"R" IS FOR RICOCHET

In the latest Kinsey Millhone mystery, Kinsey is hired by an aged, wealthy man to retrieve his daughter from prison, where she has served time for embezzlement. Kinsey quickly figures out that the girl isn’t an embezzler but instead has done time for her money-laundering boss. All heck breaks loose. Judy Kaye has a warm, rich voice that seems just right for Grafton’s P.I. Her delivery mirrors the smart-aleck tenor of much of Kinsey’s dialogue. Strangely though, when Kaye is interpreting a male character (and there are many), she raises her voice to a higher register, so that many of the men sound like adolescents with changing voices, or worse, like chipmunks. It may be Kaye’s subtle social comment, though. For once the listener adapts, this odd gender reversal seems natural. R.E.K. © AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC 08/ JAN 09]