SOULS TO KEEP

This unusual romance is about Virgil’s search for happiness with his wife of four years, Ellen, and the spirit who haunts them, Beatrice. As Virgil learns to live life more fully, Ellen struggles to conquer Beatrice, whose need for love overwhelms her desire to “go into the light of heaven.” Juliette Parker reads in clear, concise tones that mimic the slow pace of this novel. She reads the men in clipped style, while the women’s voices flow as easily as the narrative. There are echoes and hollow tones in the tape, as well as places where the voice sounds doubled. Nevertheless, Robbins’s romance as told from the man’s point of view comes across well in Parker’s soft narration and crisp dialogue. M.B.K. © AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine [Published: AUG/ SEP 01]