THE DEADHOUSE

Assistant D.A. Alexandra Wallace and Mike Chapman team up to uncover the mystery surrounding the death of a prominent professor at one of New York's preeminent universities. Academic politics and intrigue combine with a minutely detailed history of Roosevelt Island before the crime is resolved. Melissa Hughes's performance is somewhat pedestrian, with voices that do not quite come off as authentic and in some instances, the New York City police being one, are overdone. The historical minutiae might come to life with a more successful reader but in this case just drags the story out. An abridgment might be more successful by eliminating unnecessary subplots and esoteric history. Many plot threads are left hanging at the end, and to top it all off the sound quality is poor. S.S.R. (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine [Published: JUN/JUL 03]