AFTER DEATH

Security guard Michael Mace dies in a catastrophic lab accident and wakes up alongside his dead co-workers in a makeshift morgue. Koontz's latest thriller is superbly narrated by Edoardo Ballerini. Mace is stunned to learn he now has a superpower: With his mind he can tap into and manipulate any electronic data system in the world. Narrating largely from Mace's point of view, Ballerini portrays him as an unflappable, stoic loner who helps a single mother and her son escape the grasp of the boy's father, a vicious L.A. gangbanger. In a parallel story, Mace finds himself being hunted down by Durand Calaphas, a government agent who relishes murdering people. Ballerini's performance of the cat-and-mouse game between Mace and Calaphas is riveting. S.D.B. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine [Published: JUNE 2023]