The Graveyard Shift [Unabridged] [Audio Cassette]

Jack Higgins (Author), Patrick Macnee (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 2002

All the creeps and thugs are out during the graveyard shift. It takes a special person to handle people and their weapons and threats at that hour of the morning. This story brings suspense and police action to the fore. Not an hour you want to be out...alone.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Previously published in England under Higgins's real name, Harry Patterson, this 1960s police thriller is the first of three featuring Detective Nick Miller to be released in the United States. Ben Garvald, a notorious thief, is finally getting out of prison, much to the dismay of his former wife and sister-in-law, who go so far as to enlist police protection. While Miller, an educated officer versed in judo and karate, tracks Garvald, hoping that the ex-con will lead him to stolen money never recovered from his final crime, Detective Constable Brady, a jealous colleague of Miller's, secretly confronts Garvald's ex-partner in an effort to solve the case himself. Instead, Brady winds up in a hospital bed, and Garvald, having witnessed the attack, becomes a target. Despite Miller's sophisticated front, he muscles information out of Garvald's acquaintances with the finesse of a hardboiled detective. Miller's abrasive personality takes some getting used to, as does his way with words (like a true '60s detective, he refers to women as "birds" and "tarts"). Though mystery buffs will appreciate the Mickey Spillane-like characters and cadence, this straightforward procedural lacks the espionage elements and historical content of Higgins's bestselling novels (The Eagle Has Landed) and may prove too dated for popular consumption.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

‘Open a Jack Higgins novel and you’ll encounter a master craftsman at the peak of his powers … first-rate tales of intrigue, suspense and full-on action.’Sunday Express‘Higgins is a master of his craft.’Daily Telegraph‘A thriller writer in a class of his own.’Financial Times‘The master craftsman of good, clean adventure.’Daily Mail --This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

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Product Details

• Audio Cassette
• Publisher: New Millennium Audio; Unabridged edition (December 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1590071603
• ISBN-13: 978-1590071601
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 6.8 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,961,447 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jack Higgins is among the world's most popular authors. Since the publication of The Eagle Has Landed--one of the biggest-selling thrillers of all time--every novel he has written has become an international bestseller, including The White House Connection and Day of Reckoning. He has had simultaneous number-one bestsellers in hardcover and paperback, and has been published in thirty-eight languages worldwide. Many of his books have been made into successful movies, among them The Eagle Has Landed, To Catch A King, and The Valhalla Exchange. He lives with his wife on Jersey in the Channel Islands.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars An average police story, January 3, 2003

By 

Fred Camfield (Vicksburg, MS USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Graveyard Shift (Paperback)

This is a reprint of a novel first published in 1965, but the setting seems to be slightly earlier. A pound sterling was worth considerably more than now. The story covers a one-day period and is a little too compressed in time.

The story introduces Nick Miller, a police sergeant with independent financial means. The case concerns Ben Garvald, just released from serving a sentence for a payroll robbery. There are people who don't want Ben to come home, including his ex-wife and her sister. The search for Ben results in a large amount of collateral damage as various characters seem to trip over their own feet.

Some of the plot does not seem very realistic, perhaps because monetary amounts seemed too low for the related actions, or perhaps because there is too much action in too short a time period. It is an OK read, but not one of the best mysteries among novels recently published.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Ok Read, December 1, 2002

By 

Rosa "Bookworm" (Detroit,MichiganUSA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Graveyard Shift (Paperback)

This was not Jack Higgins finest hour. I have read better. The ending was the only good thing about the book. Look for other Jack Higgins novels.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Well written and intertesting, February 28, 2003

By 

Jon Smith "gladius314159" (Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Graveyard Shift (Paperback)

This was the first book of Jack Higgins I have ever had the pleasure to read. I spent the evening reading it and finished it in three hours.
The plot was well paced and the characters interesting, a fine book and a good read.