SPEAKING IN TONGUES

A master narrator can sometimes transform a good-but-not-great book into an outstanding audiobook. Such is the case with Speaking in Tongues. Renowned psychologist Aaron Mathews is bent on destroying the family of Tate Collier, the prosecutor whose brilliant but sophistical arguments resulted in the conviction and death of Mathews’s mentally troubled son. The book’s women are its most interesting characters, although the author focuses on Tate Collier’s internal struggle against the “con man” in his own personality, a theme that is difficult to take seriously. Gardner’s uniquely riveting voice and intelligent reading perfectly convey the seductive verbal skills of the two male adversaries. K.C. © AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine [Published: AUG/ SEP 01]