GRAVE SECRET

Harper Connelly hasn't led a normal life since she was struck by lightning and left with the ability to sense the dead and determine their manner of death. In this fourth installment of the series, Harper's investigation into the death of Richard Joyce overlaps the tragedy in her own life, the disappearance of her sister and the destruction of her family eight years earlier. Alyssa Bresnahan provides an overly enunciated narration that is at odds with Harper's supernatural adventures. Even through the action scenes, including two shootings, she doesn't stray from her slightly monotone voice. While Bresnahan cleanly distinguishes between characters, especially Harper and her boyfriend and her stepbrother, her narration fails to deliver the ambiance of the story’s Southern setting, which one expects from Harris's books. E.N. © AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine [Published: APRIL 2010]