TWISTED ROOT

Elegance and a sense of luxury characterize the reading of the latest detective case of William Monk, who is called on to find why Miriam Gardiner ran away from her own engagement party at the home of her fiancé. The elegance is not from the written characters but from the performance of Terrence Hardiman, who creates an atmosphere of Victorian London that colors our listening with the dark foliage of summer and the light of morning. His extraordinary talent for seeing the word, translating it in his head, making a picture of it, and then offering it for our acceptance is a whole new dimension of narration. In fact, the story is secondary to his telling of it. Its length is made pleasurable with the promise that Hardiman's artistry will continue throughout the 10 cassettes. J.P. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC 02/ JAN 03]