Los Alamos

A Novel

By: Joseph Kanon

Narrated by: Edward Herrmann

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “The suspense novel for all others to beat . . . [a] must read.”—The Denver Post

WINNER OF THE EDGAR AWARD FOR BEST FIRST NOVEL

It is the spring of 1945, and in a dusty, remote community, the world’s most brilliant minds have come together in secret. Their mission: to split an atom and end a war. But among those who have come to Robert Oppenheimer ’s “enchanted campus” of foreign-born scientists, baffled guards, and restless wives is a simple man in search of a killer. Michael Connolly has been sent to the middle of nowhere to investigate the murder of a security officer on the Manhattan Project. But amid the glimmering cocktail parties and the staggering genius, Connolly will find more than he bargained for. Sleeping in a dead man’s bed and making love to another man’s wife, Connolly has entered the moral no-man’s-land of Los Alamos. For in this place of brilliance and discovery, hope and horror, Connolly is plunged into a shadowy war with a killer—as the world is about to be changed forever.

Praise for Los Alamos

“A magnificent work of fiction . . . a love story inside a murder mystery inside perhaps the most significant story of the twentieth century: the making of the atomic bomb.”—The Boston Globe

“Compelling . . . [Joseph Kanon] pulls the reader into a historical drama of excitement and high moral seriousness.” —The New York Times

“Thrilling . . . Kanon writes with the sure hand of a veteran and does a marvelous job.”—The Washington Post Book World ©1997 Joseph Kanon; (P)1997 Bantam Doubleday Dell Audio Publishing, Bantam Doubleday Dell Audio Publishing, A Division of Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

“A magnificent work of fiction . . . It’s a love story inside a murder mystery inside perhaps the most significant story of the 20th century: the making of the atomic bomb. . . . A stunning achievement.”—The Boston Globe

“Compelling . . . [Joseph Kanon] pulls the reader into a historical drama of excitement and high moral seriousness.”—The New York Times

“Thrilling . . . Kanon writes with the sure hand of a veteran and does a marvelous job.”—The Washington Post Book World

“An elegant and moving thriller.”—San Francisco Chronicle

Moving Story

Story works very well. Performance distracts with sometimes muddy acoustics. Overall an excellent audio recording.

stop the music

Narration excellent. However the music in between chapters and towards the end was terrible. Very distracting

Great period piece, first rate narrator

Complex and believable WWII era story with the development of the atomic bomb as a backdrop. The two main characters are engaging and adequately life-like that you care what happens to them. Lots of twists, and I could find no internal contradictions. I am surprised at the low ratings given by others - I suspect they were looking for something else. From my point of view, narrator Edward Herman simply reading a random newspaper story would get a score to at least 3 stars.

Good, but...

I agree that the plot is well done and interesting, but lets lose the annoying background "music" that obscures the words at chapter breaks. Otherwise well read.

Compelling story, but flawed audio presentation!

I agree with all the previous reviews disparaging the overly dramatic and extraneous and unnecessary musical additions to the narrative. They do NOTHING to improve the audiobook. Narrator is fine. You at Audible have had enough complaints now to re-master the recording and take out EVERYTHING but the narrator. As for the story. . .I found the ending a bit preachy and pat as well as quite abrupt. But overall I really enjoyed the story and am now looking forward to watching the movie "Oppenheimer" in conjunction. Also looking forward to more Kanon titles.