THE BIG GAMBLE

Illegal gambling, prostitution, drug trafficking, and crooked politicos in New Mexico's high-mountain country are only a few of the problems faced by Santa Fe Police Chief Kevin Kerney and Lincoln County Deputy Sheriff Clayton Istee. The investigation begins when the remains of two bodies are found after a fire in a long-deserted fruit stand. One victim is a murdered homeless man. The other is a woman who disappeared 11 years earlier. Dick Hill's understated narration is perfectly suited to this intricately structured police procedural. The two lawmen have recently learned they are father and son. Hill's performance develops their strained relationship with subtlety and compassion. McGarrity, once a deputy sheriff in Santa Fe, has created believable, complex characters, and Hill makes them breathe. S.J.H. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC 02/ JAN 03]