Boyd, William. Waiting for Sunrise. 11 CDs. library ed. unabridged. 13 hrs. Recorded Bks. 2012. ISBN 9781464020452. $123.75; 11 CDs. retail ed.; 1 MP3-CD. library/retail eds.; digital download. F
Novelist Boyd (who was selected to write the next James Bond novel) presents a densely detailed tale of a young actor drawn into the world of World War I espionage. Lysander Rief seeks psychoanalysis for a sexual dysfunction in 1913 Vienna and has an affair with a fellow patient. He is falsely accused of rape and imprisoned but is bailed out by British diplomatic officials who give him the option of undertaking a spy-hunting mission in exchange for his freedom. Robert Ian Mackenzie’s smooth narration is well suited to the material. VERDICT Recommended for fiction fans who like their stories intricately plotted and strong on atmosphere and detail. [“In this thriller for the intellectual set, the skilled Boyd has developed his characters with depth and crafted an exciting plot that moves along at quite a clip,” read the review of the HarperCollins hc, LJ 2/15/12.—Ed.]—Phillip Oliver, Univ. of North Alabama Lib., Florence
King, Stephen & Stewart O’Nan. A Face in the Crowd. 1 CD. retail ed. unabridged. 1 hr. S. & S. Audio. 2012. ISBN 9781442359789. $9.99; digital download. HORROR
Many fans have felt “doomed to baseball,” but for Dean Evers it’s literally true. Retiring to Florida from New England, Dean’s remaining connection to his old haunts is baseball. Although he’s adopted the Rays—you just can’t get the Red Sox on lousy Florida TV—he’s not the only hometown fan enjoying the games. While tuning in, Dean swears that sitting dead—ahem—center behind home plate is his childhood dentist. But that’s impossible? Next game, same seat, isn’t that the bullied schoolmate who committed suicide decades ago? The shadows from Dean’s past get closer with each game until he stops watching, but when the Rays play his beloved Sox, he can’t resist. Dean should have stuck with that paperback, because when he flips on the tube, sitting behind home is his dead wife, waving her cell phone, and his starts ringing! VERDICT King and O’Nan are in fine form here, and the story generates eerie suspense while moving briskly. Actor Craig Wasson handles the pacing and voices beautifully. The story’s brevity makes it digestible in a single sitting, although many people will want to listen several times. A grand slam.—Mike Rogers, Library Journal
Zacks, Richard. Island of Vice: Theodore Roosevelt’s Doomed Quest To Clean Up Sin-Loving New York. 12 CDs. library ed. unabridged. 15½ hrs. Random Audio. 2012. ISBN 9780307876867. $45; 12 CDs. retail ed.; Playaway digital; digital download. HIST
Modern Las Vegas has nothing on 1890s New York City! Every manner of vice was available: drugs and casinos flourished, more than 40,000 prostitutes plied their trade to many willing customers, and most of it was unofficially sanctioned by Tammany Hall. Unfortunately, the graft worked its way up the ranks of the police department, from patrol officer to superintendent, and on to the political machine. Enter the reformers and one of their great champions—Theodore Roosevelt—the new NYPD commissioner. Roosevelt fought the good fight against corruption and started to succeed. Sadly for him, he was too successful, and those happy Big Apple residents who demanded reform also liked a bit of vice, so off Teddy went to better things, like the White House. VERDICT Well researched and written, Zacks’s book does a superb job of painting a colorful picture. Joe Ochman’s narration is humorous and full of inflection. [“This valuable addition to the TR canon sheds further light on the future President as alternatively arrogant and obstinate, if not downright absolutist, in the execution of his office, qualities that would continue to dog him in later years,” read the review of the Doubleday hc, LJ 1/12.—Ed.]—Scott R. DiMarco, Mansfield Univ. of Pennsylvania Lib.
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The following titles are reviewed in the September 15 print issue. Visit Book Verdict for the full reviews.
