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The Iceman

The True Story of a Cold-Blooded Killer

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The Iceman

Written by: Anthony Bruno
Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot
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At home, Richard Kuklinski was a dedicated suburban family man; on the street, he was the Iceman, a professional hit man and lethal scam artist, a man so heartless he kept one of his victims frozen for over two years to disguise the time of death. His personal body count was over 100, but the police couldn’t touch him. Then undercover agent Dominick Polifrone posed as a mobster and began a deadly game of cat and mouse.

The Iceman chronicles Kuklinski’s grisly career and exposes his murderous double life.

Anthony Bruno, a crime writer, is the author of 11 crime fiction novels and four books of nonfiction true crime. His nonfiction work The Seekers: A Bounty Hunter's Story, was nominated for an Edgar Award in 2001 for best fact crime book. His novel Bad Apple was adapted for television in 2004.

(P)2012 Blackstone Audio, Inc. Crime Organized Crime True Crime Scary Heartfelt Biography Mafia
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What the critics say

" The Iceman chilleth! Not for the faint of heart but a rousing, riveting read. I read it in one (scary) gulp." (Jack Olson, author of I: The Creation of a Serial Killer)
"Bruno has done an excellent job of re-creating the tension and stress Polifrone experienced in fulfilling his risky undercover assignment." ( Publishers Weekly)
"Smoothly written…Bruno puts his writing talents to white-knuckle use with a tight focus on a killer with no human feelings except toward his wife and three sons…. A fast-paced, suspenseful re-creation of how a vicious killer was run to ground.” ( Kirkus Reviews)
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Phenomenal story-hard to stop listening. I felt like I was there in the moment with each character. If you are looking for suspense and a thorough conclusion, I highly recommend!

Spectacular Account

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The narrator could have been better but apart from that, everything was perfect

Sorry for bad English

Amazing

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this book is great from front to back...
the author sounds just like Richard kuklinski also..
just amazing..

one of the very best...

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Great job by the writer and narrator. I am extremely impressed with Bronson Pinchot’s voices.

The fact that this is a true story makes it even more terrifying!

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This Anthony Bruno offering is largely fictionalized - reading more like a Screenplay "Based On Actual Events" than an exposé - but it tells a captivating tale. Bruno bases his narrative on interviews, transcripts of testimony/ phonetaps, and police documents. This book is less documentary than Phillip Carlo's largely biographical 'Ice Man', but similarly exposes a nearly unbelievable set of allegations - Richard Kuklinski reputedly killed well over a hundred people with weapons ranging from his bare hands to icepicks to shotguns to grenades to cyanide to hungry rats. He says that he killed on orders from Mafiosi, for money, out of rage, or just because he felt like it. The story is legitimately jawdropping.

The narration from Bronson Pinchot in 'The Iceman' is a mixed bag. His diction, rate of reading, and cadence are impressive. On the other hand, his timbre is noticeably uninterested and his overall tone is subdued & somewhat robotic.
The tiebreaker is likely his voice-acting on this project: Pinchot's murmuring Kuklinski impression is chillingly spot-on, for example.
Bottom Line: Pinchot's performance is imperfect but well above-average.

Of the two books (Bruno vs Carlo), this one is much more fictionalized but also more readable. In addition, it was offered for Free with my Audible membership. Hence, I rate this 9/10 star iteration the better option for those looking for straight-up entertainment. The Carlo option is more technically/journalistically accurate, but this audiobook is a brilliant way to spend a few hours.

Heavily Dramatized - but Compelling

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