PLAYING DEAD

Narrator Whitton Frank leads this full-cast continuation of the Black Pages series, a contemporary fantasy in which beings can cross dimensions. After her student is poisoned, Chalsarda, an elf residing in our world, is blackmailed into a quest to find and kill a Battle Born in order to save her. Frank does a good job leading the narrative and presents Chalsarda with a proper English accent, conveying an educated being who is adept at her craft. The supporting performers represent their characters well, and their strongly portrayed personalities help support the simple dialogue. However, some characters sound more scripted than natural, a quality that takes away from the listening experience. Overall, the fast-paced audiobook is full of action and depictions of friendship. N.H. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine [Published: OCTOBER 2020]