Length: 6 hours

Ear: 3

Rent:  AudioMysteries.com

J.A. Jance must have decided to expand her repertoire from police-based type of detective mysteries into a more contemporary style of dynamic career women who incidentally gets involved in various unsavory events (think Patterson’s Women’s Murder Club). This new series features Ali Reynolds an ex-reporter, who finds herself thrust into murder and mayhem.

Web of Evil is the second in the series, I missed the first, decided to take a listen to this title. I’m a huge fan of Jance and you can read my five ears review of to see just how much I like her. This book is very different than her Joanna Brady and J.P. Beaumont mysteries. The author has included some up-to-date aspects including Ali’s internet blog cutloose.com that features heavily in the plot line. I’m not sure that it works, hearing various emails read and answered isn’t all that exciting and Jance might have missed an opportunity to tie the blog into the story in a more interesting way. Perhaps she’s waiting for a later work in the series.

The story involves the death of Ali’s about-to-be ex-husband, affectionately known as fang on her blog. Unfortunately Ali turns out to be a suspect in the death due to a series of rather contrived circumstances that probably wouldn’t hold up in real life. This leads to her husband’s very pregnant girlfriend, mother and a several other characters.

There is much to enjoy in Web of Evil. While the plot creaks a bit and seems dumbed down for a less discerning audience, there are some wonderful characters including Ali’s mom who gets herself way too involved in her daughter’s dilemma. Karen Ziemba reads with what I think is a little too much upbeat intonation. I sometimes found myself thinking that Ali shouldn’t be all that bright and cheerful even when she was being grilled by the police on more than one occasion.

For those of you who want the more traditional mystery with tight plots, and protagonists who have character and depth I hardily recommend Jance’s other two series featuring Joanna Brady and J.P. Beaumont. But there is a place for these “lighter” works and this series may mature with time.

Reviewed on 7/14/08 by Robert W. Karp

Ears: 4

Rent: audiomysteries.com

Greg Iles is another author that has been writing for a long time that I am now getting around to during my summer reading and listening “vacation.” I had a difficult time picking a category for this book, indeed it has elements of a standard mystery/crime novel as well as a legal thriller, and a police procedural. I will leave it up to you as to which it is and it really doesn’t matter since it succeeds on all levels.

Lawyer Penn Gage makes a repeat appearance in Turning Angel a story of love, betrayal, drugs, crime, politics and race. Iles paints a vivid picture of life in Natchez, Mississippi, a town struggling to stay alive as the South changes. Gage, who had a heroic turn in The Quiet Game is faced with a quandary when a childhood friend, Drew Elliott, comes to him for help when a high school girl is brutally murdered. Once the girl’s body is discovered the political, racial and social conflicts that run deep in Natchez test Penn Gage’s standing in the tight-knit community as he stands by Elliott.

Iles has an eye for detail, bringing Natchez to life with vivid descriptions of the town, its inhabitants, and their daily interactions. The politics of crime from the rivalry between the Chief of Police and Sheriff to petty politics of the judicial system all come in for vigorous examination. Parents will feel a sense of familiarity about the complex social structure that teenagers build to survive the rigors of life in high school. Indeed you might be shocked as is Gage about just what really goes on when parents aren’t around. And that turns out to be very important.

The plot is fairly straight-forward leading through several twists and red herrings. Nothing wrong with that, the best writers have done it. However, I found a couple of situations rather far-fetched and the destination is a bit of a copout, picking the one person as the killer who perhaps is the least interesting.

Dick Hill is probably the most prolific audiobook reader around. His performance in Turning Angel shows why publishers and authors demand his service. He has just the right tone, pacing and ability through voice control to portray a wide range of characters giving each a distinct personality. This story requires him to provide voices to a teenage girl, grown men, a teenage boy from Serbia and a several African-American gang members. Hill never falters and never stoops to stereotypical portrayal.

The Turning Angel of the title refers to a statue in the town cemetery that seems to follow the viewer as they drive by. It’s another one of the author’s details that gives this story the depth that makes this an enjoyable 16 hours.

Reviewed on 6/26/08 by Robert W. Karp

Length: 13 hours

Ears 5

Dick Pender is a former employee of the White House press office and he is considered an expert in what is known as perception management. His personal and business motto is simple: "Why waste any time by trying to discover the truth, when the truth can be so easily created?"

In The Whole Truth, written by David Baldacci, some highly placed and influential people pay Pender a lot of cash to bury their inconvenient secrets and then manipulate public opinion.

Reading the audio book is Ron McLarty, a talented actor and author, he stands out as one of the best book narrators of this day and age. McLarty reads the book with Baldacci's voice, perfectly conveying all meaning and tension from the pages of "The Whole Truth."

