The title city is New York. Shortly after 9/11. An otherwise miscellaneous group of New Yorkers acquires two characters in common--a kinky and promiscuous gallery owner and an elusive maniac who is avenging the Twin Towers tragedy by murdering assorted Manhattanites. The book features graphic sex and gruesome mayhem, witty humor, vividly drawn (albeit cardboard) characters, and numerous digressive musings. George Guidall does his wonted fine job with this fare. He keeps the narrative enthralling even where the author flags. While many narrators sound embarrassed doing detailed passages of erotic encounters, especially when, as here, they're described in Anglo-Saxonisms, Guidall serves them up without a wink. If, however, they're supposed to be arousing, our narrator has not made them so. He errs further in the postcoital love scenes between the perverse lady and the writer she loves, which sound trite. But they're written that way.
Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2003
Duration: 15 hrs, 15 mins
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
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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