PALACE COUNCIL

Stephen L. Carter (THE EMPEROR OF OCEAN PARK, 2002; NEW ENGLAND WHITE, 2007) offers a fascinating new political thriller spanning the years 1954-1974. From the opening words, narrator Mirron Willis makes listeners sit up and take notice. His insistent tone gives seemingly ordinary events an air of importance. Eddie Wesley, an African-American writer, uncovers a secret multiracial organization, a "Star Chamber," with plans to manipulate political destinies. Willis's performance is strong, credible, and engaging as Eddie observes Harlem high society, visits with period notables, and travels to Vietnam, and exposes political misdeeds. Willis elects to imitate the voices of famous figures—Langston Hughes, J. Edgar Hoover, Richard Nixon, John and Robert Kennedy—a risky choice that doesn't work well. Even so, Willis's performance of Carter's novel is top-notch. S.J.H. © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine [Published: OCTOBER 2008]