Mark Turetsky to Read The One Safe Place

January 2nd, 2014 by Josh Brown · Author/Narrator News

The One Safe PlaceHighBridge is proud to announce that Mark Turetsky will narrate The One Safe Place, a new young adult title by Tania Unsworth. Set in a near-future dystopia, The One Safe Place is a haunting page-turner about a young boy named Devin who thinks he’s finally found a safe haven, but soon realizes that it’s no paradise.

Mark TuretskyMark Turetsky is an award-winning audiobook narrator and voice over artist living in Brooklyn, New York. In addition to his audiobooks, Mark has voiced numerous commercials, video games, and online presentations. He is a graduate of New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, and holds a minor in English and American Literature. This is Mark’s first time working with HighBridge. Follow his Twitter at @mturetsky.

The One Safe Place will be available in April.

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Fooled Me Twice: Mark Billingham’s SCAREDY CAT

December 30th, 2013 by Kay Weiss · Uncategorized

Scaredy CatOh, Mr. Billingham, you fooled me again. You seem so forthcoming in Scaredy Cat, your follow-up to the Tom Thorne series opener Sleepyhead. And narrator Simon Prebble has such a trustworthy voice, doesn’t he?

Yet I don’t even get through the prologue before I see you’re up to your tricks again—and Mr. Prebble is clearly in cahoots with you.

I have to admire the ease with which you disclose a great deal of information yet still manage to hold the ace close to your chest, laying it down undoubtedly with a satisfied smile within the very few remaining minutes of the program. You must enjoy sending us off in a multitude of directions, rabbiting off after quite credible leads (like Thorne and his colleagues, in fact), only to find ourselves wrong—again.

SleepyheadFor listeners who haven’t yet tried Sleepyhead, there’s nothing to prevent you from starting with Scaredy Cat, then going backward, as you’ll surely want to. There’s only light reference to that original case and no spoilers. Either story will serve listeners well if you’re a little low on your Omega-3, as there’s plenty of red herring in either you’ll swallow (pretty much hook, line, and sinker). Or as another reviewer put it:

“[Mark] Billingham manipulates his readers as relentlessly as the murderer manipulates both his surrogate in crime, and the police.”
     —The Scotsman

All I can say is I look forward to being manipulated—yet again. Bring on the next Tom Thorne!

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Hot Stuff: Robert Olen Butler’s THE HOT COUNTRY

December 23rd, 2013 by Steve Lehman · Uncategorized

The Hot CountryI confess that I’ve read (or listened to) almost nothing in the historical thriller genre, but if The Hot Country by Robert Olen Butler is in any way indicative of the quality of work to be found there, I need to get busy. Because this novel is as well-written, with characters as three-dimensional and interesting as the best literary fiction. In addition, the little-known aspects of American history through which the story moves are fascinating. Mix in vivid descriptions of the Mexican landscape, beautifully detailed bursts of thrilling action, and moments of stomach-knotting tension, and you get a terrific audiobook listening experience.

Christopher Marlowe “Kit” Cobb, son of an aging but once renowned stage diva (hence the theatrical name of her offspring), is a Chicago war correspondent sent to cover the Mexican Civil War and the American invasion of Veracruz in 1914. There he gets overly involved with a beautiful Mexican sniper of uncertain loyalties, a German salesman who is in fact an American spy, a young Mexican pickpocket who operates as Cobb’s eyes and ears in the city, and a brutal German diplomat on a secret mission to arm the legendary Mexican revolutionary general José Doroteo Arango Arámbula—better known as Pancho Villa—and goad him into war with the U.S. While pursuing what promises to be the biggest story of his career, Cobb ends up in an intense fire fight on the side of the Villistas against the Colorados army of Pascual Orozco, in a duel to the death with an expert swordsman with only his youthful training in theatrical fencing to draw on, and face-to-face meetings—at different times, of course—with both General Villa and the President of the United States, Woodrow Wilson.

