QUICKSAND

Saskia Maarleveld expertly teases out the many questions swirling around this story's unreliable teen narrator. Charged with involvement in a school shooting at an elite private school in Stockholm, Maja is initially unlikable. But Maarleveld coaxes out the audiobook's nuances, capturing Maja's emotional shifts from petty scorn to longing uncertainty to a dawning sense of responsibility and its limits. Framed as a court case, the audiobook includes helpful time stamps--such as "week one of trial"--that orient listeners as Maja's monologue weaves through time retrieving vignettes and insights that complicate an easy take on what happened. This absorbing psychological study unfolds as an intimate confession to the reader. Maja may not win our affection, but Maarleveld's skillful narration ensures that she gains our understanding. J.C.G. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine [Published: APRIL 2017]