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The Great Train Robbery cover art

The Great Train Robbery

Written by: Michael Crichton
Narrated by: Michael Kitchen
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Publisher's Summary

In teeming Victorian London, where lavish wealth and appalling poverty live side by side, Edward Pierce charms the most prominent of the well-to-do as he cunningly orchestrates the crime of the century. Who would suspect that a gentleman of breeding could mastermind the daring theft of a fortune in gold? Who could predict the consequences of making the extraordinary robbery aboard the pride of England's industrial era, the mighty steam locomotive? Based on fact, as lively as legend, and studded with all the suspense and style of a modern fiction master, here is a classic caper novel set a decade before the age of dynamite - yet nonetheless explosive....

Michael Crichton wrote and directed the screen adaptation of The Great Train Robbery, starring Sean Connery and Donald Sutherland.

©1975 Michael Crichton; Copyright renewed 2003 by CrichtonSun LLC (P)2015 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved

What listeners say about The Great Train Robbery

Average Customer Ratings
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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Quite captivating

Not the usual Crichton novel but I enjoyed it just the same. It was fun and engaging. I saw the movie years ago and could only picture Sean Connery as Pierce.
The slang and language took a bit getting used to.
The narrator did an excellent job.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
  • JPH
  • 2020-10-20

enjoyable

the dry humor sprinkled in definitely helped make the title. nicely paced drama. would recommend!

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Not a fan of this book.

The story was just not interesting. I fought to get through it. The performances was just ok. I was really hoping for better.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Great Book. Brutal Narrator.

Crichton relates the true tale of the 1855 robbery of 12 Thousand Pounds in Gold from England (pay being delivered to the Crimean Front). He enlivens true-life criminal characters as they plan and execute an elaborate heist - employing ingenious scams to accumulate the tools and personnel to pull it off. The dialogue is gruff and loyal to the period (Victorian England). The events are engrossing and colorfully described. The characters are fascinating. Crichton, who heard about the case while teaching at Cambridge, researched the crime extensively and does a marvelous job bringing the event to life. His prose is overly crisp at times (each word too-carefully chosen), but undoubtedly enjoyable. Unfortunately, the book is read by Michael Kitchen. His cadence quickly becomes annoying and his choices of which words to emphasize baffling. The over-emphasis is distracting. I sped the recording up to 1.10x and it helped somewhat. This intriguing true-crime brought-to-life recording is worth 2.5 stars out of 5. It was a Daily Deal and worth the $4.95 I spent..but it's not likely worth a credit.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Fascinating and informative Victorian London

Once again Crighton has shown excellent attention to historical detail. Amazing character construction. Very gripping.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Worth it

Simply amazing. Voice actor was amazing, story isnlarger then life based off of true facts given by the people them selves. New appreciation for London in 1800's even as black man.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

loved it

well done! great story and performed very well
will definitely be reading more by same author

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Very cool - crime mixed with historic contex

Really enjoyed the historic context that is given to explain how it was possible to rob the train like that at that time. Magnificently performed. Could not put it away.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Good story Not so much the narrator

There are times when the narrator sounded bored while relaying the story. The story kept me interested.

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Boring useless blabla. I should request a refund

Boring useless blabla. No action. Characters were not interesting. I should request a refund, but it was too late.

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