New Reviews: Mystery & Suspense

Listeners are taken back to early-twentieth-century France, when retired "gentleman thief" Arsène Lupin finds himself being framed for a murder in a Paris hotel. His investigation initiates a series of complex circumstances that require all of his ingenuity, improvisational skills, and courage as he pits his wits against an unknown enemy. B.J. Harrison narrates the story with... Read More

In 2016, hot on the heels of her last investigation, and on top of Brexit, a new prime minister, and a surreal U.S. election, Queen Elizabeth II must deal with a body found at the palace. Narrator Jane Copland is perfection. She seamlessly switches between voicing men and women and between posh and flat south London accents in this fast-paced mystery, which blends fact and... Read More

Dion Graham brings his substantial vocal abilities to this suspenseful novel. His narration style--measured yet intense--moves this thriller along dramatically, and he pays close attention to accents, a skill that matters in this series of connected stories set in Hong Kong, Mozambique, Macau, Florida, and Washington, DC. Most importantly, Graham captures the horrors in the... Read More

This audiobook is much more than a thriller. Set in an alternative history with red-scare flag bearer Joseph McCarthy as president, it blends fictional and real characters. As LAPD detective Morris Baker investigates two deaths, he becomes immersed in a cover-up that puts him in danger. The production would be a challenge for any narrator, but Fred Berman handles it... Read More

Shiromi Arserio and Alister Austin share the narration of alternating viewpoints in this evocative mystery podcast. When spiritual medium Beatrix Greene is approached by scientist James Walker, she is instantly wary of him. He seems to consider her a fraud--so why does he want her services? Beginning with a seance at forbidding Ashbury Manor, Beatrix and James grapple with real... Read More

Set against the backdrop of 1960s Berlin at the height of the Cold War, this audiobook features Martin Keller as he takes part in a spy swap. As a result, he is moved from an English prison to Berlin, where he hopes to be reunited with his ex-wife and son. Narrator Jonathan Davis helps build the tension, creating a dark atmosphere of suspicion and suspense. His strong... Read More

Narrator Kirsten Potter sets the scene for this audiobook with an ominous tone as she describes the gothic Greer mansion. By 1975, both of Beth Greer's parents are dead, and in 1977, 23-year-old Beth is accused of two murders. She's acquitted and retreats to her lonely home. In 2017, Shea Collins is a receptionist by day and a true-crime blogger by night. A chance encounter... Read More

The deep, articulate voice of narrator Robert Ian Mackenzie takes listeners to an idyllic village in the Dordogne region of southern France, where they will be charmed by the local policeman, Bruno, a mediator, bon vivant, raconteur, and cook. This audiobook contains 14 short stories that deal with such topics as stolen oysters, a lovesick fugitive, a sabotaged tourist minibus,... Read More

There is a graceful elegance to Pun Bandhu's narration of this engaging audiobook, which allows listeners to reach a comfort zone, only to be repeatedly shaken from it by the dark nature of the story. At its heart, the novel focuses upon five killers on a Japanese bullet train, each of whom is seeking a suitcase filled with money. But the story is far more complex and includes... Read More

At the very beginning of this audiobook, protagonist Micah Wilkes tells listeners, "Ten years ago, my boyfriend killed my best friend." But did he? What ensues is a retelling of the events that led up to Emily's death and subsequent efforts by various friends and amateur sleuths to identify the killer. Sadly, the story is told from Micah's point of view, and she's neither... Read More

John Rubinstein demonstrates his narration talents once again as he portrays the crime-solving duo of psychologist Alex Delaware and detective Milo Sturgis. Rubinstein also masterfully differentiates the returning secondary characters and provides credible voices for the many others who are key to this case, including children. Sturgis asks Delaware to consult on an... Read More

Listeners who are seeking a diverting, richly evocative mystery will enjoy this period piece set in New York City in the 1880s. The youthful, exuberant voice of narrator Kate Rudd brings to life reporter Elizabeth van den Broek, who becomes personally involved in the fiendish murders of a serial killer who is obsessed with Egyptian mythology. While listeners may tire of the... Read More