Through McLarty's clear and concise diction and his low resonant tone that easily shifts from tender to tough, we root for a mysterious character called A. Shaw and a female journalist who try to stop Creel in his tracks.

Baldacci provides thriller after thriller with his smart and political novels. He is clearly a leader in his niche and wants nothing more than to entertain. From his first novel Absolute Power to one of his latest books Stone Cold, Baldacci takes us on more political theories and conspiracies.

For a tale full of twists, turns and suspense, "The Whole Truth" by David Baldacci is one political rollercoaster you will not regret joining.

Reviewed on 5/26/08 by S Folly

Ears: 3

Rent: audiomysteries.com

The Appeal by John Grisham, read by Michael Beck, is not a challenging work of fiction but the novel marks Grisham's long-awaited return to both the American South and legal drama. The book begins with a verdict after a lengthy trial between the cancer-stricken citizens of a small Mississippi town and the chemical company accused of poisoning their water supply. The real drama is only starting and Wall Street heavyweight Carl Trudeau is determined to reverse the decision against his company through an appeal to the Mississippi Supreme Court. Dirty politics abound and the plot to plant a corrupt justice to reverse the verdict is underway.

Though the book is filled with stereotypes, the narrator gives each character a unique and convincing voice. His pacing and soft, natural Southern accent make for an easy listen, inviting you to stick it out even when the plot does not. Grisham is obviously cynical of the elections process and is perhaps strategic in releasing such a critical work during a presidential election year, but vanishing subplots dull his message with distraction.

Despite not his being his best - Grisham's earlier work, titles like The Firm or A Time to Kill, deserves more attention - The Appeal makes for an entertaining audio book, thanks to its delivery. I rate it 3 ears.

Reviewed on 05/14/08 by Jen Dixon

Ears: 4

Rent: audiomysteries.com

Sue Grafton has been writing Kinsey Millhone detective stories for over 20 years. In this, her 20th in the alphabet series, Grafton continues to experiment with changes to her distinctive style. In the immediate predecessor, S is for Silence, Grafton uses two narratives almost thirty years apart to find the answer to a decades old missing person case.

In T is for Trespass the author pushes even further; using two first person plots that slowly meet with terrible consequences. We get all that we have come to expect in the opening chapters featuring Kinsey, lots of detail and a wry eye about the daily life of a private detective working in the late 1980s before cell phones, the internet, and all that information floating around that makes it so much easier today. I particularly enjoyed Kinsey’s take on computers. Kinsey is doing some grunt PI work, process serving as well as investigating a traffic accident that has resulted in a lawsuit.

Meanwhile we get a glimpse into the life of Sonja Rojas a nurse who is much more (actually much less) than she seems to be. In fact Rojas isn’t her name at all, but a stolen identity. Grafton uses the early chapters to show us the mechanics of identity theft and its disturbing implications.

Rojas and Millhone cross paths when an elderly neighbor of Kinsey’s takes a fall and needs home care. What happens next is certainly a cautionary tale about what can go horribly wrong when an infirm senior with no close family is put in the care of strangers. I do have a problem with the Grafton plots which almost always end with a big violent confrontation that puts Kinsey in mortal danger. The moment Kinsey had to give up her guns because of a restraining order I knew that she would desperately need one very soon. In this story, Kinsey has two battles, the final one with Rojas ending rather pedestrian fashion. The author then wraps up all the various plots very quickly.

Judy Kaye has been reading the Kinsey Millhone stories for years. She knows the character and gets it all just right. In this audio version Kaye gets to stretch by creating a detached and chilling portrait of a sociopath through a restrained performance.

T is for Trespass is more than just a mystery detective novel. We have had the “ripped from the headlines” stories on television about elder abuse, and Grafton seems to have taken heed; writing a terrifying tale of what can and does happen to the helpless when someone truly evil enters their life under the guise of caregiver. You will most definitely think about that when and if the situation crops up in your own life.

Reviewed on 4/12/08 by Robert W. Karp

Ears: 4

Rent: audiomysteries.com

I recently had some extra time on my hands between new arrivals and decided to sample some popular authors that I have missed in the past. First up was John Lescroart who has a very successful series featuring San Francisco attorney Dismas Hardy.

The First Law is not the first in the series, although I thought it might be because of the title, I guess I’ve read too many James Patterson books, (and I guess Sue Grafton as well). Actually, it is the eleventh featuring Hardy and police lieutenant Abe Glitzky. The storey involves the death during a robbery of a close friend of Abe’s father. What at first seems to be a simple robbery gone bad quickly becomes much more. Glitzky is begged and quilted into looking into the crime even though he no longer is the head of the homicide unit.

What he finds with the help of a few friends in the department, is the seeming indifference to mounting evidence pointing at a prominent local businessman who has direct tires to the police. As the deaths mount and the investigation focuses on one of Hardy’s clients, the stakes are raised considerably when Hardy, Glitzky and their families are threatened.

From alibis that should be rock solid but are not, to evidence that would blow the case wide open that never gets to the right people, the author piles on the plot contrivances. So what! I enjoyed the variety of characters, the intense action, and the satisfying conclusion. The author knows how to construct an action thriller.

The audio version requires a reader who can handle different accents. Robert Lawrence gets ethnic accents as well as an interesting lisp just right. He has some trouble with the female characters and the kids who seem to blend together a bit. The performance is good and it helps give the main players distinct personalities.

Lescroart is worth the visit for those of you who like legal & police thrillers.

Reviewed on 3/18/08 by Robert W. Karp

Ears: 4

Rent: audiomysteries.com

In the 18^th in the series, The Naming of the Dead by Ian Rankin, Edinburgh Inspector John Rebus investigates the murder of Cyril Colliar a recently released sex-offender while a G8 summit attended by Bush, Blair and other heads of state is about to take place nearby. Rebus doesn’t get along well with his superiors and lately he has been sidelined away from the action. A supposed suicide at the site of the summit by well-regarded member of parliament Ben Webster attracts Rebus’ attention and creates conflict with just about everyone from his boss to the head of the British homeland security (or whatever they call it.) In classic style for this sort of story, Rebus is strongly warned off the case; but his sense of justice and fairness to the deceased only furthers his resolve to find out the truth.

Several plots intertwine in this complex story. The trail of the murderer of Colliar leads to a website called Beast Watch and those running it that tracks rapists and other sexual predators. Also a local crime boss crosses paths with Rebus who has to choose sides in a struggle between crime and politics. While all this happens, Rebus’ partner Siobhan Clarke parents come to town to protest at the G8 summit.

Rankin paints a vivid picture of the chaos surrounding a monumental event such as the meeting of world leaders. He manages to throw in a subway bombing by terrorists to give the story even more currency. The ending was unexpected and had a real punch to it. While there is a large cast of characters, they all are well placed in this compelling story.

The audio book version is abridged and I and many others have an aversion to abridged works. However, this is a case where it has not been possible to get an unabridged version of any of his books. I really like this author who writes about contemporary Scotland . These are gritty stories about police work far removed from the niceties of many of the British writers. If you like the Frost series by R.D. Wingfield you will probably enjoy Rankin.

This book requires a close listening as you may have some trouble with the various accents that mix Scottish, Welsh, and British inflections. But I think the result is well worth the effort.

Reviewed on 2/18/08 by Robert W. Karp

Ears: 2

Rent:  audioMysteries.com

You may never want to take a cruise on a luxury ship after listening to The Wheel of Darkness, the next in the FBI Special Agent Pendergast series that includes the trilogy Brimstone, Dance of Death, The Book of the Dead. Unfortunately the authors have continued a trend of making each successive work more unbelievable. What started out as an interesting and entertaining mix of FBI procedural and some thriller elements has quickly descended into a mishmash of over-wrought prose and supernatural nonsense that spoils what could have been a very clever plot.

This book starts out only a short time after the violent conclusion of The Book of the Dead with a long and I believe a bit too detailed description of a trip to a Tibetan monastery that sets the plot in motion. Aloysius Pendergast and his ward, Constance Greene have traveled to the monastery to get training from the monks to help them deal with the aftermath of their confrontation with Pendergast’s evil younger brother. Why exactly have they come to this spot? I really don’t know except it allows our characters to learn about an object of incredible metaphysical power that has been protected by the monks for centuries, the Agozyen.

Now it has been stolen and the head of the monastery wants Pendergast to find it and return it. However there is a problem. The object is contained in a long wooden box that has never been opened! No one knows what it contains. So far so good. While it has taken a bit to get to this point – the story does seem to kick into gear here.

Our hero follows the thief across Europe and finds him moments after he has been brutally murdered and the object taken. He then tracks the object onto the cruise ship Britannia that is on its maiden voyage from London to New York. This section of the story has the elements of a good detective story, some solid police work that leads us towards our perpetrator. However when Pendergast and Constance board the Britannia as the ship sails so does any semblance of reality.

The rest of the story mixes a serial killer on board thriller with some sort of supernatural and metaphysical mumbo jumbo. You have to really be able to follow the authors’ conceit that just gazing upon the Agozyen can make someone rather insane. As I listened and saw ever-larger holes in the plot develop compounded with some rather tired just-in-time-to-save-the-day events, ears started dropping from my rating.

There are things to like in this audio book version. Rene Auberjonois gives another great performance, his voice and intonation perfect for the rather gentile main characters. Preston & Child give you plenty of detailed information about the mystical nature of meditation as well as a jaundiced eye regarding the very wealthy. There’s lots of action, you learn quite a bit about modern ocean liners; and there is one final twist that I did not see coming, it’s a good one!

