Sudden Death

From Publishers Weekly Abridging a mystery is always a tricky task—cut too much and the reader is either in the dark or wondering about dangling plot threads. But this abridgement is superbly done, reducing the length while maintaining the novel's essence and without sacrificing clarity. Lawyer Andy Carpenter finds himself roped into defending a New York Giants star running back who police find holed up in his house with a gun, and the dead body of a New York Jets receiver. Getting his unwanted client off won't be easy, especially when drug lords become involved, putting Andy's life—and the lives of those he cares about—on the line. Gardner's voice isn't what one would call resonant or even particularly pleasant, but he's undeniably compelling, and here he portrays the wisecracking and insecure Carpenter exactly right—a mix of neo-noirish gumshoe and hot-shot city lawyer. Gardner is one of the stars of audiobook narration—he's recorded more than 450 audiobooks and AudioFile magazine named him one of the "best voices of the century"—and he reinforces that reputation here. Gardner takes this otherwise mildly entertaining potboiler and turns it into a must-hear murder mystery. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. David Rosenfelt , a native of Paterson, New Jersey, is a graduate of NYU. He was the former marketing president for Tri-Star Pictures before becoming a writer of novels and screenplays. Open And Shut was his first novel; First Degree, his second novel, was named a best book of 2003 by Publishers Weekly. He currently lives in Southern California with his wife and 35 dogs. Grover Gardner has recorded over 450 audiobooks and was named one of Audiofile Magazinex92s Golden Voices of 1999. He is a member of the Woolly Mammoth Theater Company, Resident Director at Everyman Theater in Baltimore and has received 5 Helen Hayes Award nominations of his work. From AudioFile Just as Joe Mantegna IS Spenser, and Judy Kaye IS Kinsey Millhone, Grover Gardner, with his deadpan reserve, IS Andy Carpenter, the self-deprecating mystery-solving, dog-loving millionaire defense attorney. This time around there's plenty of craziness as Carpenter attempts to clear a pro football player of murder, all the while being followed by a screenwriter who wants to make a true-story movie of the events (if only he could give an "arc" to Carpenter's life). This is Rosenfelt's fourth Andy Carpenter mystery and the second to make it to audiobook, so it's time to make a plea: Whoever is in charge . . . let Gardner read the other two, pronto. R.W.S. © AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine Read more