The Collectors by David Baldacci
The Collectors
by David Baldacci
(Audio)
http://www.bookcrossing.com/journal/6191409/
I thoroughly enjoyed this! I have a feeling that this is in the middle of the series (because the Camel Club had already been formed) but I still think it's a perfect one for me to start with because I absolutely loved the mystery centered around the Library of Congress.
I also especially liked this audio version because it made the characters come alive with quite a lot of, oh, character! They were pretty bold, extreme, striking almost comic book-type characters (I'm not sure I'm explaining it well, but the point is, the characters and their personalities JUMPED out at me because of the different voices).
I didn't mind the abridgement, though I'm curious as to what I missed. There was so much action and lots of little clues that were hard to piece together, which made for a great heist and a great mystery to follow. My favorite scene was the one at the National Book Festival, which I have attended several times with my local BookCrossing group :-) Can't say anything that exciting has ever happened there, though (at least, not to my knowledge).
I liked that not everything was resolved, though it bugs me as well because I don't have the other books on hand.