BARK OF NIGHT Andy Carpenter, Book 19

Listening to Grover Gardner narrating a David Rosenfelt novel is like sliding into favorite slippers at the end of a long day: One feels the joyful gratification of a perfect fit. This 19th installment in the Andy Carpenter whodunit series will not disappoint fans. Gardner injects the famous defense lawyer with chipper determination and plenty of self-deprecating humor as he is dragged into another case alongside his golden retriever sidekick, Tara. An apparently healthy French bulldog is dropped at Tara's vet with instructions for euthanasia, and Andy, incensed, pursues fishy details. The culprit's story is told in his own chapters, capably rendered by Gardner in a more masculine but still natural tone. Gardner might just be a dog-loving audiophile's second-best friend. N.M.C. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine [Published: SEPTEMBER 2019]