In this wonderfully entertaining piece of silliness, Lorna Raver has to alternate between the sexagenarian voice of the archive librarian Dolly Madison Sprowls, known as Maddy, at the Hannawa, Ohio, Herald-Union newspaper (who is called Morgue Mama behind her back) and the lovely, youthful timbre of Aubrey McGinty, an ambitious rookie crime reporter whose unlikely sidekick Maddy becomes. Together they try to sort out the murder of TV evangelist Buddy Wing, who pitched over dead in the middle of a broadcast, poisoned by the gold paint on his Bible. Raver doing the pompous cadences of Reverend Wing is a riot, and her portrayals of the protagonists are so sympathetic and misleading that you never see the MacGuffin coming, although Corwin and Raver are hiding it right in plain sight.
Pub Date: July 1, 2012
Duration: 8 hrs, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9781455167241
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Novelist Benet Archdale and housemaid Carol Stratford are two young, single parents who have no reason to know each other. They become tangled in a nightmarish spiral of kidnap, fraud, family violence and death. Ruth Rendell creates psychological suspense in thrillers that are compulsively readable or, in this case, listenable. British actress Imelda Staunton's reading is perfectly paced, and the characters are well defined. You'll have a hard time turning it off.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 9 hrs
Publisher: BBC Audiobooks America/ Chivers
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Emerson and Peabody are at it again! Uncovering antiquities takes a back-seat as the romantic archaeologists track down the master criminal who is stealing Egypt's ancient treasures. With the help of their precocious son, Ramses, the intrepid pair unravel this mystery in crowded bazaars, desert camps and the heart of the Black Pyramid. Barbara Rosenblat's reading fully measures up to the tale. She is a master of timing and nuance. Rosenblat's power for character interpretation has grown with each book in this amusing series. This is the best one yet.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 12 hrs
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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