THE MASTER OF RAIN

The conventional elements of the gritty whodunit--the fledgling cop, the politically volatile station house, the criminal mastermind, the sexy dame in distress, drugs, smuggling, corruption--are spiced up by an exotic locale and taut writing. In 1920s Shanghai, an idealistic British novice on the force and his partner, a street-smart Chicago expatriate, investigate the murder of a Russian prostitute, the "property" of a Chinese underworld kingpin. West End veteran Steven Pacey serviceably impersonates the run-of-the-mill characters of various nationalities, despite his shaky handling of accents. Even more successfully, he plays the rhythms of the slick narrative structure and journalistic prose, which so effectively keep the listener riveted to the action. Y.R. (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine [Published: JUN/JUL 03]