SUFFER THE CHILDREN

In grim tones, narrator R.C. Bray exposes the creeping horror of DiLouie's novel. Throughout the world, Herod syndrome gradually converts children into bloodthirsty parasites, leaving their parents to source blood for them or allow them to die. Suburban Michigan serves as the epicenter of DiLouie's psychological pressure cooker. As families alter their morality to fit the new world order, Bray's fatalistic narration edges listeners toward uncomfortable revelations and unspeakable acts done in the name of parental love. His descriptions of back alley bloodletting will have listeners cringing in all the right places. Bray's voicings are weakest with children--their squawking or whining timbre fails to engender the necessary pathos. Nonetheless, DiLouie's ominous mood mounts as Bray layers conflicting motivations into a seamless whole. C.A. 2015 Audies Finalist © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine [Published: FEBRUARY 2015]