A GORGEOUS EXCITEMENT

Rebecca Lowman gives a wondrous performance of this debut audiobook inspired by the real-life 1980s "Preppy Murder" case. In the Upper East Side neighborhood filled with WASPs where she lives, 18-year-old Nina Jacobs, who is Jewish, is spending the summer before college with her friends, drinking and experimenting with cocaine. She is drawn to the preppy, seemingly perfect Gardner Reed. She is also grappling with her bipolar mother. Lowman is fully up to the challenge of subtly distinguishing a large cast of mostly young adults. She shines as Nina, whose longing for connection is poignantly rendered. Lowman's propulsive narration transports listeners to an earlier era as she splendidly portrays a young woman whose choices are shaped by misfortune and family trauma. M.J. © AudioFile 2025, Portland, Maine [Published: MARCH 2025]