TUG OF WAR

British policeman Joe Sandilands, the star of Cleverly's previous books, takes a vacation in France with his niece ten years after the end of WWI. He's also on assignment to test the claims of five families who each claim a mute shell-shocked veteran as their own. Terry Wale has read all of Cleverly's previous Sandiland's books, so he brings a well-drawn characterization to the main character. Although he doesn't create individual voices, he also adeptly colors Joe's niece and the other English and French characters with personality. Admittedly, the plotting of this installment in the series plods a bit, but Wale succeeds in keeping us interested. A.C.S. © AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC 07/ JAN 08]