New Reviews: Mystery & Suspense

Eilidh Beaton's performance is stellar. With panache she takes on the roles of strong-willed aristocratic ladies; stuffy, self-important lords; and capable staff. Self-proclaimed spinster and freethinker Lady Petra becomes concerned when she learns her highborn women friends are disappearing into asylums--or dying. The men are unperturbed. Beaton's spellbinding narration is... Read More

Fans of James Patterson will no doubt appreciate the latest installment in the Alex Cross series. A cast of thousands (OK, 7) take on roles that range from good cops to killers, spouses, and family members in what sounds like a made-for-TV drama. Wayne Carr does an excellent job portraying the gravitas, intellect, and humanity of Cross. Kiff VandenHeuvel serves double duty as a... Read More

Gripping from the start, true-crime TV star Joe Kenda's debut novel is an entertaining and quick-paced fictionalized version of a case Kenda handled as a rookie detective in the 1970s. Narrated skillfully by Bradford Hastings, Tim Campbell, and Kenda himself, the audiobook benefits from their ability to produce a variety of voices for the fascinating cast of characters. At its... Read More

Helen Keeley enlivens this cozy mystery, set in a quaint English village. Listeners meet charming but naïve 24-year-old Sophie, whose boyfriend, Ben, leaves her when she loses her job. But Sophie is rejuvenated when she inherits her aunt's house, though she must care for her aunt's dog, Poppy, to comply with the bequest. Soon, Sophie meets feisty tea shop owner Hannah and... Read More

Lee Osorio brings his deep voice and its many variations to this long romantic suspense set in New Orleans and its environs. There are many characters in this audiobook, including J.P. "Kaj" Cardozo; his son, precocious 10-year-old Elijah; private investigator Val Sorensen; and a criminally engaged family. When two members of the family try to kidnap Elijah, Cardozo hires... Read More

Aubrey Parsons credibly conveys both 1970 and contemporary Yorkshire, England, in this grim procedural. Listeners meet Detective Inspector Harry Grim as he confronts a gruesome farm accident--or a clever murder? The victim was hated by everyone. Parsons artfully renders the many characters, particularly Grim's dedicated team. The 1970 victim, a bullied autistic schoolgirl, was... Read More

Hillary Huber, longtime narrator of the Sheriff Joanna Brady series, is wisely tapped to voice this exciting new Brady and Walker mystery. Huber energetically embodies both familiar and new characters, transporting listeners to the story's Southwestern locale. She's especially fun to listen to when youthfully voicing Joanna's daughter, Jenny, a criminology student who grabs the... Read More

Sneha Mathan is the perfect narrator for this exciting police procedural set in Mumbai. She uses her strong characterization skills to bring a wide cast to life. Listeners join Senior Inspector Arnav Singh Rajput as he is called to investigate an apparent ritual killing at a temple. The story is told from multiple viewpoints, which Mathan handles with ease, especially the... Read More

Samantha Hydeson depicts Bluebeard's castle, its inhabitants, and its visitors in this unsuccessful attempt to lend a feminist slant to the original folktale. Listeners meet unhappy gothic novelist Judith Moore, who feels she'll never find the man of her dreams. Her life changes, however, after she meets a psychopath named Gavin, who is expertly portrayed. He has leading-man... Read More

Robert Mac Minshew gives a fun, upbeat performance of this queer cozy mystery set in Salt Lake City. Ben has left his job in academia to help run his dad's board game shop back home in Utah. When a local game collector is found dead outside the shop, Ben becomes an immediate suspect. Desperate to clear his name, he teams up with the cute florist next door to solve the mystery.... Read More

Kale Williams conveys vibrant Manhattan and the incomparable relationship between Cold Crimes detective Everett Larkin and NYPD forensic artist Ira Doyle. Listeners join the pair as they tackle the heartbreaking 1980s murder of a young woman found mummified. Clues from present and previous cases both clarify and obscure the trail. Most memorable is Candy, whose 1940s persona is... Read More

Robert Ian Mackenzie returns to portray Bruno Courrèges, chief of police in a small town in Dordogne, France. After a high-ranking official in the French Secret Service is injured during a historical reenactment, Bruno and his team set out to discover whether it was an accident or something more sinister. Mackenzie's fondness for the characters shines as he creates highly... Read More

