The first half of Jeffrey Deaver's new stand-alone is more likely to put the listener over the top than on the edge. It's slow moving and nowhere near as clever as is his two acclaimed series about Lincoln Rhyme and Katherine Dance. Corte, an operative for a supersecret government agency (so secret we don't even find out its name), is assigned to protect a detective and his family from Henry Loving, whose specialty is extracting information from people. Corte's got a special interest in Loving, who killed Corte's mentor six years earlier. Narrator Skipp Suddath isn't much help moving things along. His raspy voice, though competent, gives fast-paced, monotone characterizations. It's only in the second half that Deaver and Sudduth seem to get on the same wavelength and make the total experience worthwhile. There are two surprise endings, which Sudduth brings to a satisfying finish.
Pub Date: Nov. 2, 2010
Duration: 15 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781442335387
Publisher: Simon & Schuster 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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