It is our good fortune that short story master Butler has chosen to turn his prodigious literary skills to genre fiction. This first offering in the Kit Cobb series is an auspicious one: engrossing, edifying, and hugely entertaining. Ray Chase’s narration is smooth, sly, gritty, breathless, hard-edged, and wry at all the right moments. Chase inhabits Cobb with a naturalness that says, “This is what Christopher Marlowe Cobb really sounds like. This is how he tells his stories.” Cobb himself is part Michael Herr, part Ernest Hemingway, and in no small part Indiana Jones. In the hands of a master stylist like Butler and a seasoned narrator like Chase, all this makes for twelve hours of riveting listening pleasure.

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From a shameless dog lover: Spend some pleasant moments listening to Songs of the Cat

December 16th, 2013 by Peter · Uncategorized

Songs of the CatI have been listening to the old scout since I was a boomer kid. Prairie Home has been a part of my life. Well, a big part of my radio listening life. In the early 1970’s I listened to the King Biscuit Flour Hour and National Lampoon’s short-lived radio program. Then a family member told me about a new radio show coming down from the prairie, and the newly created public radio station in Minnesota. I tuned in and have been a fan ever since.  A popular theme on the Home on the Prairie show in the early days was: Cats, cats, and more cats. The mythical Bertha’s Kitty Boutique was an early sponsor of the program. Cat-themed skits were a weekly favorite. Humorous cat songs were plentiful.

As a fan, I collected many LPs of the show as well as early tape cassettes. A keeper from my collection is, Songs of the Cat by Garrison Keillor, with Frederica von Stade (20 songs, one hour and three minutes; lyrics and booklet included). It’s now available, of course, on compact disc, and via download from HighBridge Audio.  I don’t have a working turntable any longer. So, when I break out the milk crate full of Prairie Home cds, I always start with the early compilations. Songs of the Cat is a collection of some funny, heartwarming, and beautiful tunes that were good when they were first broadcast on Keillor’s show, and they continue to entertain me and my friends every time we listen in. 

Frederica Von Stade sings sweetly about ‘Oy Chuck and Katie’, GK brings back the humorous ‘My Grandmother’s Cat’, and tells the familiar tale of the ‘Cat that Came Back.’ Philip Brunelle conducts, Randall Davidson does sound effects. It’s a winner!

To be honest, I am a dog lover. I have never owned a cat. I have known some cats in my life who just don’t care for me, but I am amused and amazed by all things of cat culture. I own the NPR Driveway Moments Cat Tales (5 stars in my book), and I am a big fan of Minneapolis’ Walker Art Center and their Cat Film/Video Festival. I love the idea of people cherishing their cats, and cats, well, just being…. better than dogs. 

So, from a shameless dog lover, consider joining me and listen to Songs of the Cat. Sit back and enjoy Ms. Von Stade singing ‘Cats May Safely Sleep’. It’s a public radio treasure.

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47 Ronin: Serving a Cold Dish of Honorable Revenge

December 13th, 2013 by Josh Brown · HighBridge at the Movies

Now a major motion picture starring Keanu Reeves (release date December 25), John Allyn’s definitive telling of this unforgettable tale has been the gold standard of this story for almost 50 years. Allyn lived in Japan for a number of years studying Japanese literature and theater, later earing his PhD in theater history (with an emphasis on Japanese theater, of course) from UCLA upon his return to the United States.

A legendary story that exemplifies the definition of bushidō (a code of chivalry among the samurai class, stressing frugality, loyalty, martial arts mastery, and honor unto death), 47 Ronin is the story of a band of samurai who defied the Emperor to avenge the disgrace and death of their master, and faced certain death as a result. Believe it or not, the story of the revenge of the forty-seven rōnin (pronounced ROH-neen), has roots in reality. The event, which took place in Japan at the start of the 18th century, involved a somewhat minor feudal lord, Asano Naganori, who was sentenced to commit seppuku (ritual suicide) for assaulting a court official named Kira Yoshinaka.

