for me.
It’s not hard to rate this book five stars because of the snappy writing, listening to it through a synthetic voice makes it even better for listeners like me. If I had just read this book randomly not realizing that it belonged in a curated volume of crime novels from the 1960s, I might have just thought this book was okay, but I didn’t and can easily say this book is a five-star book. (First of nine of the novels from Crime Novels of the 1960s).”
About Fredric Brown
Fredric Brown was a prolific writer of multiple genres, including mystery, science fiction, poetry, and nonfiction. His work has been championed by Stephen King, Philip K. Dick, Umberto Eco, and many more literary luminaries. In the mystery world, Brown is best remembered today for his long-running series of mysteries featuring Ed and Am Hunter.
Other books by Fredric Brown
Start a Book Club
Start a public or private book club with this book on the Fable app today!FAQ
Do I have to buy the ebook to participate in a book club?
Why can’t I buy the ebook on the app?
How is Fable’s reader different from Kindle?
Do you sell physical books too?
Are book clubs free to join on Fable?
How do I start a book club with this book on Fable?
