Skillful expressive narration adds dimension to Four Blind Mice, a thriller by James Patterson.

Detective Alex Cross is considering retirement at the beginning of Four Blind Mice, especially since the family matriarch, Nana, is starting to feel her mortality. Then his partner, John Sampson, comes to him with a problem. A good friend of his, a decorated Army officer, is facing execution for a brutal and bizarre mass murder. The man maintains his innocence, and while there is evidence to support his plea, it seems to be disregarded or suppressed.

Cross begins to investigate and discovers similar cases with similar outcomes. When he continues to dig deeper, he finds himself stonewalled by the Army bureaucracy and worse, in the sights of the killers themselves.

Peter Jay Hernandez gives a warm, rich and expressive reading of the story from Cross's perspective. The narration switches over to Michael Emerson when the story is from the perspective of the murderers, and his spare, cool delivery is thoroughly chilling. Together, the pair brings Patterson's novel to life.

If you want a gripping and engrossing thriller to liven up your commute, look no farther than Four Blind Mice by James Patterson.

- Rambles
written by Donna Scanlon
published 20 December 2003