This review for the audiobook version of "Brett Aerobicizes" just came in, written by a woman who had previously reviewed the 1st book in the series ("Poolside with Brett") --
Private Investigator Brett Cornell is back and once again on the hot-seat. A man with whom he had a very public punch-up is found dead, and the bullet that killed him came from Brett’s gun. Can he find out who is setting him up before he’s locked up for good?
Brett Aerobicizes is the second book in the Brett Cornell series.
Travis Henry Carter is now Brett to me. There simply is no other. Brett’s swagger pours through a cocky and ever so slightly douchey tone without pretense and wholly invested in delusion. If you ask Brett he is the hottest thing to walk out of the whole state of Rhode Island. His conviction of greatness is done with a deft hand leaving the audience in on the joke that Brett is perhaps not the most reliable of reporters while his internal life is solid gold. D’Aguanno shared with me that he hired Carter because he so perfectly encapsulated Brett’s “wise guy persona” and I have to say, I cannot remember listening to an audiobook with a narrator more suited to his character. Carter’s background characters are distinct, though none match the mastery of his Brett and, really, none could be expected to do so.
This review of Brett Aerobicizes is not going to be all a Carter love-fest, the story is actually pretty solidly written.The mystery story is well plotted and the background characters incorporated with a definition not always seen in the genre. D’Aguanno followed some unexpected patterns and the dialogue is top notch. There’s a chemistry between Brett and the characters in the world not as apparent in the previous book. He still has disdain for some people and attraction to others, but his interaction with Marilyn at the start of the novel is a good example. He notices everything about her. Of course, she’s attractive so he would, but there’s almost a romance to his appreciation of her as a sexual object. These are the times when you can be sure that Brett has a soul. More than the first novel, Brett notices everything, and his observations are frequently downright hilarious. As a sidenote, Heineken should be paying D’Aguanno a royalty.
D’Aguanno gives us a depth to the character hinted at but not seen in the first book of the series. There is a natural development. Brett in Brett Aerobicizes is more a real person. He’s not someone you want to meet in person (he still considers belching an art form and rudeness a form of communication and a suitable response to someone who displeases him) but he’s pretty entertaining to read and hope (and know) that he’ll get knocked down a peg from time to time. Brett could easily become a sexist, sex obsessed, mustache-wearing 80s stereotype, but D’Aguanno draws him with a code to which he is surprisingly loyal and makes him a likeable obnoxious person much in the style of Stuart Woods’ character, Stone Barrington. Stone loves women, a lot of women. He’s like fly paper with faulty adhesive as he catches the women but they always get away. Brett is perhaps not as irresistible as he thinks himself to be, but he certainly has his very specific audience charm. Let me take this opportunity to state that if you are offended by overt sexism and can’t find the humor in stupidity, you will hate Brett. Let me encourage you, try the sample. I think that Brett might win you over.
I said it in the previous review and will say it again: if you don’t buy the audiobook of Brett Aerobicizes , you’re missing out. Pick it up today. You won’t be disappointed….and you may even be inspired to stay a little longer on that treadmill or elliptical.
BRETT HAS A SOUL? ? ? -- An unscrupulous bastard with a soul ? ? ? -- Hmmm, I'll have to give that one some thought!
A big THANK-YOU to Tammy from Canada who wrote that review!
