Narrator Sean Patrick Hopkins employs a resolute approach and elicits nail-biting anxiety as this locked-room mystery unfolds during an evaluation for a college scholarship. Hopkins portrays the students, a school administrator, and a wealthy donor with definition and colorful, specific personas. The financial pressure the students and faculty are under is tremendous, with success for the school's future and the students in the balance. Bell explores issues like racism, ageism, and sexism among the six students, the administrator, and the representative of the college's founder. Hopkins's pauses, emphasis, and inflections build tension as the usually routine written and oral exams take on unexpected intrigue. THE FINALIST explores relevant and heartbreaking issues involving opportunity and the high cost of higher education.
Pub Date: July 5, 2022
Duration: 8 hrs, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9780593592328
Publisher: Penguin 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
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