THE CHAIRMAN

Erik Singer's audiobook performance is smooth, solid, and nuanced. He's competent as man, woman, young, old, Latino, British, or Italian in Frey's portrayal of millionaires run amok. While some audiobook narrators are best suited for one genre or another, Singer has a versatile, gymnastic voice. And he moves at just the right pace, never overrunning or stalling the listener's internal movie of brutal murders, entrapment-sex, and other high-finance and political betrayals. The bestselling Frey must delight in Random House's selection of Singer, who does a suspense novel good in boosting Frey's no-nonsense dialogue and the listener's emotional responses to the heroes and the villains. D.J.M. © AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine [Published: OCT/ NOV 06]