Following Christopher Creed

Four years ago, high school junior Christopher Creed disappeared from the sleepy town of Steepleton without a trace. Now a body has been unearthed in the woods, and Mike Mavic, a college journalist who senses his big break, arrives on the scene. He traverses Steepleton, interviews major players in Creed’s story, and observes the “bad frequency” that pervades the town. While action dominated The Body of Christopher Creed (2000), psychology takes center stage in Carol Plum-Ucci’s sequel (2011, both Harcourt).  Mike ruminates on his own past, which eerily parallels Creed’s. A somewhat dull stretch of interviews dominates much of the book; fortunately, a masterfully twisted ending comes to the rescue, ensuring that listeners will race back to earlier passages to find well-laid clues. Nick Cordero’s narration is flat. Conversations, monologues, and Mike’s inner thoughts are all conveyed in identically even tones that do not reflect textual punctuation or characterization. A voice described in the text as “breathy and little” sounds exactly like everyone else—balanced and untroubled. Even Justin, Creed’s drug-using, emotionally upended brother, sounds calm and collected. Conversations are difficult to follow; this is especially frustrating in a mystery, when listeners want to know who is speaking at all times. Instead, recommend these better narrated psychological thrillers: Monster (2007) by Walter Dean Myers, narrated by a full cast, and Jay Asher’s 13 Reasons Why (2007, both Listening Library), read by Debra Wiseman and Joel Johnstone.–Allison Bruce, Berkeley Carroll School, Brooklyn, NY