Four gifted narrators bring listeners this holiday treat told through emails. A dozen members of the Fairway Players, an English amateur theater group, discuss their upcoming pantomime of "Jack and the Beanstalk." Their emails reveal the essence of each writer--their subtle power grabs, petty jealousies, and barely concealed hatreds. With so many characters, it could have been... Read More

One lonely Christmas night, Emma reads the diary of a fellow student she invited to her family's English manor house for the holidays 30 years before. Narrator Esther Wane uses a vague American accent for Ashley's diary and captures her wide-eyed pleasure at the gothic setting she feels she's been transported to. Ashley falls for Adam, Emma's troubled brother, who is suspected... Read More

Rupert Degas showcases his talents in this Australian mystery involving cyberterrorism, kidnapping, and romance. At the same time that yoga instructor Elaina Williams's father vanishes, sadistic "dark hat" hackers set out to bring down global banking. Luckily, Elaina's heartthrob, Ric, a photojournalist, seems to do more than take pictures during his international travels. The... Read More

Cynthia Farrell returns to skillfully voice a wide range of characters-- male and female--of all ages. In the fourth installment of the Nora Kelly series, junior FBI Agent Corrie Swanson partners with forensic archaeologist Nora Kelly to investigate the disappearance of nine graduate students during a winter backpacking trip in the New Mexico mountains. The discovery of six... Read More

Hillary Huber delivers a delightfully creepy rendition of this graphic, fast-paced horror story about pregnancy and infertility. Anna Alcott is a famous actress who's been going through IVF treatments and finally becomes pregnant. Unexplained odd things start happening: Anna's appointments get switched, her medicines go missing, and she receives strange messages. Things get... Read More

Lorelei King, who has become the voice of Stephanie Plum, will delight fans in this 30th addition to the series. King masterfully performs the quirky crew surrounding bounty hunter Stephanie, including familiar and new characters. The plot, filled with laugh-out-loud moments, follows Stephanie and her sidekick, Lula, as they track down a colorful collection of felons. Their... Read More

David Rintoul returns to the role of Detective Ulf Varg in another charming trip to the Department of Sensitive Crimes. This time around Alexander McCall Smith's tongue-in-cheek take on the dour Scandi noir genre sees Ulf investigating the missing cabin of a bacon magnate while negotiating potential downsizing at work. Meanwhile, Ulf's girlfriend is convinced that his deaf dog,... Read More

Barton Welch brings the perfect narrative touches to this mystery set on a train ride through Australia. The Aussie-accented performance adds a comedic touch to the presentation without overdoing it, keeping a fine balance throughout. Ernest Cunningham is on the train to participate in a crime-writing festival. There are backbiting and jealousies among the attendees, and then... Read More

Narrator Edoardo Ballerini masterfully narrates this sequel, reacquainting listeners with Mitch and Abby McDeere 15 years after their harrowing misadventures in THE FIRM. Mitch, now a successful partner in the largest law firm in the world, faces an intense kidnapping crisis in Libya involving a Turkish client and an associate of Mitch's. Ballerini leverages his talent with... Read More

Once again, Lady Hardcastle and her loyal lady's maid, Flo, are delightfully voiced by Elizabeth Knowelden. The tenth installment in the series is set in the English village of Littleton Cotterell in 1912. This time, the pair juggle a case of art theft, a murder, and the financial downturn of dear friends. Knowelden's array of British accents is skilled, allowing the listener... Read More

Jay Aaseng takes an outstanding, edge-of-your-seat crime thriller and makes it even better with a pitch-perfect execution. He has a lot to work with in this unique story about distraught parents Ryan and Elsie Delaney, who take over a police crime lab and threaten to kill hostages and destroy key evidence if police fail to find their missing daughter, Tilly, in 24 hours. The... Read More

Narrators Jane Oppenheimer, Jennifer Aquino, Lauren Ezzo, and Emily Lawrence portray four women whose lives are thrown into turmoil. It all begins with the announcement of a genetic lottery to find the parents of a child who is at the center of a twenty-year-old murder. Cleo, Jemma, and Alex thought they had left their deepest secrets behind in the town of Rosemary Hills, Iowa.... Read More

Narrator Johnny Heller solidly maintains the author's intriguing premise: A mobster from Chicago is hiding as a rabbi in Las Vegas. Whether David Cohen--aka Sal Cupertine--will be found out by those who are after him is the mystery. Heller understands how to shape characters with voices that fit their personalities. It's a challenge, with the handful of heavies, but Heller--an... Read More

After the ending of this compelling crime story, listeners hear a conversation between the author and narrator Robb Moreira. Moreira was enthusiastically selected by the audiobook producers to portray police detective Al Sullivan, who narrates this story about a prominent industrialist who is murdered in San Francisco's posh Claremont Hotel in 1944. Moreira's Sullivan is... Read More

Merriment turns to misgiving when a corpse transforms Christmas cheer into a season of speculation. Kate Rawson deftly narrates this atmospheric addition to the Shell House Detectives series. The spotlight is on all the residents of Mousehole when JP Sharpe, an unpopular chef, is found dead in a dingy. Rawson blends congeniality and solemnity in her portrayal of the town's... Read More

Narrator Leonie Elliott skillfully transports listeners to Harlem with an impressive story that contrasts the changes in Black life in the early twentieth century. In 1936, as jazz singer Lena Aldrich sails from England to New York, she encounters shipboard musician William Goodman. She gratefully accepts his offer to stay with his family as she searches for information about... Read More

Donna Postel and Bahni Turpin effectively complement each other in this mystery, especially as the tension mounts. In a Southern town, a local radio station has been hosting an annual hunt for their Golden Egg, with a big reward for the finder. Mysterious deaths have occurred ever since the launch of the hunt, with a growing group of citizens demanding that the hunt be stopped.... Read More

Molly Secour's portrayal of a self-absorbed actress infuses a bit of noir into this cozy mystery. When there's a homicide on the set of an amateur theater production, a has-been actress resurrects the skills she gained from her television role as a sleuthing pastor. Secour's languid voice as Miranda Abbott brings out the former celebrity's entertaining narcissism. Despite a few... Read More

Narrator Joel Froomkin brings comedic and contrasting touches to his narration of this light mystery-romance set in Regency England. John Pickett, a former law enforcement officer turned private investigator, and his wife, Julia, are nervously expecting a new baby. Then, Pickett's no-good father returns from serving a prison sentence in Australia--only to be murdered. There is... Read More

Narrator Robert Petkoff seamlessly steps into the late Richard Ferrone's shoes, breathing life into Lucas Davenport, Virgil Flowers, and the extensive cast of characters in the 33rd installment of Sandford's series. Davenport and Flowers, still recovering from serious gunshot wounds from their last outing, are tasked with investigating the brutal murder of a federal judge and... Read More

The effervescent, purposeful voice of Pamela Klein delivers this Christian murder mystery set in Venice and featuring two newly wed self-styled detectives, Lord and Lady Astley. Some listeners will be charmed by this romantic duo who delight in God's love, their mutual love, and their love of adventure. Every mystery writer's trick is employed in this story. There is a treasure... Read More

This twisty police procedural has fantastic narrators--Joanne Froggatt, Justin Avoth, and Kerry Wotton. It does a spectacular job of building on the ticking clock of a missing-person investigation and the ethical dilemma of the detective heading it. Julia's career as a detective is immaculate except for one accident, which she's kept a secret. A man with a hidden identity knows... Read More

Tim Campbell's rich baritone brings this comic mystery exactly what it needs to keep listeners engaged. A hit TV series, "The Lands Beyond," has had a profound influence on its fans--from their clothing choices to their babies' names. The author of the show, R.R. Reynard, maintains tight control over each script. Reynard goes to a fan-filled convention at the posh Chateau... Read More

Don't wake up! Seems simple enough, right? But nothing's that simple for the main character in this audiobook. Antonia Beamish's narration takes listeners down a mind-bending rabbit hole with verve. Her proficient range delivers flawless intensity and sets the tone for the protagonist's altered reality. Is she awake--or is she dreaming? Through Beamish's skillful use of pauses... Read More

Morgan Dalla Betta's warm narration transports listeners to a Colorado mountain village, where bookstore-owning sisters Ellie and Meg Christie reluctantly head out on a joint blind date arranged by their cousin, Lorna. When Meg's date is later found murdered and she becomes the prime suspect, the sisters and other family members set out to prove that Meg is innocent. Betta... Read More

Kay Smith has awoken from a coma and can't remember who she is. She's haunted by nightmares and an inner voice that warns her to stay hidden. Kimberly Wetherell gives an amazing performance as the distraught heroine who copes with amnesia and a sense of doom. Wetherell's presentation is stunning as Kay relentlessly sets out to learn who she is. Nelson Hobbs steps in as the... Read More

