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The Long Night of Winchell Dear Audiobook
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(2.97) - 129 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
The steady tick of an aged Regulator wall clock and the squeak of an overhead fan turning slowly are soft but insistent, counting down the night, while the high desert thrums like a half-remembered Victrola song. The sounds are below the consciousness of Winchell Dear, an old-time gambler, a Texas poker player on the southern circuit, as he waits for something . . . something vague that his life of chance tells him is evil and moving his way. In Diablo Canyon, a distant part of Winchell Dear’s ranch, Peter Long Grass squats by a campfire, contemplating the profile he saw moving along the ridge of Guapa Mountain an hour ago, thinking about the gambler’s housekeeper, Sonia Dominguez, about the small, quiet world he has fashioned far from civilization and what undefined presence might now be threatening it. He gathers his tools and begins to run across the desert floor. And boring toward all of them is a cream-colored Lincoln Continental with two men aboard. Traveling from Los Angeles on a mission they’ve been given, they are professionals, cool and implacable at the start, but becoming steadily more confused by the strange landscape they are passing through. Forty minutes from their task, they ready themselves, while a kitchen wall clock ticks its way through the long night of Winchell Dear. The Long Night of Winchell Dear finds master storyteller Robert James Waller at his best as he takes us into the shadowy world of high-stakes poker fought in the back rooms of Amarillo and Little Rock, and headlong toward the story’s stunning finale of chaotic terror, where an unexpected hero emerges.
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"Rober James Waller has a knack for telling stories, but the thing that makes him one of my favorite authors is the fact that he has a way with words. He can take the simplest sentence and turn it into poetry!"
— Elaine (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“[A] concentrated tale of desert noir…Waller has dealt himself a hand of stereotypes, but he plays a sure and mesmerizing game, and reader takes all.”
— Booklist -
“Waller…takes readers to the unforgiving terrain of south Texas…Waller’s fans will enjoy his take on the Old West meeting the New.”
— Publishers Weekly -
“Waller successfully manages the intersecting arcs of these colorful characters as suspense builds…A rugged Texas tale well told.“
— Library Journal -
“[A] distillation of several hard-bitten voices scratching out a living…Hard knocks in the high desert.”
— Kirkus Reviews -
“Richard McGonagle…moves the story along, capturing the essence of the characters and building the suspense. His warm voice adds richness to the listening experience in a top-notch performance.”
— AudioFile
The Long Night of Winchell Dear Listener Reviews
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" I suppose the world is divided into people who love Robert James Waller and those who don't. I'm of the latter persuasion. I thought this book was weakly plotted, a lot of digressions that didn't contribute to the story, and implausible plot twists. "
— Kendall, 1/19/2013 -
" Not a big fan of Waller's, but the story was pretty interesting. A little bit of a ramble, but I enjoyed it. "
— Trish, 1/1/2013 -
" Like Cormac McCarthy but not as grim. Quick read. "
— Fran, 12/9/2012 -
" currently 6/6/2010 on page 11/196 LARGE PRINT....quotes from Dr.Samuel Johnson; dedicated to Waller's wife LINDA who lived & loved the high desert for 20 years. novel not as good as Bridges "
— Bill, 9/11/2012 -
" Strange but interesting! "
— Humkeb, 6/6/2012 -
" I really liked this book. It was totally different with interaction of several characters and what they were doing and why. Strange how they all interconnected. Loved the ending. "
— Cherie, 3/19/2012 -
" Awesome Book, It makes me want to move to Texas. Sort of. I liked it so much got the audiobook and Richard McGonagle takes you into the book. It'd make an awesome movie! "
— Ben, 5/31/2011 -
" Book moved slowly, but the end was quick and perfect. "
— Marcy, 3/4/2011 -
" I really didn't like this book at all. I thought the plot was weak and wasn't very interesting. It's a book that halfway through I wished I wasn't reading it, but it was short so I finished it. "
— Jenn, 11/4/2010 -
" I really didn't like this book at all. I thought the plot was weak and wasn't very interesting. It's a book that halfway through I wished I wasn't reading it, but it was short so I finished it. "
— Jenn, 7/4/2010 -
" currently 6/6/2010 on page 11/196 LARGE PRINT....quotes from Dr.Samuel Johnson; dedicated to Waller's wife LINDA who lived & loved the high desert for 20 years. novel not as good as Bridges "
— Bill, 5/19/2010 -
" Book moved slowly, but the end was quick and perfect. "
— Marcy, 11/7/2009 -
" I suppose the world is divided into people who love Robert James Waller and those who don't. I'm of the latter persuasion. I thought this book was weakly plotted, a lot of digressions that didn't contribute to the story, and implausible plot twists. "
— Kendall, 3/9/2009 -
" Awesome Book, It makes me want to move to Texas. Sort of. I liked it so much got the audiobook and Richard McGonagle takes you into the book. It'd make an awesome movie! "
— Ben, 8/26/2008 -
" Like Cormac McCarthy but not as grim. Quick read. "
— Fran, 2/7/2008 -
" Not a big fan of Waller's, but the story was pretty interesting. A little bit of a ramble, but I enjoyed it. "
— Trish, 1/12/2008
About Robert James Waller
Robert James Waller (1939–2017) was an American writer and author of the #1 New York Times bestsellers The Bridges of Madison County and Slow Waltz in Cedar Bend. The Bridges of Madison County was the basis for a major motion picture starring Clint Eastwood and Meryl Street and nominated for an Academy Award. His other works include the New York Times bestsellers A Thousand Country Roads, Old Songs in a New Café: Selected Essays; Border Music; and Puerto Vallarta Squeeze, as well as a book of photographs, Images.
About Richard McGonagle
Richard McGonagle is an Earphones Award–winning narrator and an experienced film, television, and voice-over actor. He has appeared in such films as Rules of Engagement and such television shows as The Practice and JAG.