The rough edges of James Lee Burke's story and Mark Hammer's voice make a fine pair. The Louisiana bayoux breed more trouble for Detective Dave Robicheaux. He digs up long forgotten crimes involving a blues musician and follows a twisting path to contemporary injustices, corruption, and deceit as mobsters and an IRA hit man make forays to New Iberia. Poor sound quality mars Hammer's fine inflective reading. Despite the muzzy sound, which ALMOST lends atmosphere, Hammer's rendition of the Louisiana misfits and miscreants is right on. The sound is distracting but not ruinous. And through it all, Burke's magical, descriptive prose flows freely--"like stars in a black rain barrel." R.F.W.
(c) AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine
Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2003
Duration: 14 hrs, 30 mins
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
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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