No one will ever know the “real” story of what happened on the fateful day that Lord Asano assaulted the court official, but fictionalized accounts over the years make Kira out to be a greasy, weasely, corrupt official, who hurls continuous insults at Lord Asano. Finally, after Kira insults his wife, Lord Asano can simply take no more, and attacks him with a dagger. Unfortunately, violence of any kind, even simply drawing your blade, was strictly forbidden in Edo Castle (home of the Shogun). Thus, Asano is ordered to commit seppuku; his goods and lands confiscated; his family exiled; and his samurai retainers become rōnin (leaderless).

Lord Asano’s samurai vowed revenge, and led by Asano’s chief retainer, Ōishi, they take a secret oath to avenge their master by killing Kira, knowing full well knew that doing so would mean certain death.

47 ronin woodblock printKira was well guarded, so they knew they had to take their time and plot meticulously and accordingly. The rōnin assume new identities (teachers, tradesmen, etc.) and in essence go “undercover.” They bide their time, secretly planning their attack, and carry out their revenge almost two full years after Lord Asano had been ordered to commit suicide. I guess it’s true what they say: revenge is a dish best served cold. I won’t give away any details of the end, but I will say that the climatic and action-packed ending is one of the reasons that John Allyn’s masterful retelling of the story is considered the gold standard.

47_Ronin_GravesDon’t skip the foreword by Stephen Turnbull. He gives some acute and academic insights into what might have really taken place, and gives a brief overview how the story of the forty-seven rōnin has been portrayed and celebrated in Japan over the past four centuries, through oral tradition, writings, paintings, plays, film, etc.  Turnbull is a celebrated British academic, historian, and writer. He is a specialist in eastern military history, particularly in that of Japan. He has authored over thirty books on samurai and the history of Japanese warfare. He even served as a consultant on the Keanu Reeves movie.

David Shih’s narration truly brings life to this classic tale. His range is impeccable; from the strong gruff-voiced samurai Ōishi, to the cunning and villainous Kira, David Shih is the perfect choice for this audiobook. The audiobook is also a winner of the AudioFile Earphones Award.

While the upcoming movie version obviously takes quite a bit of liberties with the “true” story, anyone with interest in the real story of the 47 Ronin is encouraged to check out the definitive audio from HighBridge. It’s more than just a revenge tale packed with action (which, incidentally, is usually enough for me), it’s also a lesson in Japanese history and culture.

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Kim Mai Guest to Narrate The Axe Factor

December 11th, 2013 by Josh Brown · Author/Narrator News

HighBridge is pleased to announce that Kim Mai Guest will be reading The Axe Factor, the third and final installment in Colin Cotterill’s Jimm Juree series. The Axe Factor

With a major storm headed their way and a potential serial killer on the loose, it looks like journalist Jimm Juree, her eccentric family, and the whole town of Maprao is in for some major changes. Like the previous two in the series (Killed at the Whim of a Hat and Grandad, There’s a Head on the Beach), The Axe Factor is sure to take listeners on a whirlwind journey as Jimm Juree chases a bizarre crime with the help of her ex-cop grandfather.

Kim Mai GuestKim Mai Guest  is one of the most prolific voice actors in the industry. In addition to narrating scores of audiobooks, she has lent her voice to numerous high-profile video games and animation programs.

The Axe Factor will be available on CD and digital download in April.

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Billingham–and Tom Thorne–Back for More

December 10th, 2013 by Steve Lehman · Acquisition News

This just in, you crime fiction aficionados: HighBridge has acquired audio rights to the next Tom Thorne novel by celebrated British mystery writer Mark Billingham. It’s called The Bones Beneath (June, 2014), and it’s a rematch between Thorne and one of the most vile psychopaths he has ever faced (hint: it’s a villainous master manipulator from one of the early Tom Thorne novels that’s also available as a HighBridge audiobook).  The Bones Beneath is deliciously creepy, more than a little terrifying, and involves Thorne making the most gut-wrenching decision of his career. In other words, you, Mr. and Ms. Detective Fiction Fanatic, definitely won’t want to miss it. It’s coming next June, which gives you plenty of time to listen to the previous four Billingham audiobooks from HighBridge: Sleepyhead, Scaredy Cat, From the Dead, and The Dying Hours. And while you’re in the midst of doing that, take a moment to check out the cover story on Billingham in the Fall 2013 issue of Mystery Scene magazine.

