WICKED FIX

Small-town cozies feature tiny hamlets that have higher homicide rates than any crime-ridden metropolitan neighborhood! Graves skillfully creates another such town in Eastport, Maine, along with a tight plot, clever idioms, and a horde of eccentric characters. Lindsay Ellison's narration is crisp, and her delivery of pithy sayings spot-on. She even manages to deliver a Downeast accent without slipping into caricature. She chuckles with obvious delight at the dialogue, whispers conspiratorially about dark secrets suitable for blackmail, and expresses her dismay with the new "sly, grinning worm in the apple." The clever dialogue drives this novel, creating characters sparkling with life. K.A.T. ©AudioFile, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC 05/ JAN 06]