SEE CHARLIE RUN

Charlie Muffin is the world’s most unusual, unlikely, yet somehow believable secret agent. As in the earlier novels in this engaging series, Charlie is on the bad side of everyone in his agency except the director. That may or may not hinder him when he is sent to Japan to help the wife of a KGB assassin who is about to defect to the CIA, in order to defect to the British secret service. An elaborate double cross? Perhaps. But Charlie, irreverent, disreputable, and disrespectful as he is, is most of all, very good at what he does. Hayward Morse’s version of Charlie is perfect. The combination of grit and resonance in his voice makes him sound like a seedy, aging, footsore operative who has complete confidence in himself, and none in anyone else. His Russians are also entirely believable. A grand listen. R.E.K. © AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC 03/JAN 04]