Here’s a case in which an acclaimed narrator diminishes the excitement of a murder mystery. Gravelly voiced Stefan Rudnicki adds a somber background to this installment in a well-respected police procedural series. Another narrator might have injected more passion through cadence and intonation, but Rudnicki keeps the tone low-key—so low sometimes that his voice almost disappears. The island of Patmos, the site of more than a thousand years of Christian meditation, is said to be the place where John the Apostle received the Book of Revelation. Now there’s intrigue among the monastery inhabitants and among factions of Eastern orthodoxy, all explored by Inspector Kaldis, who is working on a murder.
Pub Date: Jan. 4, 2011
Duration: 8 hrs, 30 mins
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
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