Final Theory

Alpert displays a knack for combining science and literature in his latest novel, a rousing adventure in which protagonist David Swift races against the clock to uncover Einstein's unified field theory, which he believes the physicist actually did discover and then hid for fear that it would lead to even more destructive power than the atomic bomb. With an abundance of international figures added to the mix, the story is a high-energy thriller that demands a gifted narrator. Sadly, Adam Grupper reads with a little too much energy, overplaying nearly every role with absurd accents and a desperate tone. The result is a plot that seems farfetched and a production that fails to satisfy. L.B. (c) AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine

June 2, 2008
Alpert's extensive scientific knowledge, combined with his love of literature, make his latest novel a truly thrilling and engaging experience. In what can be described as a The Da Vinci Code for Einstein enthusiasts, Alpert twists fact and fiction and takes his readers on a sprawling epic adventure. Sadly, Adam Grupper overplays his narrator role, reading with an almost synthetic urgency in which his voice takes on an annoying, high pitched urgency as if every word were crucial to the plot. His Eastern European dialect is about as realistic as Boris and Natasha from "The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show." Grupper seems desperate to capture the reader's attention immediately and put them on the edge of their seats until the very end, but unfortunately it fails. A Touchstone hardcover (Reviews, Mar. 24).