THOSE BEYOND THE WALL

Angel Pean sounds young, sweet, and tough as nails in her impressive narration of this second novel by the author of the Earphones Award-winning sci-fi debut THE SPACE BETWEEN WORLDS. Set on an alternate, perhaps future, Earth, where Wiley City residents guard their walled community from gritty Ashtown, this is both a thriller and social commentary. Scales is a mechanic and warrior who is trusted by Ashtown's emperor. When Ashtown residents start to be mysteriously murdered, she is tasked with stopping the crimes. Honeyed tones and audible bravado make Scales achingly real as she faces all manner of threats, which Pean performs with edge-of-your-seat pacing. A growling emperor, condescending scientist, straightlaced colleague, and other characters contrast evocatively with Scales, raising listeners' involvement with this fierce morality tale. A.C.S. © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine [Published: MARCH 2024]