Audiobooks by Loren D. Estleman

It has been said of five-time Spur Award winner Loren D. Estleman that even "Louis L'Amour looks down with envy" (Kirkus Reviews). Here Estleman applies his incomparable narrative panache to this novelization of a real-life romance that never was. Judge Roy Bean is an infamous arbiter of Old West justice. For years, he writes admiring letters to British stage actress Lillie Langtry, and she occasionally responds. But just as they are about to meet face-to-face, fate intervenes and keeps this oddball romance from blooming.

Loren D. Estleman (Author), George Guidall (Narrator)

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The Confessions of Al Capone

In 1944 Al Capone, the most notorious Mob boss in history, has already been released from prison. Though Capone is no longer the enormously powerful force who dominated Chicago's underworld for years, he is still a thorn in the side of J. Edgar Hoover. The FBI chief knows that if he can somehow manage to get Capone to reveal details of crimes he and his Outfit committed, the Bureau has a good chance of nailing key members who now are active in the wartime black market. FBI agent Peter Vasco is perfect for the job. He has an in - his father once drove a truck for the Outfit - and his pre-FBI education gives him even better cover. His orders: pose as the priest he wanted to be before he dropped out of seminary, get close to Capone, and get Hoover the information he demands. Capone's in Florida, suffering from advanced syphilis, and happy to add a priest to his inner circle. As Vasco and the mobster bond over card games, lunches, and even a trip to Wisconsin, Capone, sometimes lucid and sharp, other times rambling and vague, recounts stories of his criminal career. From his days as a bouncer in Brooklyn to the St. Valentine's Day Massacre, Capone spills secrets that reveal in vivid detail the life of this monster who became the most iconic figure in twentieth-century crime. Vasco is alternately fascinated and repelled by the things Capone reveals. Al Capone would stop at nothing to take what he wanted, but also fed the poor of Chicago; he rose to the top of Chicago on a tide of bootleg beer and booze, but took the time to ensure that innocent victims of Mob violence got proper medical care. This is Al Capone as he's never been seen before, a ruthless crime lord who trafficked in death and corruption...as well as a man of refined tastes who loved his family. A man whose life is waning, and perhaps, a man who is seeking absolution.

Loren D. Estleman (Author), Luke Daniels (Narrator)

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The Branch and the Scaffold

Legendary author Loren D. Estleman has built a distinguished career in both the Western and mystery genres. His historical Westerns are instant classics, and The Branch and the Scaffold is another triumph. Brutally efficient judge Isaac C. Parker is determined to rid Arkansas and the Indian Territory of all manner of criminals. But his quest for justice and liberal use of the gallows earn him just as many friends as enemies and take a toll on every aspect of his life.

Loren D. Estleman (Author), Paul Hecht (Narrator)

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The Adventures of Johnny Vermillion

National Book Award nominee and five-time SpurAward winner Loren D. Estleman is widely considered one of America's finest Western authors. In this riotous and action-packed tale of Old West high jinks, a band of thieves posing as a traveling theater troupe runs afoul of a clever Pinkerton agent. "… one of Estleman's best novels. As such, it will engage not just Western devotees but readers of more meaty historical fiction as well."-Booklist, starred review

Loren D. Estleman (Author), Jonathan Davis (Narrator)

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The Undertaker's Wife

Author Loren D. Estleman has won four Golden Spur Awards from the Western Writers of America, as well as the Western Heritage Award for Outstanding Western Novel from the National Cowboy Hall of Fame. Also a Pulitzer Prize nominee, he pens a dramatic tale set in the early 1900s about a retired undertaker, Richard Connable, and his wife Lucy. In order to save the country from financial disaster, Richard must disguise the suicide of one of the most preeminient financiers in America.

Loren D. Estleman (Author), Henry Strozier (Narrator)

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Book of Murdock

The winner of five Spurs, two Stirrups, and three Western Heritage Awards for his work, best-selling author Loren D. Estleman is among the greatest chroniclers of the American West. The eighth novel in Estleman's popular and acclaimed Page Murdock series, this action-packed tale finds Murdock and his trusted five-shot Deane Adams revolver enforcing order in a world of chaos. '' a true professional, a writer of a sort increasingly rare ' so given to his work as to spontaneously combust to genius.''Boston Globe

Loren D. Estleman (Author), Richard Ferrone (Narrator)

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Alive!

Everyone knows the Frankenstein monster was played by Boris Karloff. His portrayal is so famous that the play Arsenic and Old Lace was filled with Karloff monster jokes-even when the part of the monstrously deformed villain was played by another actor. But before Karloff's memorable portrayal, another famous 1930s Hollywood icon, Bela Lugosi, tested for the part of the monster. The screen test footage was lost for decades, until Valentino, the never-say-die film archivist, gets a hot tip about the whereabouts of the incriminating (for really bad, heavily accented acting) footage. But it comes with a price far greater than the money he'll have to pay. Someone would kill to get that reel of film, and that makes Valentino a mortal obstacle who would rather not die for art. People have already been murdered for the film, and Val doesn't want to push his luck ... but boy, that reel is too good to let go. Enter a crew of steampunk fans. Loving the arcane strangeness that is Valentino's life-not to mention the completely glam prospect of seeing the original filmic Count Dracula as the Frankenstein monster-they will find a way to save Valentino and Lugosi's infamous screen test. Or if they can't do that, have a great party anyway. Val just hopes it's not a wake. "Leisurely paced and impressively researched, this is just the ticket for film buffs."-Library Journal