Imagine Lord Peter Wimsey with a debilitating stammer fighting crime in a racist, xenophobic mid-nineteenth-century New York. Now imagine being the actor having to perform that character over many hours of a multilayered plot without letting the stammer distract from the story or drive the listener mad. Rupert Degas gives us a master class in skill and judgment in this... Read More

Narrator Scott Brick brings his usual gravitas to this audiobook, a riveting story featuring Evan Smoak, a highly trained agent charged with finding the kidnapped daughter of a drug kingpin. Brick is admirable with his voices. He gives Evan a controlled tone that fits his personality. Aragon, the drug lord who hires Evan, is given a soothing accented voice. A more vicious... Read More

Narrator Graeme Maclolm returns to portray Hamish MacBeth and the residents of Lochdubh, Scotland, in the 34th addition to this beloved series. While M.C. Beaton passed away in 2019, fellow author R.W. Green worked with her on this installment. Malcolm performs with a light Scottish brogue, making the dialogue and action easy to follow. Using tone and accents, he differentiates... Read More

Listeners are taken to rural Alaska to follow PI Kate Shugak as, yet again, a man she is certain is guilty of murder is declared not guilty by a jury. When a mother and her son are shot dead during an apparent robbery, Kate is certain he is behind the murders and sets out to ensure he is held accountable this time. Narrator Marguerite Gavin captures the feel of small-town life,... Read More

The rare books department of a Toronto university library is the setting for this intriguing mystery audiobook. When the chief librarian has a stroke, his second in command, Liesl Weiss, is called back from sabbatical to cover for him. It's a move not widely supported by her department. Narrator Hannah Cabell creates a cast of believable characters. She highlights Liesl's... Read More

A mystery that starts with an unlikely event and gathers steam as it adds more unlikely events shines with the well-modulated narration provided by Pete Cross. Hayden McCall has a great night with Camilo, a go-go dancer he went home with after an unfortunate "meet cute." The next morning he discovers that Camilo has disappeared. Cross presents both the narrative and dialogue in... Read More

Narrator Tracy Thibodeaux guides listeners through two events laced with tension: a girl's escape from Iran after a forbidden romance and the murder of a doctor in Los Angeles. While investigating the murder, Dr. Mike Tucci falls for one of the murdered woman's colleagues. Thibodeaux captures Tucci's range of emotions as he begins to suspect his new lover of the doctor's... Read More

Narrator Marnye Young inhabits this twisted thriller with flawless pacing and a compassionate tone. The coming-of-age story begins when Alexa leaves the claustrophobic care of her parents to take a job and move to New York City. But something's wrong, and there's an ominous feeling suggested by Young's performance that deepens when Alexa is reunited with her estranged sister,... Read More

Victorian London comes alive as narrator Joshua Manning introduces the city, showing aristocratic privilege and prejudice against women and the poor. Listeners meet Chief Inspector Michael Corravan, a child of poverty and a former bare-knuckled boxer. Corravan has a baffling case: Young women are being murdered, placed in boats, and set afloat on the River Thames. Manning's... Read More

Narrator Edoardo Ballerini's confident, masculine voice is well suited to narrate this 1950s murder whodunit featuring private eye Aloysius Archer. Visiting an aspiring actress friend in Los Angeles, Archer is approached by a screenwriter who fears for her life, and then disappears. His investigation leads him beyond glamorous Hollywood to Chinatown and the surrounding desert,... Read More

Narrator Andi Arndt brings charm to the story of naïve and mentally unstable art copyist Emma Caan. Working as a legal forger of valuable masterpieces for owners who wish to store the originals, Emma is flattered to be accepted into the jet-setting world of Russian oligarch Leonard Sobetsky, one of her clients. But soon her new life in the high-end art world spirals out of... Read More

Narrator Soneela Nankani gives this grisly crime story the requisite urgency. Sergeant Riley Fisher is working hard to prove she's worthy of her grandfather's legacy as a law enforcement officer in their rural Iowa town. Then the mangled body of an estranged high school friend is found in a cornfield, shaking her confidence. The trauma stirred up is audible in the vulnerability... Read More

Narrator Kathleen Early shines in this twisty, compelling listen. Hope Miller was in a car accident 15 years earlier and has no memory of her past. Lindsay Kelly, who found Hope at the accident site, became her best friend, and Hope became part of Lindsay's community. In the present day, Hope seeks independence with a new job and a move to East Hampton. But within a few weeks,... Read More

The erotic thriller will keep listeners guessing until the end. What happens when you're missing four and a half years of your memory? In Amelia's case, she wants it back. As she struggles to regain her lost years, she begins to believe her husband has had an affair. As Amelia seeks the truth, narrator Jennifer Jill Araya captures a range of frantic emotions. The audiobook... Read More

Angela Dawe plays it appropriately straight in her narration of this mystery caper, which doesn't need vocal help to achieve its intended level of zaniness. Dawe's characters sound real even when they're caught in crazy situations meant to make listeners smile, not believe. Someone has placed an ad for a hit person to kill Finlay's ex, Steve, a not-so-great guy who is somewhat... Read More

An ominous musical intro sets the mood as narrator Karissa Vacker introduces Chloe Davis, a psychologist who is the daughter of a convicted serial killer. Chloe's entire life has been colored by her father's crimes. The hushed voice Vacker uses for Chloe is an effective reminder of the character's ongoing struggles with the past. As the twentieth anniversary of her father's... Read More

Narrator Risa Mei returns to provide perfectly accented Chinese-Indonesian-American voices for Meddy Chan and her family in Book 2 of this humorous cozy series. The author's beginning note on walking a fine line between stereotyping and authenticity in order to provide a genuine depiction of family dynamics helps pave the way for listeners to enjoy the experience. Continuing... Read More

In this prequel to Luke McCallin's series featuring Gregor Reinhardt, a German intelligence officer in the 1940s, we meet young Lieutenant Reinhardt in the waning days of WWI. As he investigates the bombing of a military meeting, Reinhardt probes a situation that involves doctors taking advantage of battle-damaged minds. John Lee, who has performed McCallin's other Reinhardt... Read More

Katrine Engberg is back with another atmospheric Copenhagen-based thriller, this one weaving family secrets and the art world. Narrator Graeme Malcolm voices Danish detectives Jeppe Kørner and Anette Werner in the third book in this Nordic noir series. When 15-year-old Oscar Dreyer-Hoff goes missing, the search is on to find him and untangle the disparate threads of the ties... Read More

In the fallout of an explosion in London, Brioni finds herself fearing for her sister. With the help of Anna, an anti-terrorism expert, Brioni searches for her sister, whose name is Marissa. Narrator Aoife McMahon deftly navigates the Irish, English, and American accents of the characters involved. Sam Blake's novel has listeners wondering about Marissa's marriage and her... Read More

Lameece Issaq narrates a mystery that sometimes sparkles. Alice, an intern at a struggling Parisian magazine, finds a dazzling diamond and emerald necklace. She; her colleagues Lily and Daphne; her boss, Jacob; and her parfumier neighbor, Alexander, are determined to discover the necklace's provenance. If they can sell it, its value will save the magazine. Issaq does well with... Read More

Sarah Durham narrates a dark domestic thriller. It features an intense and unreliable narrator and a cast of complex and multifaceted characters rife with family secrets, paranoia, and lost sleep. The atmospheric story builds slowly, then speeds up in the days before Emma Averell's fortieth birthday, leaving listeners feeling that something darker is in play. Durham's... Read More

Richard Ferrone, the gravelly voiced narrator of the long-running Lucas Davenport series, performs the debut of a new tough, smart, funny Davenport--Letty, the adopted daughter of Lucas and his wife, Weather. Letty, just 24, is sent with her partner, John Kaiser, by the Department of Homeland Security to investigate what's behind some disappearing Texas oil. A militia is... Read More

Small-time criminal Aoife embarks on a road trip to sell purloined cocaine for the local kingpin in this debut crime novel. Narrator Eleanor McLoughlin embodies Aoife's down-to-earth qualities as she portrays the character's first-person point of view. The distinctive Dundalk accent of Northern Ireland is an essential part of Aoife's character, as are her choices of slang.... Read More

From the opening lines, narrator Mela Lee draws listeners into this thriller through her tone, pace, and modulated voice. The action-packed plot centers on a newly formed family: Tom, the recently remarried widower; Heather, the younger new wife; and Tom's children, Olivia, and Owen. The family travels to Australia for Tom's medical conference. Tom and Heather see this as a... Read More

Johnny Heller leads an ensemble cast in narrating this outstanding 1960s whodunit. The coroner says Marilyn Monroe committed suicide, but she haunts her friend Jimmy Dean, a bit actor, until he agrees to investigate who killed her. Heller portrays a complex Jimmy Dean and a dead-on Elvis Presley, a truck driver with attitude who helps Jimmy investigate. The marvel of the whole... Read More

This is a fun audiobook. It's fun for narrator Elisabeth Rodgers who clearly enjoys herself and whose delivery enhances the dialogue of the many memorable characters. And it's fun for listeners, who will savor a light and entertaining story that quickly passes the time. The story focuses on PI Jessie Mercado, whose new client helps wealthy criminals prepare their personal lives... Read More

John Hopkins performs this first in the Midsomer Murders series. Published in 1987, the novel offers a complicated mystery with multidimensional characters and murders galore. With his sensuous baritone, Hopkins draws listeners into the tiny hamlet of Badger's Drift, where DCI Barnaby and DS Troy investigate an elderly woman's murder. Hopkins is quietly intense while the body... Read More

Narrator Joyce Bean, the voice of this series, returns to bring listeners Native American Jane Whitefield. In helping a young woman disappear from a murderous boyfriend, Jane triggers a blood-thirsty pursuit by the Russian mob, pushing her to leverage her well-honed survival skills. Bean portrays Jane with an even-paced, somewhat monotone voice that conveys calm intelligence.... Read More

An ensemble of narrators, led by Lesley Harcourt, enhances this gothic/paranormal story. There's a sense of foreboding as listeners meet Olivia Stay and her daughters in 1998. When they move to a Scottish lighthouse to paint a mural, Olivia is given a disturbing sketch. Later, daughter Sapphire finds a grimoire recounting details of horrific witch trials and burnings in 1662.... Read More

Here's another winning performance by Scott Brick, who gives resonance to the complicated characters Zig and Nola as they try to make sense of conspiracies and murder. Nola is a skilled warrior so driven by her personal demons that she is unable to trust anyone, even Zig, who once saved her life. Brick's breathy delivery underscores the danger that follows the two as they work... Read More

This audiobook highlights the unique bond between a father and son and how society's preconceptions interfere with and ultimately strengthen that bond. Narrated masterfully by David Chandler, this prequel to William Kent Krueger's Cork O'Connor series grabs listeners and ensures a rapt audience from start to finish. Chandler's understated style captures the relationship between... Read More

This audiobook, which defies easy definition, captures listeners because of narrator Henry Levya. He deftly takes his audience to Vitoria, Spain, where they feel as though they have been dropped into a world of inescapable turmoil. A gruesome murderer is on the loose, and an investigator whose job seems overwhelming pursues them. This thriller's twists and turns are enhanced by... Read More

Jodi and Samantha meet when a lost dog is returned. A friendship develops, and one friend frames the other for murder on her birthday. As actor and playwright Annie Hulley narrates her own twisting thriller, her wide range of accents and characterizations provides a multifaceted view of the events surrounding the brutal homicide. As the ensuing investigation upends lives,... Read More

Listeners will be taken back to 1959 to a subterranean world below London where a group of young investigators solve crimes involving dangerous criminals and international conspiracies. Through the dramatic, versatile voice of narrator Karen Cass we hear the lively exchanges of the apprentices at Miss Brickett's Secret Detective Agency as they confront Soviet spies, gruesome... Read More

This audiobook is an edge-of-your-seat gripper. It's the second in a series about Wilde, a loner hero who as a small boy survived living alone in the woods, nobody knew how, or for how long. Decades later he still doesn't know who he is or why he was abandoned. It makes zero difference if you haven't already met Wilde or the marvelous attorney Hester Crimstein, or the rest of... Read More

The first in the Slayton Thriller series, this audiobook may attract fans of urban legends, thrillers, and Mitchell's other works. Five teens are targeted by a killer after they visit legendary Blackhall Manor, where they were anonymously invited to play The Midnight Game. Collaborating on the case is Detective Sarah Noble, who is returning to the force after a traumatic... Read More

With nods to the infamous Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum art heist and to Paul Revere's historic ride, this audiobook begins with a fascinating premise. Narrator Corey Carthew creates credible distinctions between the three main characters: MIT student Hailey Gordon, who takes risks at a casino and lands in the middle of a murder; Nick Patterson, an ex-con who finds Hailey... Read More

Narrator Saul Reichlin contrasts the graphically described crimes in this Swedish mystery with the humble, soft-spoken police detective Joona Linna as he searches for the perpetrator. Listeners meet the families of the murdered young girls and the devoted couple, Pamela and Martin Norstrom, who might hold the key to the tortures and killings. The superb text and range of... Read More

This audiobook succeeds because of narrator Sean Crisden's exceptional performance. Set in New York in 1945, this work of historical fiction includes everyone from Nazis to gangsters to intriguing entertainers. Crisden creates unique personas for each character, particularly Black private detective Walter Morris, who has suffered because of his race and because of the... Read More

Narrator Carine Montbertrand returns to portray the characters that make up PI Aimée Leduc's Paris. With Montbertrand's perfect French pronunciation of phrases and place names coupled with Black's rich descriptions of settings, including their historical significance, listeners will find themselves easily drawn into Leduc's world. Those not familiar with the backstories of... Read More

Narrator Barbara Rosenblat, purring with an expressive British accent, escorts listeners on a faux investigation by sleuths Beryl Helliwell and Brit Davenport. Shortly after WWI, the pair are hired by a wealthy family to expose a possible affair between an artist and a family member during an artist colony event held at their estate. Rosenblat's ability to shift from Swedish... Read More

Karen Cass's narration brings out the cozy drama as private detective/restaurateur/ex-cop Pearl Nolan investigates the gossip and murders in her formerly quiet town. There's already turmoil in quaint Whitstable as developers and locals clash, so when the leading environmentalist turns up dead, there are numerous suspects. And the list grows as more bodies turn up. Cass's range... Read More

Narrator Wayne Mitchell's slow, husky delivery keeps this mystery intriguing. It's 1920. Stephen Robbins is the manager of the famed Algonquin Hotel, but now and then the FBI gives him a case. This time, Robbins is sent to investigate the disappearance of a pregnant Irish woman on Ellis Island. Once there he discovers that the disappearances are not limited to the Irish woman.... Read More

Jeff Harding returns to perform the 19th audiobook in John Connolly's Charlie Parker series. With pitch-perfect tone, Harding brings to life the central figures, Louis and his partner, Angel. Louis travels to Amsterdam to avenge the brutal murders of a former associate and his family, which were perpetrated by violent Serbian gang members. This story brings back familiar... Read More

After an opening author's note read by politician and voting rights activist Stacey Abrams (writing here as Selena Montgomery), this audiobook keeps you listening and guessing. Dr. Erin Abbott is a professor and criminal psychologist who is hiding a significant secret from her past. Gabriel Moss is an investigative journalist with a knack for uncovering hot stories. When a... Read More

Joanne Froggatt, of "Downton Abbey" fame, effectively narrates this slow-burn thriller. The plot involves the disappearance of a young mother and her boyfriend after a night of drinking at the upscale home of a college acquaintance. The story shifts between three timelines and three points of view, so listeners will have to pay careful attention to keep track of the timeframes... Read More

This audiobook begins with a fascinating premise. Nine people receive an identical list of names of nine people, including themselves, with no other context provided. Then people start dying. Narrator Jacques Roy does an excellent job creating distinct personalities for all nine on the list, voicing their journeys from bewilderment to skepticism to introspection to fear.... Read More

Listeners who enjoy a classic police procedural will enjoy following retired Seattle Homicide Detective J.P. Beaumont as he travels to Alaska to discover whatever happened to the son of his murdered ex-partner. The missing person investigation turns into a search for a cold-blooded killer. Narrator Mike Ortego gives Beau the sort of hard-bitten, overtaxed voice of a pro who's... Read More

O'Nan's literary mystery opens with eighth-grader Marie calmly stating that her sister, Angel, a senior, helped murder a girl. Narrator Sara Young is most nuanced when Marie speaks as an astute observer of the people and dynamics of her working-class Rhode Island town. Young brings Angel; Myles, the cheating boyfriend; and Birdy, the hapless victim, to life through unique... Read More

This intense allegorical tale is here translated twice, once into English from the Korean, and then into audio, and the listener has a sense of being estranged from the author's intentions by one or perhaps both of these processes. The title character, known only by her professional alias, Hornclaw, has been an assassin since she was 15. Now alone, aging, and beginning to make... Read More

Who knew Sherlock Holmes spent his youth in Civil War America? Thomas Judd impeccably narrates Holmes's American adventures. Listeners join him at the DuPont munitions plant, where he meets Monsieur Vernet, who inspires his future detecting. Judd faultlessly depicts Holmes's interactions with Lincoln; the young, former slave, Abraham; and several majestic musical performances... Read More

With its outstanding cast of narrators, this audiobook immediately draws listeners into the messy lives of the inhabitants of an elegant-looking Paris apartment building. Narrator Sofia Zervudachi masterfully portrays the edgy Jess, who is on a mission to uncover what has happened to her half brother, Ben, who has mysteriously disappeared. Residents of the apartment building... Read More

Brittany Pressley narrates this mystery about an idyllic coastal community in Canada where everyone is not as they seem. When a woman is found dead on the beach, everyone in the close-knit community of Stony Cove becomes a suspect. The intense investigation burns through the town, and lives begin to unravel as Detective Rue Duval discovers that almost everyone has a secret,... Read More

Narrator Sandy Rustin's youthful tone and energetic delivery guide listeners down PAY DIRT ROAD with youthful energy and palpable anxiety. Allen's mystery features a small-town murder investigated by an unlikely private eye. Rustin empathizes with recent college graduate and former waitress Annie McIntyre, who is seeking her purpose in life. She attends a party with former... Read More

Fans of Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series, also narrated by Lorelei King, will welcome this new series featuring recovery agent Gabriela Rose. Unlike Stephanie, Gabriela is highly competent, fearless, gunslinging, and a successful businesswoman. King's voice for Gabriela conveys her strong, confident personality. To save her family's hometown from ruin, Gabriela pursues an... Read More

This audiobook is not your typical James Patterson thriller—it’s an entertaining look at the country music industry through the adventures of newcomer AnnieLee. Coauthor Dolly Parton portrays retired country music superstar Ruthanna with humor, warmth, and attitude. Country music singer-songwriter Kelsea Ballerini portrays AnnieLee, who is determined to run from her past all... Read More

Emily Joyce's smooth, witty, and beautifully calibrated performance makes this Rube Goldberg machine of a plot even more fun than it deserves to be. Inspector David Brock finds himself on the Art Fraud desk, investigating the apparent suicide of a beautiful Russian woman whose British husband owns a famous art collection. Meanwhile, Brock's old partner, Kathy Kolla, is on the... Read More

It's never a surprise to fans of the Leaphorn/Chee/Manuelito series when any one of the characters stumbles across a dead body--but this installment involves two characters and two bodies. Nonetheless, listeners won't be confused by the dual plotlines. At the outset, Navajo Tribal Police detective Jim Chee's vacation is interrupted by his discovery of a corpse while hiking. At... Read More

