Narrator Kristen Sieh is exceptional in this entertaining audiobook. The second in the Play the Fool series, it's equally enjoyable as a stand-alone story. Katie True is a tarot card reader who uses intuition and observation to solve murders on the side. She's also nursing some worry that she's behind in life as she approaches age 30. As Katie, Sieh's voice is relatable and conversational--like a stream-of-consciousness voicemail from your best friend. For the rest of the colorful characters who populate Katie's Chicago suburb, Sieh delivers a range of voices that are aurally distinct without being distracting. Listeners can focus on Katie's latest mystery and her heart-before-head approach to life.
Pub Date: 2025
Duration: 10 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9780593668696
Publisher: Random House Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
For someone whose vocal palette contains so few colors, Edward Asner is a surprisingly effective narrator. His familiar, pleasant growl compels attention and bespeaks authority. He has his faults though. As an audiobook performer, he has but one personality, whatever the narrative voice of his text. One gets the impression that he enters the studio underprepared, taking his time to discover the book as he reads it. Thus it is with An Isolated Incident, a taut, suspenseful murder mystery set in Puget Sound. Other readers could better explore all the beats of this rich page-turner, but few could hold an audience as effortlessly.
Pub Date:
Duration: 3 hrs
Publisher: Time Warner AudioBooks
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Kay Scarpetta takes on more than routine investigations as her job of medical examiner involves her once again in a search for an unknown killer. The story is riveting from the opening chapters, and Sheila Hart never lets the intrigue subside. However Hart doesn't use enough vocal range, and male voices sound tinny and high-pitched. The dialogues with tough yet, endearing, Lt. Pete Marino have perfect cadence, accent and speech pattern, but sound somewhat thin and insubstantial. Telephone conversations and flashbacks are set off by effective sound enhancement, a useful addition. The overall presentation is very good driven strongly by the author's contribution.
Pub Date:
Duration: 9 hrs
Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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