THE COMFORTS OF A MUDDY SATURDAY

This fifth Isabel Dalhousie mystery continues to charm, and Davina Porter continues to develop the lovable heroine—equally sweet and tart, shrewd and loving, fallible and yet entirely reliable. This time around, the mystery doesn't even arise until a quarter of the way through. No matter. Listeners are entirely diverted by Isabel as she ponders the issues that cross her desk as editor of THE REVIEW OF APPLIED ETHICS, as well as those that cross her path through the varied cultural haunts of Edinburgh and those that cross the path of her brisk housekeeper, Grace, at home. Devotees will hear more news of Isabel's friends and family, each a delightful companion, expertly voiced. When the "mystery" is solved, we’re surprised, but not overly. "I'm not much of sleuth," Isabel says—an admission that seems to endear her to us even more. J.L.B. © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine [Published: DECEMBER 2008]