If this isn’t the best iteration of the long-running Will Patton/James Lee Burke audio collaboration, it has set the bar very high. Patton’s Detective Dave Robicheaux sounds gruff, philosophical, and human while Robicheaux’s childhood friend, Clete, an ex-cop, alcoholic PI, and loose cannon, has a dark, gravel voice that seems to come from Patton’s ankles. Clete is tracking some bail bond skips who turn out to have committed a string of other vicious crimes before, during, and after Hurricane Katrina, including rape, murdering a priest, and burglarizing the house of the city’s toughest mobster. (Mistake.) Burke’s portrait of shattered New Orleans itself is heartbreaking—but for sheer evil, the bland, warm-custard voice Patton gives psychopath Ronald Bledsoe will scare your socks off.
Pub Date: July 17, 2007
Duration: 13 hrs
DD ISBN: 9780743567527
Publisher: Simon & Schuster 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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