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Billingham’s Sleepyhead: A First-in-Series That Will Keep You Awake

December 9th, 2013 by Kay Weiss · Uncategorized

SleepyheadHaving listened to Mark Billingham’s Sleepyhead, read by Simon Prebble, I believe I may have discovered the perfect way to determine whether you’ve come across a truly outstanding mystery: Try to explain what you like about it to someone. If you realize you can’t without the explanation being a spoiler of some kind, you’ve got a great mystery.

It can be assumed, as always, that narrator Simon Prebble—a true professional—delivers on every word, character, and plot twist, even if I’m having trouble deciding which if any of these I can tell you more about.

But—other than outstanding narration—since I can’t say simply, “trust me, you’ll like it,” (although perhaps telling you American crime writers like Lee Child, Karin Slaughter, and Michael Connelly also say you should trust them, you’ll like Billingham, would do it?), I’ll try to dance around the spoilers and give a sense of what you have to look forward to if you start with this first in Billingham’s Tom Thorne series.

I’ll start with Billingham first: A Brit, Billingham began work as an actor and stand-up comic, eventually contributing to scripts in shows in which he appeared. While even he assumed the natural leap to mystery writing would be in the “comic caper” mode Donald Westlake and others made famous, what came out instead was a dark mystery, more in the style of P. D. James, although Billingham’s Tom Thorne is a more rumpled character than the suave Dagliesh, much more just-off-the-beat and seemingly ordinary—and consequently more relatable.

Thorne comes with a backstory: A case that haunts him for his self-assessed failure in preventing the horrific outcome to which he himself was the unlucky first witness. Thorne is known for having a seemingly intuitive sense of who the culprit is on cases, but that sense hasn’t always helped him (as in the aforementioned case) and it also can set him at odds with colleagues and superiors who tend to prefer to have a little more hard evidence before drawing conclusions.

Thorne’s adversary in Sleepyhead, as we learn early on, has two irregular characteristics for most murderers: First, he is not actually trying to kill his victims; he just wants to leave them in a state known by the name “locked-in syndrome,” where the mind appears to be completely conscious and active but the body cannot communicate except, in some instances, through the eyes. Second, he appears to want Thorne to catch him.

I will admit that, although being a P. D. James fan and many of her criminals are sadistic to say the least, I was somewhat put off listening to the Sleepyhead audiobook at first by the darkness of the criminal mind described in the book jacket copy and thus the potential gruesomeness of the novel. But Billingham is far, far too interested in the humanness of his characters to let the story degrade from a crime novel to a horror story. In fact I can say that in Sleepyhead I have encountered the first novel where my favorite character is actually the murder victim (kudos as well to Prebble, who gives her the sass and sauce Billingham clearly intends) and possibly also the first mystery novel that made me cry.

Scaredy CatAnd Billingham also fooled me—not just with the criminal reveal but with the novel’s ultimate conclusion. It devolves in keeping with his apparent philosophy of keeping the story human: You can disagree with it, but you can’t say it rings false. It’s an ending that sticks with you and plays over in your mind. In fact, the only way to get it out might be to pick up the next Tom Thorne novel, Scaredy Cat, which fortunately for you and me both HighBridge also has available.

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The Unforgettable Tom Keith: Sound Effects Man

December 2nd, 2013 by Frank Randall · Uncategorized

With the second anniversary of Tom Keith’s unexpected passing retreating all too quietly as winter approaches, I’m reminded there’s one CD in our home that keeps both my eight year old son and my sixty-nine year old mother-in-law in stitches, consistently, and on any given listen. And by “in stitches” I mean unbridled laughter – the kind that makes you tap a headphoned individual on the shoulder and ask “What’s that you’re listening to?” It’s a lovingly curated collection of highlights from public radio’s A Prairie Home Companion called, simply, Tom Keith: Sound Effects Man.

A quick review of the contents suggests a delightful hour of APHC skits culled from the extensive archives: Tom busting out of the gate on track one, valiantly chasing Garrison Keillor’s evocative audio fantasy around the Gunflint Trail. The confounding Maurice, maître d’ of the Cafe Boeuf, exacting his revenge on the very same Mr. Keillor, the universal martyr of restaurant patrons everywhere. The kilt-wearing tenor celebrating St. Andrew’s Day. Every piece is charming, nuanced, and downright funny.

But the signature that Tom Keith leaves on each of these performances, and on his body of work in general, is that every sound he created wasn’t just a sound that filled a specific cue in a script that called for an audio effect. The sounds he created – no matter how fleeting or seemingly trivial to the comedic ensemble in question – had, surprisingly, a personality of its own. The noises he made had heart. They revealed character where character would not normally be found. This was his magic. The distressed caribou. The relentless water-drip. The underachieving automobile. The sober Swede. The deadly lutefisk. The carnivorous snow-bat. The bad loon. His work was delightful, and may be revisited at will and with great pleasure thanks to this terrific collection.

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Narrators Tap Into Their Darker Side for A Darker Shade of Sweden

November 27th, 2013 by Josh Brown · Author/Narrator News

HighBridge is excited to announce that the highly anticipated audio short-story collection, A Darker Shade of Sweden, will be read by a thrilling and impressive array of talent: Carol Monda, Scott Brick, Adam Grupper, Maggi-Meg Reed, Erik Bergmann, and Tavia Gilbert.

A Darker Shade of SwedenContaining seventeen stories, all never before published in English, A Darker Shade of Sweden illuminates the shadow side of this beguiling country as never before, and promises to be among the most highly anticipated crime fiction of the season.

The anthology includes short fiction from Sweden’s greatest crime writers, including Henning Mankell, Håkan Nesser, Åsa Larsson, Maj Sjöwall, Per Wahlöö, Sara Stridsberg, and many more. But the big news is that it includes a never-before-published story by a seventeen-year-old Stieg Larsson, late author of The Millennium Trilogy.

To have these exciting stories paired with this caliber of narrators is certainly a recipe for an electrifying audiobook. Carol Monda is a two-time Audie Award-winner and recipient of the Audio Publishers Association Earphones Award; she has narrated over 100 audiobooks to date. Scott Brick has narrated more than 600 audiobooks, won over 50 Earphone Awards, two Audie Awards, and has been nominated for a Grammy Award. In addition to audiobook narration, Adam Grupper’s on-screen credits include appearances on Law and Order and The Sopranos and the film Music and Lyrics. Maggi-Meg Reed has a number of audiobooks to her credit, and also has an accomplished theater career in New York including stage, musical theater, and opera. Erik Bergmann began acting at an early age, and for nearly fifteen years now, he has built a thriving voice-over and audiobook career. Tavia Gilbert is an award-winning narrator with more than 150 audiobooks under her belt.

A Darker Shade of Sweden is edited and translated by John-Henri Holmberg, an Edgar-nominated co-author of the 2011 book Secrets of the Tattooed Girl, a book about the Millennium novels and their author, Stieg Larsson, who was a personal friend. For more than fifteen years, Holmberg reviewed crime fiction for southern Sweden’s largest daily newspaper, which gained him the Jan Broberg Excellence in Criticism award as well as election to the Swedish Crime Fiction Academy. He now works full-time as a writer, translator, and editor in Sweden.

A Darker Shade of Sweden will be available February.

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