What We Lost in the Dark

Rebecca Gibel returns to narrate the second entry in Mitchard's young adult series about Allie Kim and her friends, all of whom suffer from xeroderma pigmentosum, a genetic disease that makes them fatally sensitive to the sun. Gibel reads Allie's first-person account with a consistent cadence and a good dose of earnestness, both of which quickly become tedious. Although there's plenty of action as Allie and Rob learn deep-water diving and continue to gather evidence that a famous geneticist was responsible for a friend's suicide, the plot is weakened by coincidences and excessive foreshadowing. Gibel's lackluster, somewhat stilted, performance makes it difficult for listeners to remain invested in this thriller despite a few emotionally wrenching scenes. C.B.L. © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine