THE JAZZ BIRD

This haunting novel of love, betrayal, and murder, set during Prohibition, is based on the true story of the murder trial of wealthy bootlegger George Remus. This story could have been turned into a cliché-ridden soap opera--a prosecutor who falls for the murder victim, a rich beauty with a taste for the wild life, a big-hearted tough from the wrong side of the tracks--but Holden respects his characters and draws them with depth and complexity. In a sonorous voice Boyd Gaines entices the listener through slowly unfolding layers and shifting perspectives. Unfortunately, his women all have the same false, breathy voice. Otherwise, his reading is vivid and affecting. E.S. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine [Published: JUN/JUL 02]