Narrator Adjoa Andoh showcases her acting talents in portraying Eva, a woman in desperate search of her birth mother, and the women and men who are part of Eva's life. With appropriate pacing and intense emotion, Andoh expresses the tension and pain felt by the women she voices. Some of the most heartbreaking moments come in Andoh's masterful performance of young Eva's... Read More

Aida Reluzco beautifully narrates the story of a woman who is trying to become a comic-book writer in 1975. Reluzco voices the frustration of Carmen Valdez as she tries to break into the white, male-dominated industry. She gets tantalizingly close when she becomes the office manager of a struggling third-tier comics company. In those days, the only thing more rare than a female... Read More

C.J. Box's mystery series featuring Wyoming game warden Joe Pickett continues with this audiobook. Box weaves three parallel stories: Joe investigates a body. Marybeth, his wife, the town's library director, is handed a mysterious book. And Nate, Joe's friend, embarks on a personal mission of vengeance. The story poses a challenge for a narrator, and David Chandler handles it... Read More

In the first in the series described as "Agatha Christie meets Beatrix Potter," narrator Cassandra Campbell takes listeners on an unforgettable journey. The small village of Shady Hollow is upturned when Otto Stumpf, the loner toad, is murdered. Vera Vixen, a reporter, will not stop until the killer is found. Character personalities lean on animal stereotypes, and Campbell's... Read More

There is cause for rejoicing as Jack de Golia exuberantly narrates a zany new series. Listeners meet Clayton "not Clay" Conway, an ex-cop who is now a repo man for D & D Recovery. The fun and action open on rum-loving boss Jimmy D. and his men--who are distinctly and hilariously rendered. De Golia surpasses himself as they confront a drug cartel, an act that is unquestionably... Read More

Fans of the inimitable Sherlock Holmes and his trusty sidekick, Dr. Watson, are in for a treat with this listen. An exceptional cast makes this presentation of Barnes's story, "Sherlock Holmes: The Seamstress of Peckham Rye," truly theater of the mind. Author Barnes keeps Conan Doyle's characters in fine investigative spirits. The cast behind the mystery is top-notch. Perfectly... Read More

In a spy thriller, atmosphere is everything. For an audiobook set primarily in Moscow, having a narrator such as Edoardo Ballerini, who can handily discharge Russian phrases and provide a convincing local accent, is essential. In this third volume in the Charles Jenkins series, Ballerini sturdily voices the intrepid spy, who returns to Russia to locate two missing double agents... Read More

Narrator Simon Vance's cultured tones bring Inspector Thomas Lynley's twenty-first investigation to life. DS Barbara Havers and DS Winston Nkata take the lead in following clues surrounding the murder of Detective Teo Bontempi, who had been investigating the disturbing crime of female genital mutilation (FGM) in London's Nigerian immigrant community. For the host of... Read More

Matthew Lloyd Davies's performance is intelligent, honest, and compelling in this intriguing story filled with spycraft and surprises. Robert Harland, ex-British spy, currently works for the UN secretary- general. After surviving a plane crash, which was possibly sabotage, he's drawn back into intelligence work. Years earlier, as an agent in Czechoslovakia, Harland's career and... Read More

Colorado detective and K-9 handler Mattie Cobb returns in this seventh novel from the Timber Creek series. Nancy Wu narrates as Mattie is about to question a prisoner who tried to kill her, but his suspicious overdose death before her interrogation creates new questions. Wu's even-keeled tone suits Mattie well, portraying her confidence in the protective skills of her... Read More

Narrator Orlagh Cassidy uses her talent with accents and voices to draw listeners into the world of the indomitable Maisie Dobbs. In addition to masterfully delivering the diverse personalities of the returning characters, including Maisie's American husband, Mark, Cassidy provides a convincing voice for visiting American First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. Winspear imparts insights... Read More

