VILLA OF MYSTERIES

Christopher Kay is a terrific narrator, yet this is not one of his best. We’re in Italy, where Inspector Leo Falcone and Pathologist Teresa Lupo are faced with the body of a young woman found in a peat bog near the Tiber River. Was she killed as part of a pagan ritual or a Mob hit? The story strains credulity a bit, but it’s still fun and atmospheric. Kay’s pacing is excellent, but his voicing of the major characters sounds like a comedian’s caricature of English spoken with a bad Italian accent. As a result, it’s hard to take them, or their situations, seriously. A.C.S. © AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine [Published: AUG/SEP 05]