HARD ROW

Migrant worker exploitation and murder combine to make Judge Deborah Knott's latest adventure exciting and a bit gruesome. Pieces of a local farm owner are showing up in the North Carolina countryside. Knott has a new stepchild, a busy calendar, and many relatives, but she still finds time to help her lawman husband. C.J. Critt's upbeat tone reflects the Judge's overall cheerfulness. This is a complicated story with multiple plot lines, characters, points of view, and even advice from an 1890 farmers' journal. It might be easy for a narrator to lose its continuity, but Critt holds the vocal reins tightly. She injects the story with local color and individualizes characters with regard to their age, gender, personality, and ethnicity. J.B.G. © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine [Published: APR/ MAY 08]