The King of Lies

July 10, 2006
These days most novels are performed, not narrated. The skillful actors who have made audiobooks their art form take on multiple voices—male and female, old and young. Chandler's careful reading is generally disappointing. His lack of vocal range is all too obvious. Lawyer and murder suspect "Work" Pickens sounds exactly like his female nemesis, Detective Mills. Work's wife, Barbara, could be his brother. Oddly, the homeless Max, a minor player in this thriller, has the most distinctive voice. Another problem is that Chandler's performance is devoid of the lovely North Carolina lilt, which is an essential component of this novel, much as John Grisham's South looms large in his characters' psyches. Too frequently, Chandler seems to suffer from dry mouth as his tongue separates audibly from the roof of his mouth. Water, please! On a more positive note, Chandler reads Hart's delicious similes and clever phrasing with slow elegance. Hart's writing sparkles throughout, and this is a compelling story, one the reader won't turn off, despite a performance that doesn't matches the brilliance of the novel. Simultaneous release with the St. Martin's Minotaur hardcover (Reviews, Jan. 16).

Starred review from January 16, 2006
Hart's stunning debut, an exceptionally deep and complex mystery thriller, compares favorably to the best of Scott Turow. Jackson Workman Pickens, whom most people call "Work," is a struggling North Carolina criminal defense attorney. Work has wrestled with inner demons for most of his life, especially after the death of his mother and the disappearance of his wealthy father, Ezra Pickens, a highly successful lawyer who took him into his practice. Trapped in a loveless marriage and haunted by poor emotional choices and his sister's psychological trauma, Work finds himself under suspicion when his father's corpse surfaces more than a year after Ezra was last seen alive. Work's quest for the truth behind his father's demise opens old wounds and forces him to face the consequences of his own decisions. Few readers will be able to resist devouring this tour-de-force in one or two sittings—or clamoring for more John Hart. 75,000 first printing; 10-city author tour.

Considering all of the dark things he's experienced in his life, it's a wonder that "Work" Pickens, a defense attorney with a past, can even get out of bed in the morning. But rise he does, and David Chandler portrays Pickens's angst. Chandler's voice is strong and sure, but he reads with little emotion and seems to be as interested in getting through the book as he is in giving it depth. Some of the problem is that the author has stuffed this book with every cliché known to the legal thriller. Chandler is a decent narrator who deserves better material. R.I.G. (c) AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine