Audio Book Review: Hide and Seek by Mary Burton

This reminded me why I like this author. It is a good thriller with romance.
Hide and Seek
By Mary Burton
Narrated By: Christina Traister

Duration: 9 h 57 min
Release date: 04-23-19
Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Genre: Mystery, Police Procedural, Romantic Suspense
My Rating: 4.25 of 5.0 Overall; Story 4.25; Narration 4.25.

Summary:
She’s hunting. He’s watching.
Special Agent Macy Crow is a survivor. After a vicious hit-and-run nearly kills her, she gets right back to work, and now she’s gunning for a spot on the FBI’s elite profiling team. As an audition, she offers to investigate the recently discovered bones of Tobi Turner, a high school girl who disappeared fifteen years ago.
While investigating with local sheriff Mike Nevada, a former colleague and onetime lover, Macy discovers a link between Tobi’s case and several others that occurred around the same time as her disappearance. As Macy interviews victims and examines old cases, she uncovers a sinister picture of a stalker who graduated to sexual assault—and then murder.
Macy and Nevada race to put this monster behind bars before he can come out of hiding. But the murderer’s had years to hone his skills, and soon Macy herself becomes a target. She’s no stranger to pain and terror, but will Macy’s first profiling case be her last?

Review:
Special Agent Macy is still recovering from a hit and run but she is persistent that she wants to get back to work at the FBI. She hops to get a spot on the FBI’s elite profiling team. She is approved to investigate a recently discovered body of a teenage girl who disappeared fifteen years ago. Macy will be investigating with local sheriff, Mike Nevada, with whom she has a short history.

Very quickly Macy connects the death of the teen with other cases of death and rape that occurred in the same time period. Macy is building a profile that discovers that the perpetrator may still be attacking and killing young women of the same type. As Macy and Nevada push to interview those close to the disappearances fifteen years earlier, they are clearly stirring up facts some community members don’t want stirred.

Then the killer strikes the investigation team and it is clear that Macy is his next target. Will the team be able to uncover the criminal before he adds more trophies to his collection?

I enjoyed the suspense and profiling aspects of this story. The author created a mystery with good suspects and peripheral accomplices. Meanwhile, the relationship between Macy and Nevada is developed nicely. This story felt like it might be part of a series, and I searched to find it is Criminal Profiler #4. I am glad that I revisited this author after many years and I will be glad to pick up more of her titles. I recommend this author and book to fans of police procedural and romantic suspense.

Audio Notes: I enjoyed the narration by Christina Traister. She provided distinct voices and energy that fit the story. I had some concern that parts of the audio seemed to get louder at times, but I would put that on production, rather than the narrator. I still enjoyed the audio and would listen to more stories narrated by Ms. Traister.

Source: 9/22/19 Audiobooks.com Two for One Credit. This qualifies for 2022TBR, 2022Audiobook, and 2022Alphabet goals.

Audible Book Review: October Mourning: a Song for Matthew Shepard, by Lesléa Newman

This is a beautiful and evocative work.
OCTOBER MOURNING:
A SONG FOR MATTHEW SHEPARD
by Lesléa Newman, Narrated by Emily Beresford, Luke Daniels, Tom Parks, Nick Podehl, Kate Rudd, Christina Traister (Brilliance Audio)

• 1.25 hrs. • Unabridged • © 2012
Genre: LGBT issues, Poetry; Teen & YA
My Rating: 4.5 of 5.0 Overall; Story 4.5; Narration 4.5.

On October 6, 1998, Matthew Shepard, a gay 21-year-old student at the University of Wyoming, was viciously beaten, tied to a fence, and left to die. Author Newman’s intimate reaction to this tragedy, a heartrending collection of 68 poems, is narrated by an outstanding cast. The narrators expertly carry the weight of the poems, excelling on verses that combine more than one voice. The poems present unique perspectives, including those of the fence, the moon, the road, even Matthew’s cat. Beautifully articulated, the quiet spaces in each poem add to the emotion, evoking a vast starry sky of memory and loss not soon to be forgotten. Intense, moving, and haunting—a must-listen for ages 14+. E.A.B. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award, 2013 Audies Finalist, SYNC 2014 © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine [Published: OCTOBER 2012]

Review:
I am sorry I had not listened to this sooner. The author, Lesléa Newman, is a feminist and activist for gay rights. She was in Wyoming to speak on campus the night that Matthew Shepard was brutally beaten and left to die. Although she was a stranger to the campus and to Shepard, her compassionate heart shared the trauma and loss that impacted the community. After reflection, she voiced her feelings in this collection of poems. The poems range in perspectives from the victim to the assailants, the fence, the rope, the moon, and the sky. The poems evoke sorrow, anger, and disbelief. The works are beautiful and evocative, and I was greatly impressed, especially when you add the narration.

Audio Notes: These six narrators, Emily Beresford, Luke Daniels, Tom Parks, Nick Podehl, Kate Rudd, Christina Traister, did an awesome job with the poems. They read the poems separately and occasionally jointly or in sequence. The presentation adds to the haunting and sometimes breathtaking prose. I highly recommend this audio work.

Source: 2014 SYNC Free Audio. This qualifies for 2019TBR and 2019Audiobook goals.