THE LOCK ARTIST

Steve Hamilton's intriguing mystery unfolds tantalizingly. Flashback chapters alternate with the present as dark secrets are slowly revealed and the main character's fate is determined. Narrator Macleod Andrews delivers this first-person story in a conversational, sometimes whispery, tone that immediately captures the listener. He convincingly becomes the complex protagonist: a gifted teenaged artist, locksmith, and unwilling criminal, who has been mute for 10 years due to a grisly childhood trauma. The clever blend of thriller and coming-of-age story is riveting. Andrews’s performance makes it especially enjoyable. M.O.B. © AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine [Published: MARCH 2010]