TRIAL AND RETRIBUTION

If you've seen TV's "Prime Suspect" series, you know what to expect here--the grittiness, the politics of British police investigations, the sharply drawn characters, the unremitting tension. A former actress, La Plante writes superbly theatrical dialogue for this investigation of a child's violation and murder. Perhaps that's why narrator Rodska can't resist showing off his considerable skills with dialects and impersonation. Except for lapses when he misses the purport of a line, he does a fine job giving us a detective novel of a high order. Y.R. © AudioFile 2000, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC/JAN 01]