The Player

Starred review from June 30, 2014
Verner’s lively narration makes for an entertaining ride for the fifth novel in Parks’s series chronicling the adventures of Newark Star-Ledger reporter Carter Ross. The story centers on a shady urban renewal project plagued by environmental misdeeds and cover-ups, as a sordid family conflict surrounding a recently murdered real estate developer unfolds. Verner brings a compelling first-person voice to the protagonist Ross, who finds himself juggling the caper with the demands of his complicated love life and the stresses of print journalism in an increasingly digital age. Verner’s tone conveys both Ross’s earnest commitment to try to do right by his conflicting obligations and his sometimes bumbling nature. The juicy cast of characters provides Verner with ample opportunities to shine. His turn as the murdered developer’s gruff father—an aging slum lord with a few tricks up his sleeve—is especially memorable. A Minotaur hardcover.

Narrator Adam Verner captures the essence of newspaper reporter Carter Ross: slick talking but charmingly dumpy, eager to break the next great story, and willing to compromise in order to do the right thing for the underdog. Ross sniffs a potential story when a tipster calls to complain about residents of an underprivileged neighborhood becoming seriously ill. Verner shines in his restrained portrayal of the sharp African-American young woman who provokes Ross to investigate. Ross suspects an environmental hazard at the adjacent construction site, which may have a mob connection. The weighty aspects of this story about chemically caused disease and local government cover-ups are balanced by Verner's warm delivery of Ross's self-deprecating humor. N.M.C. © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine