THE WINGS OF THE DOVE

William Hope uses his voice well to give varied voices to men and women, both British and American and of various ages, in this novel of transatlantic complications between an ailing American heiress and the passionate British couple driven to use her. But Hope's Brits, especially Mrs. Lowder, tend to caricature, and even his reading of the narrative sounds affected. Still, he has command of James's crabbed complex sentences, and his pacing, accenting, and emphasis often make them clearer to hear than they are to read, an achievement that is considerable. The abridgment gives the mood and basic story of this long and densely written novel but remains a kind of skeletal "study guide" version of the full work. W.M. © AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine [Published: OCT/ NOV 07]