The Devil's Chaplain
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The Devil's Chaplain
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Narrated by:
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Neal Arango
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By:
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Bruce Hartman
About this listen
"Brilliant... A highly entertaining mystery." (Ken Bruen)
Disillusioned with her corporate legal career, attorney Charlotte Ambler volunteers to handle the final appeal of Christopher Ritter, a Florida death row inmate whose execution is imminent. Ritter had been a prominent biologist before being convicted 10 years earlier for the brutal murder of a prostitute. He denies killing the woman but is tormented by guilt for other, secret transgressions. The only appeal he will allow is to prove that he is innocent - a kind of appeal which is almost impossible to succeed.
As Ritter relates his sordid life story, Charlotte discovers that innocence is more complicated than she thought. Ritter claims to have been framed by a shadowy figure named Craft, but as Charlotte studies the evidence she concludes that he is a dangerous psychopath who should not go free. Then a piece of evidence turns up that confirms a key part of his story. Pursuing her investigation, she is thwarted by hidden forces that seem determined to see him executed. In a race against the clock, she searches for the elusive Craft and fights to save Ritter in spite of himself.
The Devil's Chaplain is a legal thriller in the tradition of Scott Turow and John Grisham - a gripping tale of deception and self-deception, betrayal and violence, in which lawyer and client find common ground in their quest for justice and human values.
"A riveting story that hinges on clues so elusive that the tension is exquisitely drawn." (Diane Donovan, Midwest Book Review)
©2018 Bruce Hartman (P)2018 Bruce HartmanListeners also enjoyed...
What listeners say about The Devil's Chaplain
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Melanie Preston Lewis
- 29-07-18
Ohmidays!
Despite finding the main character, Chris Ritter, a thoroughly unpleasant and unlikable character, this was a most enjoyable listen. Not only that, despite my best intentions, I ended up warming to Chris, and by the end of the book, genuinely felt that he had a chance at a normal life. Of course, therein lies the genius of the book, I totally believed in the character. All the players in this tale were believable, and I found I cared about them very much. I worried for Charlotte, despised 'Billy-Bub and Bubba' and even Teague. Neal Arango, narrating, did an excellent job, with a number of different characters to voice, and most of them male, he succeeded in making each person distinctive, no mean feat. Mr Arango certainly added to the enjoyment of the book. This is my first book by author Bruce Hartman, but it certainly won't be last. A good job done by everyone involved in this Audible production.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Norma Miles
- 04-08-18
To look the truth in the eye and not blink.
Ten years ago, Chris Ritter was tried, found guilty and sentenced to death for the brutal torture and killing of Helene Vargas, a prostitute with whom he had been having an affair for several years. It had taken the jury only two hours to convict him. Appeals had been made and lost. Now his time had run out and he was to die from lethal injection in just fifteen days. He still claimed he was innocent of the crime for which he was about to be killed.
Nobody believed him. Not his wife, now divorced from him and remarried, not his old and dearest friends, not even the lawyer who had conducted his defence. A new lawyer, Charlotte, was sent to assess if a last minute appeal should be pursued given that a stay of execution could save him from the death penalty - the Florida law was likely to change within a few months. But Chris was not interested in a postponement, only in his being cleared: actual innocence - which, even if proven would not automatically save him. And his story was ridiculous ...
The Devil's Chaplain is an excellent book in so many ways. Well written and presented, the story alternates between Chris'first person recollections of the events preceding the murder as well as his own musings on his own beliefs and the other people with whom he has contact in the prison, and the ongoing visits of Charlotte both to see Chris and any others who might in any way shine a light on what had happened ten years before. As the date of execution comes ever closer, there is a countdown which grows ever more rapid as hat day approaches, adding real tension to the story. Because as unlikable as the prisoner is, and without knowing what is true and if he was, in fact, innocent or guilty, it is hard not to be drawn into the race to save Chris' life, even if only for a few more weeks.
But in addition to being a tension filled detective story, the reader is also given so much extra to think about - the workings of the law and justice system, a belief in good and evil, the theories of evolution, of religion, and the nature of man, all seamlessly slipped into the text.
The book is very well performed by Neal WranglingTo look the truth in the eye and not blink."
Ten years ago, Chris Ritter was tried, found guilty and sentenced to death for the brutal torture and killing of Helene Vargas, a prostitute with whom he had been having an affair for several years. It had taken the jury only two hours to convict him. Appeals had been made and lost. Now his time had run out and he was to die from lethal injection in just fifteen days. He still claimed he was innocent of the crime for which he was about to be killed.
Nobody believed him. Not his wife, now divorced from him and remarried, not his old and dearest friends, not even the lawyer who had conducted his defence. A new lawyer, Charlotte, was sent to assess if a last minute appeal should be pursued given that a stay of execution could save him from the death penalty - the Florida law was likely to change within a few months. But Chris was not interested in a postponement, only in his being cleared: actual innocence - which, even if proven would not automatically save him. And his story was ridiculous ...
The Devil's Chaplain is an excellent book in so many ways. Well written and presented, the story alternates between Chris'first person recollections of the events preceding the murder as well as his own musings on his own beliefs and the other people with whom he has contact in the prison, and the ongoing visits of Charlotte both to see Chris and any others who might in any way shine a light on what had happened ten years before. As the date of execution comes ever closer, there is a countdown which grows ever more rapid as hat day approaches, adding real tension to the story. Because as unlikable as the prisoner is, and without knowing what is true and if he was, in fact, innocent or guilty, it is hard not to be drawn into the race to save Chris' life, even if only for a few more weeks.
But in addition to being a tension filled detective story, the reader is also given so much extra to think about - the workings of the law and justice system, a belief in good and evil, the theories of evolution, of religion, and the nature of man, all seamlessly slipped into the text.
The book is very well performed by Neal Arango, who not only takes on the persona of Chris Ritter himself, but also reads the text with calm clarity, well paced and modulated, as well as also breathing extra life into the other characters with distinctive voicings. So good, he disappeared, leaving only the book to speak for itself.
I was extremely fortunate in being freely gifted, at my request, a complimentary copy of The Devil's Chaplain, by the rights holder via Audiobook Boom. Thank you so much. It is not perfect,for me the ending seemed a little rushed, but the book held me, mesmerised, throughout, not knowing until the very last pages, the, dare I say it? truth behind the murder. With such a perfect pairing of author and narrator, this is a book I can warmly recommend to everyone. Excellents, who not only takes on the persona of Chris Ritter himself, but also reads the text with calm clarity, well paced and modulated, as well as also breathing extra life into the other characters with distinctive voicings. So good, he disappeared, leaving only the book to speak for itself.
I was extremely fortunate in being freely gifted, at my request, a complimentary copy of The Devil's Chaplain, by the rights holder via Audiobook Boom. Thank you so much. It is not perfect,for me the ending seemed a little rushed, but the book held me, mesmerised, throughout, not knowing until the very last pages, the, dare I say it? truth behind the murder. With such a perfect pairing of author and narrator, this is a book I can warmly recommend to everyone. Excellent.
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