However, at 14 hours the book is too long. According to Amazon.com there are quite a few people that love this “subgenre” of supernatural thrillers. I think I’ve had enough of this series, but if you’re a fan – you will most likely enjoy this outing.

Reviewed on 1/14/08 by Robert W. Karp

Ears: 4

Rent:  audioMysteries.com

Baldacci’s popular characters known as the Camel Club make their third appearance in this continuation of the action/thriller series. Stone Cold picks up shortly after the end of The Collectors. That’s both good and bad. For readers new to the series, you will miss out on some of the enjoyment of how this story resolves itself so I would suggest starting at the beginning with The Camel Clubto get familiar with the characters.

Oliver Stone is the “leader” of the group living in Washington, D.C. that calls itself the Camel Club: four very unusual men who have a passion for finding the truth about the activities of the federal government. Stone has a past as a triple “6” agent for the CIA. Think of the double “0” agents of the James Bond stories, a license to kill, etc, but updated to our more violent and contemporary times. While we have had glimpses of his past in the previous books, we learn much more about him now.

And his past is about to catch up with him in a big way because someone seems to be killing off other triple “6” agents. Stone and the others must find out who and why quickly. The answers lead to a past operation involving the assassination of a traitor and to the ex-head of the intelligence services that is out to get Stone.

As is the case with many of current crop of thrillers, there is a second plot-line to hold your interest. The previous book had a very strong story line involving Annabelle Conroy, a con artist who steals 40 million dollars from a casino owner. That story, left in the middle in the previous book, continues. How she got hooked up with Stone and crew is explained in The Collectors.

This time both plots come to an end, and that is my problem with Baldacci in this series. He doesn’t seem to know how to finish up a plot with a satisfactory conclusion. In both storylines I was let down by the ending. In one case the author tries for some emotional impact which is only partially successful and in the other we have a big action sequence with a rather improbable conclusion that left me wanting more. I’m also not a fan of the deliberately vague final scene that allows for more later, as in another book.

However, this is a very entertaining action book. The author has created likeable and interesting characters that certainly hold your attention. You continue to root for them in even the most improbable of circumstances. Ron McLarty reads with assurance giving the main characters real depth and emotion. I have a feeling there will be another in the series and I’m curious to see where Baldacci takes us.

Reviewd on 1/19/2008 by Robert W. Karp

Ears: 4

Rent:  audiomysteries.com

Easy Rawlings is at a crossroads in his life. It is a time of upheaval for both Rawlings and the black community in Los Angeles. The year is 1967 and Rawlings has his office in Watts an area that has recently been torn with riots. Bonnie, the woman that Easy has loved, has been banished from his house by him. On this day the disappearance of an acquaintance will lead Easy on a search for friends and enemies that will change his life.

Walter Mosley’s 10^th Easy Rawlings mystery, Blonde Faith, is not the best in the long series. My personal favorite is the first, Devil in a Blue Dress written in 1990. However unlike anyone else writing today Mosley uses the detective novel to address the issue of race in America in a way that gives a voice to the experience of blacks in the last 60 years.

Easy is enlisted to find a friend, Christmas Black, who seems to have disappeared after leaving his daughter in the keeping of Rawlings. But there is more to the search since it becomes clear that the disappearance of Black might be connected to Easy’s longtime friend Raymond “Mouse” Alexander, a cold blooded killer and all around bad guy. Since the police believe Mouse is responsible for the murder of Black, Easy needs to find both quickly.

Mosley has the eye and ear of the injustices and prejudices that black men and women faced then and by extension now. Two incidents jumped out at me in their intensity and humiliation. The first is Rawlings’ treatment at a car dealership and then his experience as he makes a reservation at one of best restaurants in Los Angeles.

There is a lot to like in Blonde Faith. Michael Boatman provides a nuanced reading and performance. Never stooping into parody of dialect he gets all the slang and idiom of the various characters right without being condescending. The author paints a picture of life for these people that are at times harsh and troubling. The characters are all unique and vivid. From the Black’s family with 12 ugly children to the Mexican family living in a house that Easy owns who have decided to move to a different neighborhood because of post riot tensions.

Easy’s story began in post WWII Los Angels and now 20 years later in 1967 it ends with this angry and sad story. Rawlings muses on relations between the races, his family, children, his mother and most of all, Bonnie his one love, to no profound conclusions. Mosley had indicated in recent interviews that this is the last in the Easy Rawlings series; he has told the story and wishes to move on to other things. Possibly because I knew this before I began I felt a great sense of melancholy throughout the book.

Walter Mosley has created one of the great detectives of modern crime fiction. I looked forward to each book. While it is not perfect, Blonde Faith is a fitting conclusion to this series.

Reviewed on 12/20/07 by Robert W. Karp