NAKED PREY

Kudos to this publisher, which so far hasn't tampered with this winning author/narrator combination. When you start another Lucas Davenport mystery, it's like visiting old friends--Sandford and Ferrone, that is. This fourteenth "Prey" thriller begins with a blow-by-blow description of the lynching of two stark naked victims by an unknown assailant. Richard Ferrone makes his voice sound so evil you can just about experience the atrocity firsthand. And when more bodies turn up, the narrator has you so on edge you hardly notice the unnecessary pauses that might otherwise detract. Even after 14, Sandford hasn't lost his touch--and neither has Ferrone. A.L.H. (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine [Published: OCT/ NOV 03]