THE BOSS

Black Eyes, a hush-hush project for finding deep oil beds, promises billions to the charismatic CEO of Gulf-Tex, Spin Patterson. Patterson wants to announce Black Eyes before it's ready, so Gulf-Tex stock will skyrocket. When his protégé, Max McClennon, stumbles across the truth, he sets out to expose Patterson's corruption. Robertson Dean's performance is intense, heightening improbable situations and one-dimensional characters, never letting the listener down, whether in fierce action sequences or torrid sex scenes. While there are fascinating details about the oil industry, oil rigs, and the roughnecks who work them, Dean's reading is the best reason to listen to this story of high-stakes oil investing, egomaniacal power, lust, and murder. S.J.H. © AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine [Published: APR/ MAY 07]