The Ever-Running Man

Susan Ericksen's clear voice and direct delivery make this 25th Sharon McCone mystery top-notch. With a pleasing tone and hearty enthusiasm, Ericksen deftly presents the essential background for new listeners. Now married to Hy Ripinsky, the CEO of an international security firm, PI McCone is asked to look into a series of bombings that threaten to destroy his company. It's not long before McCone has uncovered buried secrets, which threaten her relationship with Hy. Marcia Muller's plotting is swift, her characters, strong, and Ericksen's narration makes it all ring true. While it's not necessary to have listened to Muller's earlier McCone books, doing so will make this one even more enjoyable. S.J.H. (c) AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine

Starred review from May 7, 2007
A
fter 25 books in 30 years, the novelty of a female private eye such as MWA Grand Master Muller's Sharon McCone has worn off, but McCone has only gained luster since her original appearance in Edwin of the Iron Shoes
(1977). The San Francisco investigator is in top form as she unravels a case that may unravel her marriage. When Renshaw & Kessell International, a maverick corporate security firm dealing in contingency plans for kidnappings and hostage situations, hires McCone after a series of bombings has damaged its facilities, she starts by looking into the checkered pasts of the firm's co-owners. Readers may find the collateral damage that threatens to tear apart McCone's private life as involving as the search for the bomber, who soon moves from demolition to murder. Muller delivers the complete package, an absorbing mystery with a familiar and evolving cast and enough grit to give it satisfying substance.