Bad Bird, Chris Knopf
Bad Bird, Chris Knopf
List: $25.95 | Sale: $18.16
Club: $12.97

Bad Bird

Author: Chris Knopf

Narrator: Deanna Hurst

Unabridged: 11 hr 3 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 02/01/2011


Synopsis

Jackie Swaitkowski investigates the death of a female pilot who had a family tree filled with ex-cons and a passenger list packed with Hamptons high society. Just before Eugenie Conklin's plane took a nosedive, she tossed out a camera case that held an unusual set of photos. While defending Eugenie's husband during the accident investigation, Jackie realizes that she recognizes more than a few of the faces in those pictures. They may be able to prove her client's innocence but Jackie soon learns that to find the answer to Eugenie's death will mean uncovering a mystery from her own family's past as well.

About Chris Knopf

Chris Knopf’s mystery novels have received exceptional awards and accolades, with critics likening his character Sam Aquillo to Dashiell Hammett’s Sam Spade, Raymond Chandler’s Philip Marlowe, and Robert B. Parker’s Spenser, while repeatedly comparing Knopf’s work to that of Elmore Leonard, John D. MacDonald, and Ross Macdonald. Two Time was one of thirteen mysteries listed as recommended summer reading in the New York Times Book Review, and Publishers Weekly chose it as one of the “Best 100 Books for 2006.” Head Wounds won the 2008 Benjamin Franklin Award for Best Mystery. Dead Anyway was listed on the 2012 Best Fiction lists of both Publishers Weekly and Kirkus Reviews. Knopf is a sailor, cabinetmaker, and advertising executive in Connecticut. He and his wife Mary also spend considerable time at their Long Island home in Southampton.

About Deanna Hurst

Deanna Hurst is an actress, voice-over artist, and singer-songwriter. She has performed on stages throughout the United States, and her television credits include Judging Amy, Hunter, and Silk Stalkings. She has voiced hundreds of commercials for radio and television. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two dogs.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Dan

Jackie Swaitkowski may not be the most buttoned-up lawyer in the Hamptons, but a plane crash before her very eyes is hard to miss. Just before the struggling air taxi takes a nosedive, its female pilot tosses out a camera case. To Jackie, the accident’s only witness, the case (so to speak) seems mea......more

Goodreads review by Maddy

PROTAGONIST: Jackie Swaitkowski, attorney SETTING: Southampton, New York SERIES: #2 RATING: 3.75 WHY: Jackie Swaitkowski is a real estate lawyer in the Hamptons who finds herself handling a criminal defense case. She was an eyewitness to the crash of a small plane piloted by Eugenie Birkson. As the plan......more

Goodreads review by Dawn

A good mystery with a surprise ending!......more

Goodreads review by Erica

Such a complex story line but I never get confused or have to reread. Just a really good read.......more


Quotes

“With an ability to make the shocking plausible, an elegantly edgy prose style, and characters who seem as real as old friends, Knopf displays his talents to perfect effect in this humane and haunting novel.” Richmond Times-Dispatch

“A rollicking tale with lots of twists and turns, adding up to a great deal of enjoyment.” Washington Times

“Engaging…The excellent supporting cast…provide[s] valuable assistance when Jackie’s efforts stir up threats. Domestic problems and Homeland Security issues enliven a plot with slick twists that should keep readers switching their bets to the very end.” Publishers Weekly

“Jackie, a lawyer inclined to skirt the law, is persistent to the point of bullheadedness and sometimes too fearless for her own good. Readers may want to scream warnings to her in the suspenseful final pages of this fine hard-boiled crime novel, which effectively combines action and introspection.” Booklist