FICTION
Alexander, Cassie. Nightshifted. 9 CDs. retail ed. unabridged. 10½ hrs. Blackstone Audio. 2012. ISBN 9781470808501. $76; 9 CDs. library ed.; 1 MP3-CD. library/retail eds.; Playaway digital; digital download. F
Baldacci, David. The Innocent. 10 CDs. library ed. unabridged. 12 hrs. AudioGO. 2012. ISBN 9781611131680. $89.99; 10 CDs. retail ed.; 1 MP3-CD. library/retail eds.; Playaway digital; digital download. THRILLER
Becker, James. The Nosferatu Scroll. 8 CDs. library ed. unabridged. 9¾ hrs. Recorded Bks. 2012. ISBN 9781461838180. $92.75. 8 CDs. retail ed.; 2 MP3-CDs. library/retail eds.; digital download. THRILLER
Bishop, Anne. Bridge of Dreams. 13 CDs. library ed. unabridged. 15 hrs. Recorded Bks. 2012. ISBN 9781464006111. $123.75; 2 MP3-CDs. library ed.; Playaway digital; digital download. FANTASY
Clark, Marcia. Guilt by Degrees. 11 CDs. library ed. unabridged. 12½ hrs. Hachette Audio. 2012. ISBN 9781611133905. $29.98; 1 MP3-CD. library/retail eds.; Playaway digital; digital download. THRILLER
Fuentes, Carlos. Vlad. 3 CDs. library ed. unabridged. 2½ hrs. Dreamscape Audio. 2012. ISBN 9781611207545. $59.99; 3 CDs. retail ed.; 1 MP3-CD. retail ed.; Playaway digital; digital download. F
Harkaway, Nick. Angelmaker. 16 CDs. library ed. unabridged. 18 hrs. AudioGO. 2012. ISBN 9780792784869. $99.95; 16 CDs. retail ed.; 1 MP3-CD. retail ed.; digital download. F
Joinson, Suzanne. A Lady Cyclist’s Guide to Kashgar. 9 CDs. library ed. unabridged. 10½ hrs. Tantor Audio. 2012. ISBN 9781452607528. $39.99; 9 CDs. retail ed.; 1 MP3-CD. library/retail eds.; digital download. F
Kerr, Philip. Prague Fatale. 11 CDs. library ed. unabridged. 13½ hrs. Recorded Bks. 2012. ISBN 9781464037221. $123.73; 2 MP3-CDs. library ed.; Playaway digital; digital download. MYS
Little, Bentley. The Haunted. 8 CDs. library ed. unabridged. 12 hrs. AudioGO. 2012. ISBN 9780792785835. $69.95; 8 CDs. retail ed.; 1 MP3-CD. library ed.; digital download. HORROR
Sandford, John. Stolen Prey. 9 CDs. retail ed. unabridged. 12 hrs. Penguin Audio. 2012. ISBN 9781611760668. $39.95; 9 CDs. library ed.; 1 MP3-CD. library ed.; Playaway digital; digital download. MYS
Smolinski, Jill. Objects of My Affection. 9 CDS. retail ed. unabridged. 10½ hrs. Blackstone Audio. 2012. ISBN 9781455134830. $100; 9 CDs. library ed.; 1 MP3-CD. library/retail eds.; Playaway digital; digital download. F
Tyler, Anne. The Beginner’s Goodbye. 6 CDs. library ed. unabridged. 6½ hrs. Random Audio. 2012. ISBN 9780307969149. $35; 6 CDs. retail ed.; Playaway digital; digital download. F
Wambaugh, Joseph. Harbor Nocturne. 9 CDs. retail ed. unabridged. 10½ hrs. HighBridge Audio. 2012. ISBN 9781611747843. $34.95; 9 CDs. library ed.; 1 MP3-CD. library/retail eds.; Playaway digital; digital download. MYS
Woods, Stuart. Unnatural Acts. 7 CDs. library ed. unabridged. 8 hrs. Recorded Bks. 2012. ISBN 9781464033148. $77.75; 7 CDs. retail ed.; 1 MP3-CD. library/retail eds.; Playaway digital; digital download. MYS
NONFICTION
Bergen, Peter. Manhunt: The Ten-Year Search for Bin Laden—from 9/11 to Abbottabad. 7 CDs. library ed. unabridged. 8¾ hrs. Books on Tape. 2012. ISBN 9780307969569. $40; 7 CDs. retail ed.; Playaway digital; digital download. POL SCI
Browning, Robert & Elizabeth Barrett Browning. Together Through Time: The Brownings in Word & Song. 1 CD.retail ed. unabridged. 36 min. New York Browning Soc. 2012. $10. POETRY
Davidson, Richard J. & Sharon Begley. The Emotional Life of Your Brain: How Its Unique Patterns Affect the Way You Think, Feel, and Live—and How You Can Change Them. 9 CDs. library ed. unabridged. 11 hrs. Brilliance Audio. 2012. ISBN 9781455852994. $79.97; 9 CDs. retail ed.; 1 MP3-CD. library/retail eds.; Playaway digital; digital download. SCI
McNamee, Thomas. The Man Who Changed the Way We Eat: Craig Claiborne and the American Food Renaissance. 11 CDs. library ed. unabridged. 13 hrs. Tantor Audio. 2012. ISBN 9781452608129. $39.99; 11 CDs. retail ed.; 2 MP3-CDs. library/retail eds.; digital download. BIOG/COOKING
Marshall, Garry. My Happy Days in Hollywood: A Memoir. 9 CDs. library ed. unabridged. 11 hrs. Books on Tape. 2012. ISBN 9780307970503. $40; 9 CDs. retail ed.; digital download. FILM/MEMOIR
Quindlen, Anna. Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake. 6 CDs. retail ed. unabridged. 7 hrs. Random Audio. 2012. ISBN 9780307989864. $40; 6 CDs. library ed.; Playaway digital; digital download. MEMOIR
Schiff, Peter D. The Real Crash: How To Save Yourself and Your Country. 10 CDs. retail ed. unabridged. 13 hrs. Macmillan Audio. 2012. ISBN 9781427222693. $39.99; Playaway digital; digital download. ECON
About Michael Rogers
I have the print issue, and there’s an error in a review. In the review of Anne Bishop’s Bridge of Dreams, the author mistakenly refers to Bridge of Dreams as the 9th book in the Black Jewels series. Bridge of Dreams is actually the 3rd book in the Landscapes of Emphera series, and in no way set in the Black Jewels world. The 9th book in the Black Jewels series is Twilight’s Dawn.