Killer Weekend

Walt Fleming, Book 1

By: Ridley Pearson

Narrated by: Christopher Lane

Eight years ago, in Sun Valley - snowcapped playground for the wealthy and ambitious - all that stood between New York State Attorney General Elizabeth Shaler and a knife-wielding killer was local patrolman Walt Fleming.

Now, Liz Shaler returns to Sun Valley as the crown jewel and keynote speaker for billionaire Patrick Cutter's world-famous C3, a media and communications conference where the richest, most powerful business tycoons converge. The attorney general, a political lightning rod, is expected to announce her candidacy for president. It's a media coup for Cutter - but a security nightmare for Walt Fleming, now the county sheriff.

As C3 gets under way, authorities learn of a confirmed threat on Shaler's life, and various competing interests - the Secret Service, the FBI, Cutter's own security forces - begin jockeying for jurisdiction. Beyond the logistical nightmare that the conference's opulent extravagances represent for Sheriff Fleming, he must also contend with a raft of other local concerns: his troubled nephew's arrest, his wife's infidelity, the death of a socialite under suspicious circumstances, and a series of apparent maulings by an aggressive cougar. Each of these incidents comes to a head just as Shaler's assassin puts his chillingly precise plan into action.

©2007 Ridley Pearson (P)2007 Brilliance Audio

Critic reviews

"Thanks to a spirited performance by Christopher Lane, here's a thriller you can finish in a weekend....listeners [will] appreciate Lane's deft manner, clear pronunciation, and much needed pauses between scenes." ( AudioFile)

Interesting, exciting but shallow

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

The story was interesting, definitely not a waste of time however it could have been better.

What could Ridley Pearson have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Sun Valley, despite being a unique place full of character, was more of a after-thought rather than a character in the story. I was hoping for something more enthralling that would give me a feel for the place, rather than a few vague descriptions of places.
There were also too many predictable and cliched plot twists, the whole thing was a little light on substance.

What does Christopher Lane bring to the story that you wouldn???t experience if you just read the book?

The performance was good with extra embellishments like changing the tone of a voice heard over a phone or speaker. I have nothing but compliments for the performance.

Do you think Killer Weekend needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

I am not invested enough in the characters from Killer Weekend to pursue the follow-up books, at least not for now.

Very good.

I enjoyed Ridley Pearson's new character and locale. The story kept me listening. I thoroughly enjoyed Christopher Lane's narration. The different nuanaces in his voice was just enough to differentiate the many characters. I would love to hear more Ridley Pearson books done by Christopher Lane.