The rich voices and intelligent deliveries of seven talented narrators make it possible to keep this novel's many characters straight. After a huge lottery win, Nicole and Tom build their dream house on an estate in Gloucestershire. The state-of-the-art glass barn has everything, including glitches. When Tom is found dead in their swimming pool, Nicole is devastated. Was Tom's... Read More

Rebecca Lowman's narration is captivating! In this novel, "Mister Magic," a fictitious TV series for kids, was suddenly canceled 30 years ago. Now, the five members of its final cast are brought together to record a podcast. Suspiciously, no recordings of the original show exist, and there's no record of who filmed it, but fans still have its haunting kids' songs stuck in their... Read More

Danice Cabanela's exuberant narration enhances Manansala's fourth delicious mystery featuring Filipino cuisine. Lila Macapagal and her godmothers, April, Mae, and June, along with a quirky assortment of regulars, solve murders between bouts of unrestrained and joyful eating. The godmothers' newest business venture, a laundromat in Shady Palms, seems to be annoying someone who... Read More

Audiobook listeners, as well as nine paying guests, are invited to a 1930s murder mystery weekend at a faux gothic country house. The talented English actor John Hopkins narrates this lively mystery, creating the glamorous atmosphere of the best vintage whodunits. His deep voice captures the posh sound of the weekend's scheming host, Simon. Hopkins also does a fabulous job... Read More

Alison Larkin's crystalline voice adds verve to Gerald Elias's eighth mystery featuring Daniel Jacobus, who is blind. Elias, who is a violinist and composer, as well as a writer, clearly adores classical music and finds its adherents wonderful and quirky. Larkin's expressive narration lets the eccentricity shine in this tale about a musician's death in the midst of Mahler's 6th... Read More

Add Dr. Lydia Weston--who is featured in this well-narrated historical mystery--to your list of strong female protagonists. Gabra Zackman does an excellent job delineating the various characters by using tone, pitch, and accents; she excels, in particular, at the challenging job of depicting both male and female characters. Zackman's versatility allows listeners to become... Read More

Series narrator Kirsten Potter does her usual exceptional work in the fourth mystery in the Pentecost & Parker series. In 1947 Manhattan, Vera Bodine has gone missing. She's elderly, and an invalid now. But the fact that she once had a photographic memory and that her early life was fraught with enemies might be connected to her disappearance. As Willowjean "Will" Parker,... Read More

Lauren Ambrose returns as narrator of this sequel to Prose's first wildly popular cozy mystery, THE MAID. Ambrose is a charming actor and performs here with enthusiasm and heart, clearly wishing our heroine Molly well as she copes with (gasp) another murder at the fancy hotel where she is now head of housekeeping. Molly is neurodivergent and knows it. Hers is the voice of one... Read More

Graham Mack masterfully introduces Lancashire, England, and its unforgettable residents. Listeners join Detective Inspector Freya Bloom and her eccentric team as they confront the tragic death of 13-year-old Simon, a special needs youth who had been mercilessly bullied. Mack particularly excels with diverse voices and accents, for example, the voice of Scottish Officer... Read More

Graham Halstead narrates a poignant fight for survival as a man who is trapped in an overturned boat at the bottom of the sea faces a ticking clock. Writer Lukas attempts to turn his life around with a series of stories about a rare shrimp boat. He connects with the crew, only to find himself entombed on the sea floor with little chance of rescue. Halstead narrates in a tone... Read More

Narrator Elizabeth Sastre adopts a gentle voice for this complex, sometimes puzzling, mystery about the disappearance of Lucy Theddle in 1951. The story is told in 2018 by Edie Green, an octogenarian with aphasia and dementia who was Lucy's best friend. Aided by her intrepid, cheerful granddaughter, Amy, soft-voiced Edie follows sketchy clues plumbed from her memories. In... Read More

This legal thriller features a fed-up public defender in rural Virginia. David Aaron Baker shines as the weary and beleaguered attorney Andy Hughes, who is defending the crooked and sinister Damian Bullins. Bullins is on trial for murdering the wife of a wealthy businessman. Baker's performance enables listeners to empathize with Hughes's disillusioned view of the legal system.... Read More