Narrator Matt Godfrey portrays a pitch-perfect 16-year-old Matt Anthony, who is at the center of this coming-of-age mystery. The story is set in 1968 in Laguna Beach, California, a center of hippie culture. Matt is on a mission to find his older sister, Jazz, who has mysteriously disappeared. The author faithfully re-creates the Age of Aquarius, bringing in real places and... Read More

Narrator Alison Larkin's bright voice makes listening to this second book in the Mary Bennet series lots of fun. In Book 1, Mary, the middle and least accomplished daughter of the Bennets' five girls in PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, comes into her own. Now in Book 2, Mary is hired as an undercover agent for the British government to investigate a murder. Larkin inhabits Mary's newfound... Read More

Saffron Henderson commendably narrates this uneven novel, which begins as an appealing multigenerational saga and devolves into an unconvincing story that borders on melodrama. Listeners accompany Samantha Hutching and her teenage daughter, Megan, to Bird Lake, Manitoba, where Samantha spent her youth during the Cold War. Now she hopes to write the "Great Canadian Novel."... Read More

Based on a Bonnie-and-Clyde-type story of a real couple who robbed banks in the 1930s, this audiobook will have listeners feeling like they're on the run with the main characters. Kalteis's well-paced novel has solid character development, but it's narrator Patrick Garrow who brings it all together. From the twang in the couple's accents to the charged emotions in all the... Read More

Narrator Roger Wayne uses a fast-paced approach in Graham's latest audiobook in the paranormal suspense/romance series Krewe of Hunters. Before New Orleans FBI agent Ryder Stapleton can retire, he needs to solve the case of a serial arsonist with the help of museum curator Sienna Murray and the messages she receives from Granny K.--her late grandmother. Wayne delivers a complex... Read More

This is the third in the Detective Kindaichi series, which has recently been translated into English. The first three translations are available as audiobooks. Japanese narrator Akira Matsumoto, who speaks English with an Australian accent, has a remarkable ability to transform his voice to fit the various characters, including the stuttering Detective Kindaichi. The story... Read More

JD Jackson richly narrates the story of Ray McMillian, a young, Black man from a poor Southern family who is an unlikely classical violinist. Ray played a pitiful school-owned violin until his grandmother gave him her great-grandfather's old fiddle, which turned out to be a precious Stradivarius. Jackson describes Ray's persistent and humbling journey through the cutthroat... Read More

Bestselling author Lisa Scottoline delivers another gripping mystery. Narrator Edoardo Ballerini's impressive range is on full display, bringing depth to all the principal characters. The story follows Jason Bennett in the aftermath of a carjacking gone wrong. As tragedy ensues, a family's lives change in an instant. Ballerini delivers a credible performance as Jason seeks... Read More

Katy Sobey narrates a psychological suspense about a police officer who befriends a crime victim and becomes caught up in a fatal relationship. Philomena "Phil" McCarthy is an ambitious Metropolitan Police officer. While pursuing a case involving domestic abuse, she ignores the advice of fellow officers and becomes emotionally entangled with the victim. Further complicating... Read More

Jenna Russell uses her acting talents to narrate this murder mystery set in Whitstable, near Canterbury, on the estuary of the River Thames. Pearl Nolan, ex-constable and current owner of an oyster bar/restaurant, has just opened a detective agency when she finds the drowned body of Vinnie Rowe, a local oyster fisherman who is also her friend. Enter Chief Inspector Mike... Read More

Narrators Stephanie Racine, Polly Baron, Silvia Presente, and Olivia Dowd portray friends in a formerly tight-knit group in this ensemble thriller. Once known as the "Wild Girls," the women are excited to escape their boring lives for Felicity's safari birthday bash. Alice is now a teacher, Grace is a homebody, and Hannah is a mother. Each woman has secrets, and this breeds... Read More

Four troubled women are given outstanding portrayals in this audiobook. After he divorces his first wife, who has dementia, Dr. Stephen Aston's impending wedding to the much younger Heather is upended by a shocking series of events. Narrator Barrie Kreinik highlights the bride-to-be's alcoholic confusion and unwillingness to accept Stephen's glib explanations for her bruises.... Read More