HAVING WONDERFUL CRIME John J. Malone, Book 7

Narrator Johnny Heller breathes life into this aging mystery--it's been almost eight decades since the novel's debut--and the result is like a fine art restoration. The audiobook involves a surreal crime (a bride is missing, and a beheaded woman is found in her bridal suite), plenty of snappy dialogue (most of it dispensed by lawyer John J. Malone), and an unguessable ending. Johnny Heller is the ideal narrator for this audiobook (and for the complete Malone mystery series) because he knows how to express quirkiness and humor while still maintaining the dramatic narrative. That's essential for anyone voicing works by Craig Rice (a.k.a. Georgiana Ann Randolph Craig), the pioneer of the screwball mystery. Heller's work goes a long way to reestablishing the reputation of a bestselling author who--in her day--was known as the Dorothy Parker of mysteries. R.W.S. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine [Published: AUGUST 2020]