INK EXCHANGE

This dark fantasy has a sinister feel that younger listeners may find scary. After being abandoned by her mother, Leslie, the teenage protagonist, must run the family household while coping with an alcoholic father and a delinquent, drug-addicted brother. Wanting to assert herself, Leslie decides to get a tattoo, an act that brings about her journey into the shadowy faerie realm of the Dark Court and her involvement in a dangerous love triangle. Nick Landrum's measured, controlled, occasionally breathy delivery intensifies the story’s feeling of impending doom. Listeners will feel like they’re getting sucked into an underworld with little chance of escape. The story and Landrum’s performance should appeal to listeners who prefer intense, edgy fantasy. M.H.N. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine [Published: MAY 2009]