Bernie Rhodenbarr, a gentleman burglar who runs a used bookstore by day and burgles at night, but always tries to avoid violence, is not a bad guy, just one who has slippery fingers. This is the twelfth novel in the series (not counting the short stories), which began in 1977, and the first published in ten years since 2013's The Burglar Who Counted the Spoons (Bernie Rhodenbarr, #11). This one, obviously by the title, has a nod to Fredric Brown's 1949 science fiction novel What Mad Universe. Bernie, and his gal pal Carolyn are somehow whisked to an alternate universe with only the slightest of changes like Bernie's metro card is now a subway card and certain restaurants change names and then there's the question of whether Carolyn's sexual preference has changed. Bernie has his eyes on a gem stone theft in a nearby penthouse building, which, of course, with Bernie's luck also involves a corpse whose presence Bernie has little to do with. While certainly not action-packed, it is a light comedic story, which returns readers to the Bernie Rhodenbarr universe, one which we all thought closed and boarded up a decade ago.

My thanks to both NetGalley and the publisher Subterranean Press for an advance copy of the latest adventures featuring the bookseller/ burglar, his faithful companion, and a world they find themselves in that they never made.

Crime fiction is loaded with antiheroes, characters who feel more comfortable on the outside of the law, living by a code they alone know, and one that seems more honest and true than the ethics and standards others live by. Many of Grandmaster Lawrence Block's many characters from both novels and short stories live their lives by their own code, a code that has helped many people over the years. Matthew Scudder, Evan Tanner, John Keller, even Chip Harrison ad Martin Ehrengraf, a lawyer who always gets his clients free, no matter what are like this. And of course the burglar bookseller cat owner Bernie Rhodenbarr, a man with a particular set of skills, mostly getting in trouble. In his latest caper Bernie is faced more with a Where-dunit than Who-dunit as Bernie and his best friend and accessory Carolyn find themselves in a world that is familiar in some ways different in others, but Bernie's propensity for finding bodies still remains in The Burglar Who Met Fredric Brown.

Bernie's day job of being a bookseller is getting more difficult as Amazon makes inroads, and his night job of relieving people of possessions is just as hard with all the cameras that are springing up everywhere. Bernie shares a drink with his best friend and occasional helpmate Carolyn dreaming of the perfect crime; taking an expensive diamond away from a tech bro with a bad attitude. Bernies knows this is an impossible task with electronic locks and eyes everywhere, so he goes home and finishes a book by one of his favorite authors Fredric Brown a little science fiction story about alternate worlds. Upon awakening Bernie finds his Metrocard is now a Subway Card, Amazon is just a river and cameras are not as prevalent. Carolyn notices is this also, seeing stores that once closes, and friends who have moved or even died. Bernies seizes the opportunity to rob from the rich, and finds that even in an alternate world, things don't always go easy.

A story that is a paen to a lost age. A day when crimes were simpler, writers more important, and even more importantly lost friends still live and have great adventures left to them. The book is both a funny story about a burglar with more opportunities, but an awareness that things change, sometimes for good, sometimes for bad. Bernie and Carolyn even discuss if they are alive, or maybe just fictional characters, pulled up when needed, sent back into the mundane when not. Block also discusses authors who have left us, Donald Westlake and Andrew Vachss, men whose adventures, along with Block I would once drop everything to read. And will continue to do for Block. Not many writers after 60 years would add a science fiction element to the story. Block did do this before bringing back Evan Tanner after a long break, but still it is great to see a writer still try new things. A book not only for old fans, but for new ones. And I hope there are a lot more stories as weird as Block wants to let them get.

I have long been a fan of Block's and have been blessed this month to read two books that are new to me. I can't wait to read more. A Grandmaster who has not lost a step, in fact his step got a little longer and new. Recommended for fans and new readers, who will have a long rich history of reading ahead of them.

I have very mixed feelings about this novel. A good portion of the book takes place in an alternate universe where bowling alleys and restaurants seem to disappear and various burglaries and murders occur. It is all very confusing and fantasy is not usually a book I would read. However, the novel is infested with a great deal of humor and I found myself frequently laughing out loud— particularly with the confusion of fellatio and philately. The description of an assisted living facility was hysterical as was defining a cruise as “being in jail with the added hazard of drowning.”
I thank NetGalley and Subterranean Press for the opportunity to read and review this novel prior to publication.

This is the first Bernie Rhodenbarr novel in years, and when I opened the first page, it was like greeting an old friend. I love Bernie and his burglar ways. While he's a thief, he always seems to end up in the good and the path he takes is entertaining and clever.. The may be the most unique book in the series, as the author takes inspiration from Fredric Brown. What follows is entertaining and a fun jaunt, even as Bernie laments that contemporary technology (security cameras, etc.) has made his chosen profession obsolete....it's hard to rob someone and have security cameras recording....

Fans of the genre will love this book. While this is a stand alone novel, you will enjoy it more if you've read prior books in the series. I hope that the author has another Bernie novel up his sleeve, as he's a great character with exploits are fun to read about.