The Lock Artist- Steve Hamilton

The Lock Artist is a book about a young, damaged boy who has a way with locks. Traumatized from an event that we do not learn about until late in the book, the boy, Michael, does not speak, but has a unique talent, one that gets him into trouble from page one.

Told in alternating chapters about his education as a “box man” (safe cracker), and his escapades after learning the trade, The Lock Artist was an interesting and entertaining audio book. Michael is introduced as the golden boy, the miracle boy, the boy who survived a disturbing event that is alluded to but not explained right away. And this is part of the reason that the book was so captivating. Hamilton gives you just enough information to keep you wondering, and enough events with their own resolutions to keep it from feeling like a trick. Chronicling Michael’s life from 9 years of age until just past his 17^th year, we see him grow up, become the lock artist, fall in love, face danger, and resolve his problems, one way or another.

This was a really good audiobook. The narrator was, on the whole, easy to listen to. I had one complaint: the way he read the dialogue of the Ghost, but that was minor. Overall this is another 4- I would read or listen to it again.