THE PEARL THIEF

Narrator Maggie Service's Scottish accents reflect this novel's strong sense of place. Those who wept at the fate of Julie, heroine of CODE NAME VERITY, will delight in meeting her 15-year-old self in this prequel. Service embodies all the emotions in the first-person narrative--Julie's sadness at the sale of her family's Scottish estate, curiosity about sexuality, envy at the freedom of her Scottish Traveller friends, and anger at the prejudice shown them. Service captures the rhythms of the mystery that consumes Julie involving an attacker who knocks her unconscious, a murder victim, and stolen pearls belonging to her grandfather. Nearing the audiobook's end, Service heightens the tension as the twists and turns multiply, never losing the story's emotions and elegant language. S.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine [Published: JUNE 2017]