THE NIGHT OCEAN

Elisabeth Rodgers gives a nuanced reading of this multilayered audiobook. She modulates her tone, and varies her cadence and delivery to effect the different voices of the men and women who populate the fascinating world of this novel, which moves from the 1930s and '40s to the present. Her understated approach works well to elucidate a complex plot that begins with a presumptive suicide and travels back in time as a kind of roman à clef with the late horror writer H.P. Lovecraft at its center. She sure-handedly delivers the literary intrigue that keeps the listener engrossed. La Farge's novel has atmosphere to spare, and Rodgers's superb narration makes the listener want to seek out more of his work. A.D.M. © AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine [Published: OCTOBER 2017]