DEVIL IN A BLUE DRESS

Narrator Michael Boatman's ability to transition smoothly through a range of accents and from dialogue to description is showcased in the opening scene, in which Texas-born Ezekiel "Easy" Rawlins talks with a gravelly voiced barkeep and a soft-spoken Southern man in a bar in 1948 Watts. Rawlins, recently laid off, hesitatingly agrees to track down the beautiful blue-eyed Daphne, who has a penchant for jazz. When his activities make him a murder suspect, listeners can sense Rawlins's fear and anger during the police interrogation and then his growing confidence as he starts to get the hang of being an investigator. Boatman's inflections accentuate the various roles that make up Rawlins's character—from loyal friend to proud homeowner, from victim of prejudice to crafty survivor. C.B.L. 2010 Audies Finalist © AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine [Published: JULY 2010]