Loren D. Estleman (Author), William Dufris (Narrator)

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Ragtime Cowboys

In Prohibition-era Southern California, real-life detectives Charles A. Siringo and Dashiell Hammett must solve a mystery involving a ruthless politician—Joseph P. Kennedy. With sharp dialogue and a rich historical background, Ragtime Cowboys is an exciting, suspenseful tale of bribery, blackmail, and murder. Los Angeles, 1921: Ex–Pinkerton agent Charlie Siringo is living in quiet retirement when Wyatt Earp knocks on his door and asks him to track down Earp’s missing horse. What begins as horse thievery turns into a deeper mystery as Siringo and another ex-Pinkerton, the young Dashiell Hammett, follow clues that take them from the streets of Los Angeles to Jack London’s farm. There they discover a conspiracy masterminded by the notorious and powerful Joseph P. Kennedy. From beginning to end, these ragtime cowboys chase the truth in this compelling tale where the Old West and early Hollywood collide.

Loren D. Estleman (Author), Dan John Miller (Narrator)

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The Long High Noon

Locked in a deadly feud, cowboys Randy Locke and Frank Farmer have spent decades attempting to annihilate each other any time they are within shooting distance.So far, the men are even. One of Frank’s bullets has given Randy a permanent limp. Vain Frank wears a prosthetic ear, his own lost to Randy’s assault. If either of them remembers the original reason for the feud, it seems moot now.Their quest for revenge has led them on a merry chase through the Old West—through soon-to-be ghost towns and major cities; cattle ranches and mountain cabins; brothels and fishing boats; jailhouses and movie sets. Even their marriages have fallen victim to the feud.The story of their long-term hatred well known throughout the country, Frank and Randy are approached (separately, of course) by Abraham Cripplehorn with a proposition. With the popular Buffalo Bill’s Wild West show a raging success, why not publicize their next duel and sell tickets to the event? Winner take all, in more ways than one.Frank and Randy make a date for death…but will they be able to wait for the show? And could it be that their decades-long thirst for revenge is the only thing they are living for?Loren D. Estleman's The Long High Noon takes the listener on a thrilling adventure, touring the Old West from the days of the trains and cattle to roads and film sets.

Loren D. Estleman (Author), Phil Gigante (Narrator)

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Billy Gashade: An American Epic

Loren D. Estleman, one of America's most critically acclaimed authors, is a Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award nominee who has won three Shamuses, four Golden Spurs, and three Western Heritage Awards. One of Estleman's most unique works, Billy Gashade follows the adventures of a 16-year-old vagabond who wanders the Old West, crossing paths with such legends as "Billy the Kid," Jesse James, Chief Crazy Horse, and "Wild Bill" Hickok.

Loren D. Estleman (Author), George Guidall (Narrator)

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The Rocky Mountain Moving Picture Association: A Novel

Loren D. Estleman has garnered heaps of praise for his stylish novels, which are charged with razor-sharp wit and sparkling dialogue. The Rocky Mountain Moving Picture Association, reminiscent of the author's Mister St. John and The Stranglers, is an engrossing story of California's colorful past. In 1913, Dmitri Pulski wants to be the next Jack London. He spends countless hours at his father's ice company in a shed, writing short stories. When sent to Los Angeles to investigate an unusual order, Dmitri changes his name to Tom Boston and immediately begins scripting movie scenarios for a rogue film company. In the days to follow, the company will find itself fighting Thomas Edison and his cronies for control of the burgeoning film industry. This is an extraordinarily clever tale set against the boom of America's movie capital - Hollywood. Estleman's magical lyricism and masterful storytelling are at their usual high standards, matched here by the incomparable skills of veteran narrator George Guidall.

Loren D. Estleman (Author), George Guidall (Narrator)

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Five Stories from General Murders

With his usual knife-sharp prose in cutting form, Loren D. Estleman proves that he can carve a short story as cleanly as the full-length Amos Walker detective novels. Detroit's favorite private investigator, Amos Walker, barrels through this collection of five short stories by Shamus Award winner, Loren D. Estleman. General Murders upholds Estleman's reputation as a master of the short story. Both card-carrying fans of Amos Walker and those who are new to the series will devour these stories as they, with Walker, expose crime in some of the most corrupt alleys and steamy streets of Detroit. In this collection are five vintage Walker stories: "Greektown," "Robbers' Roost," "Fast Burn," "Dead Soldier," and "Eight-Mile and Dequindre." In five stories that typify the best of the private-eye fiction genre, you will experience big-city corruption and scandal along with hard-edged, wise-cracking PI Amos Walker, whom critics place "at or near the top of the list of hard-boiled private eyes" (Publishers Weekly).

Loren D. Estleman (Author), Robert Forster (Narrator)

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