Characters
Bernie Rhodenbarr is a New York City-based thief who excels in lockpicking and breaking and entering, and who is addicted to the thrill it provides. He served time in prison in his youth, and since then has resolved to avoid getting caught again.
Bernie's burglary operations are usually well-planned and tidily executed, from the initial surveillance of the target site to the escape route afterwards. However, during the course of some of these burglaries Bernie encounters a dead body, usually just before the police arrive to investigate a called-in murder. Thus begins the plotline of a typical Bernie Rhodenbarr novel, in which Bernie undertakes to solve the murder in order to clear his name. His investigative techniques include not only interviewing the victim's associates, but visits (sometimes involving illegal entry) to their homes to identify (and occasionally plant) evidence.
Beginning with The Burglar Who Liked to Quote Kipling, Bernie has become the owner / operator of Barnegat Books, a used bookstore in Greenwich Village that he purchased from its retiring owner and partially funds through the take from his occasional burglary activities. Prior to the novel The Burglar Who Traded Ted Williams (to explain a publishing hiatus in the series) it was revealed that the bookstore was actually making a profit, before its building's landlord changed and the new owner raised the rent catastrophically. Bernie has since managed to buy the building, and now uses his burglary take to pay for the building's upkeep. The bookstore also houses a cat, a gift from Bernie's friend Carolyn, whom Bernie named Raffles after the fictional gentleman thief.
According to Lawrence Block, one of the reasons Bernie operates the bookstore was to meet girls. Bernie enjoys an active sex life, sleeping with at least one female character per novel. Bernie does not appear to have a steady girlfriend.
He has also developed a connoisseur's liking for Scotch whisky, particularly single malts. However, if he has a heist planned he will drink no alcohol in the hours prior to its execution, preferring Perrier instead.
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