THE VIKING FUNERAL

LAPD Sergeant Shane Scully is fresh off a case for which his girlfriend, Alexa, a rising star in the department, received the Medal of Valor while he received a psychiatric evaluation. When Shane runs into his best friend, who committed suicide two years previously, he sets in motion an investigation that will lead to a money-laundering scheme involving crooked cops, American tobacco shipments, and South American drug lords. The fast pace of this rollicking drama is hampered by poor sound quality. Dick Hill's high, breathy female voices are sufficient without making them overly soft. Hill has a wonderful knack for accents, but the overall quality of the production suffers when the volume drops at crucial moments. E.J.F. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine [Published: AUG/SEP 02]