Three Stations

An Arkady Renko Novel

By: Martin Cruz Smith

Narrated by: Ron McLarty

Arkady Renko returns in a gripping mystery involving a kidnapped baby with a mysterious teenage mother, a murdered prostitute, police corruption, and as always, the complex, impenetrable landscape of modern-day Moscow.

Investigator Arkady Renko is back on the scene, with a whole new set of problems: his prosecutor keeps him without work, he’s struggling with the onset of middle age, and his friend Victor is arrested for public drunkenness. Zhenya, the fifteen-year-old chess prodigy whom Renko tries to parent, returns to the scene when he witnesses a shocking crime.

As always, Smith’s Three Stations is filled with intriguing, flawed characters and set in Moscow, a city so intricate and three-dimensional it’s practically a character itself.

Good listen but the end felt rushed

While not quite as good as some of the previous Renko books, I was caught up with this one and I enjoyed some of the fresh elements. Zhenya was a pleasant surprise- based on his personality in a previous book I thought he would be an annoying character to follow, but he was sympathetic without changing his fundamental nature. The author also doesn't rely heavily on a love triangle the way he did in many of the books.

Cruz Smith switches expertly between multiple POVs, some of them unexpected, always advancing the plot and never wasting time catching one character up with what the reader already knows. Everything seemed ready to come to a head nicely. Unfortunately the last quarter of the book falters. People return from disgrace with no explanation, key characters are not mentioned for several chapters running. There are also a lot of coincidences and reuse of characters, making Moscow seem a lot smaller than it should.

I still rate it as a good listen, and if you are prepared accept some coincidences and a resolution that felt rushed, there are plenty of good moments and memorable characters. The reader does a good job with it. I'm looking forward to the next one.

another good one

A relatively short but sweet one. not a fan of this particular narrator though. not close to the person reading the first several books in the series.

Narrator not my favorite.

What made the experience of listening to Three Stations the most enjoyable?

Martin Cruz Smith's stories are always a great read.

How could the performance have been better?

The narrator for this book as not nearly as good as the one for the prior books. His voice and voices do not fit with the story and characters in this book.

total bummer

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

I'd recommend this book to a friend who has already read all the arkady renko novels and is wondering whether or not to read the last one. Otherwise, not a chance.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

When other arkady renko books ended there was that feeling of saying goodbye to an old friend. When this one ended - eh...

What didn’t you like about Ron McLarty’s performance?

Totally the wrong voice. It came out of left field. It felt more like a NYC detective with Russian names rather than the Arkady I know - cynical and laced with amused irony (and perhaps a wee bit curmudgeon). The voice was actually distracting. Please, re-record it with Henry Strozier or Frank Muller. Though I prefered Strozier - they were both Arkady. McLarty definitely was not.

disjointed, not the best

first renko novel i didn't enjoy. story wasn't crafted well and seemed rushed. character development was lacking. it seemed like a book written to appease a publisher's quota.

narrator had difficulties applying the correct voice to the correct character all the while treating it like a NYC/NJ detective story. probably would think twice before listening to another book narrated by him.