Susan Dalian’s and Jay Aaseng’s skilled vocal ranges complement witty prose and a plot that cleverly dramatizes racial injustices. Sydney creates a walking tour to retain her Brooklyn neighborhood’s history during an unsettlingly fast gentrification. When new neighbor Theo joins the effort, and the pair uncover horrors that are more than historical, they’re catapulted into a state of fear. Dalian seamlessly switches between opposing personalities: the entitled new residents and the salt-of-the-earth characters who have lived in the neighborhood for decades. In one scene, newly settled Kim screeches her threat to call the cops when longtime resident Sydney calmly asserts her place in a bodega line. The other narrator, Aaseng, cheerily shouts, “I’ve got beer!” to diffuse a confrontation, delivers a Caribbean accent, and voices female characters realistically. Listeners will be gripped by the performance and the story. A.L.C. 2021 Audies Winner © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2020
Duration: 8 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9780063036048
Publisher: Harper Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Part of the joy of Tom Clancy novels is one's belief that the stories could come true. His latest entry stretches that some as we find international terrorists building a nuclear bomb which is used to set Americans and Russians against one another. Jay Robertson reads with a newscaster's voice, crisp and clear with a light touch of drama. However, he does little to help listeners identify Clancy's huge cast of characters, and dialects seem difficult for him as he occasionally slips in and out of character. Nonetheless, patient listeners are rewarded as the plot unfolds. This will be a welcome addition to any library justifying the price of the multi-cassettte volumes.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 16 hrs
Publisher: Books on Tape
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
John Sanford is back with another psychological thriller in his Prey series. Surgeon, psychopath and serial killer Bekker is on the loose again after the easiest jailbreak in recent memory. Ken Howard's reading moves along with all the brooding energy a reader could want from a suspense book. His narration is deep, clear and well-suited to the gravelly voices of retired detective Lucas Davenport and the other cops. While Howard manages good dialects and shifts in character, his female voices leave a lot to be desired. For the most part, the abridgment gleefully throws logic and characterization overboard in favor of thrills, but the basic flavor of many characters is still fairly well maintained.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 3 hrs
Publisher: Harper Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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