HIDDEN DEPTHS Vera Stanhope, Book 3

Narrator Anne Dover does a sublime job portraying Detective Inspector Vera Stanhope in the third installment of this eight-part series. When Julie Armstrong returns home from a night out, she's horrified to find her son, Luke, drowned in the bathtub and covered with flowers. Convincing descriptions of the majestic Northumberland seaside; the overweight, poorly dressed, alcoholic Stanhope; and her fit, dapper assistant, Joe Ashworth, paint vivid pictures for listeners. Dover is at her most moving as the grieving mother who blames herself and as the tough but compassionate policewoman. The two partners, Stanhope's and Ashworth, have immense respect for each other, and Dover captures it in their dialogue. Listeners will be further engaged by hearing Stanhope's thoughts and the resolute questioning of secretive suspects as the story zeroes in on an unexpected but logical perpetrator. S.G.B. © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine [Published: APRIL 2018]