Anne Perry takes a break from her bestselling mystery series about William and Hester Monk of Victorian England for a mystery set in the trenches and on the home front of WWI. The characterizations are finely wrought, and the depiction of trench life is gripping. The mystery, which uncovers a murderous high-placed traitor called "The Peacemaker," is over the top, but Michael Page's well-tuned narration keeps one listening with pleasure despite the author's flights of fancy. Who needs a believable story when you have an engaging narrator like Page? The subtle tension of his voice during the trench scenes and the lightening of tone away from the battlefield are terrific, the pacing is expert, and the vocal characterizations, from Oxford don to Yorkshire farmhand-soldier to smarmy, exploitive journalist, are perfect. A thoroughly satisfying listen.
Pub Date: Sept. 28, 2004
Duration: 12 hrs
Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Ayla, one of the "others," is adopted by a clan of Neanderthal cave people. She struggles to conform to their ways, but her advanced human traits overwhelm and threaten their primitive culture in this initial installment of an immensely popular series. Although the story might benefit from abridgment, Rowena Cooper easily carries out the formidable task of enlivening the mostly silent and stereotypical characters with consistent, diverse personalities and human dimension. Through skillful phrasing and inflection, she maintains the reader's interest and suspense, especially with Ayla and her plight, throughout this rambling and imaginative story.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 22 hrs
Publisher: BBC Audiobooks America/ Chivers
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
This lyrical, sensual novel of woman's lot in Manchu, China, is as well researched as it is well written. Authentic in tone, it's nonetheless written for Westerners by a Western expert on China. Moreover, Susan Clark performs the demanding text superbly, with only occasional signs of fatigue. For the most part she not only sustains the quaint diction and Asian atmosphere, but also, creates whole worlds with her voice. She acts the book, rather than reads it, and, in so doing, turns a pretty trifle into a stupendous beauty.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 4 hrs, 30 mins
Publisher: Audio Literature
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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