IMMUNITY

Coleen Marlo is especially believable as geneticist Dr. Alexandra Blake. In a cold voice and staccato rhythm she captures Homeland Security's indifference to Blake’s alarm over multiple unexplained deaths in the southwest U.S. When the agency learns that one of the deaths was that of a DEA agent on a Mob stakeout, Marlo manipulates her tone to depict their disdain. With everyone else focused on the controversial presidential race, Blake, with the aid of a rogue DEA agent, is determined to learn if the country faces a bio-threat or a full-blown epidemic. Marlo deftly portrays SAM, a supercomputer, with a humorous twist and gives appropriate accents to characters of the region. Overall, she gives a polished performance of a story that dramatizes some of the nation’s greatest fears. G.D.W. © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine [Published: OCTOBER 2008]