Jennice Ontiveros's leisurely pacing allows room for this audiobook's expertly crafted ambiance to draw listeners into a Taos Pueblo murder mystery. The story draws from the real-world tragedies of opioid addiction and the decades-long disappearances of Native American women. The first audiobook of this hauntingly narrated new series features Native American Sheriff's Deputy... Read More

Peter Giles masterfully portrays the Lincoln Lawyer, Mickey Haller, a defense attorney whose office is his car. Giles is joined by Titus Welliver, as LAPD Detective Harry Bosch, and Christine Lakin, as Renée Ballard. Haller, having just experienced the exhilaration of overturning an innocent man's conviction, has launched his own innocence project. With Bosch's help, Haller is... Read More

Indira Varma is the perfect match for this short mystery set in a prestigious apartment building in the center of London. When DS Gish and DI Milton are called in to investigate the murder of a young concierge, they soon find that the residents of the building are their only suspects. Varma creates believable and likable characters in the two detectives. She injects just the... Read More

CJ Wilson brings compelling, troubled characters to life while narrating this stand-alone murder mystery set in mid-century Minnesota. His voice embodies a folksiness that belies the audiobook's dark undertone. Sheriff Brody Dern is assigned to investigate the death of Jimmy Quinn, a wealthy figure loathed by many. The community demands swift justice for the suspected... Read More

Series narrator Robert Glenister is spot-on delivering Book 7 in this popular series. PI Cormoran Strike is thinner and almost alcohol-free, while his work partner, Robin, is romantically involved with a hunky cop. They're hired to search for a man being held against his will within the Universal Humanitarian Church, a religious cult whose members keep disappearing. Robin goes... Read More

Gerard Doyle performs this stand-alone dispatch from Mick Herron's cynical "spook street" world with such dry resignation that it is often laugh-out-loud funny, or would be if it weren't so believable. In his Slough House novels (and their TV adaptations, the riveting "Slow Horses") Herron is doing for MI-5 what Dickens did for Chancery and the Circumlocution Office. This novel... Read More

Hillary Huber gives a top-shelf performance of this audiobook featuring some really twisted serial killers. Her narrative voice is pleasant and captures the scene and atmosphere of the moment. It also keeps the complicated plot moving. FBI Special Agent Caitlin Hendrix of the Behavioral Analysis Unit is charged with finding out how serial killer Efrem Judah Goode, now... Read More

Vikas Adam transports listeners back to 1894 as Jim Agnihotri, an investigator, and his wife, Lady Diana Framji, travel to England by ship. When a passenger is murdered, the ship's captain calls upon Jim to identify the killer. Adam's outstanding portrayals of both Jim and Diana create highly believable characters. His depiction of Diana is particularly strong, injecting just... Read More

Carlotta Brentan's skill is remarkable. She conveys compassion, fear, and mounting dread simultaneously. A young couple set off on a boating expedition with only themselves as crew. During an unexpected storm they find themselves marooned on an abandoned island. Soon they are forced to carry out acts of banal violence, including the hunting of penguins to survive. Large cruise... Read More

Moira Quirk does an excellent job portraying a variety of senior citizens who are burdened with ailments in this mystery. Agnes Sharp opens Sunset Hall in rural England so she and other geriatrics can age together. When there's a murder next door, the Sunset Hall residents, who are hiding a body in a shed, sense an opportunity: They'll blame that death on the unknown killer.... Read More

With a mixture of spunk and quirkiness, narrator Cara Swingline brings Fran and Ken Stein to life in this lighthearted mystery series. Working as private investigators who help clients find their birth parents, the siblings search for a missing ukulele that could lead to a client's father. The deep, throaty voice Swingline gives to Ken unintentionally makes him sound obtuse.... Read More

Robert Petkoff solidifies his position as one of the finest narrators in the audiobook world with this metafictional mystery. His voice is fluid, and his attitude is exactly right for both the omniscient self-congratulatory narrator (who frequently interrupts the story to comment) and for PI McAnnis, who is on a case. Petkoff keeps one's attention even while delivering the long... Read More

Gail Shalan's expert narration vividly brings to life a group of affluent suburban couples whose dinner party is abruptly derailed by a shelter-in-place order caused by a lethal airborne pathogen. Shalan shines as she crafts authentic male and female characters, each with a distinct, nuanced personality. Her portrayal of the notably unlikable Britta is both engaging and... Read More