2. Dark of Day - Barbara Parker

Audiobook read by Elizabeth S. Rogers (beautifully)
BBC Audiobooks America, 2008
10 unabridged cds
11 hrs. 59 minutes
352 pgs.
Rating: 5

I listened to this on the train trip from Boston to Harrisburg, then on the plane from Dallas to Tucson, finishing up this morning as I knit many rows onto Brian's blanket. I figured out most of it quite early, the whodunit and the "secrets" that the protagonist kept, but it was told - and read- beautifully. The usual whodunit, the usual love-in-the-making story, typical good guys and bad guys....grittiness, not coziness...all that I love in a mystery. I read Barbara Parker's first Suspicion series book years ago on a 30-hour car ride to Florida, and remember it (I don't remember too many details, usually) because I liked the way that she told the story. She died last March at the age of 62 after "a long illness." Too bad.

This story is about a lawyer, C. J. Dunn, who works and is friends with the rich and famous of Miami. She knows how to manipulate the media to help her clients - and this is why she's hired to keep a U. S. Congressman, Paul Shelby's, name out of the papers when there's a possibility he'll be linked to the murder of a pretty actress wannabe, Alana Martin. Her actual client is Rick Slater, Shelby's chauffeur. An unlikely chauffeur, to be sure, his past is in the army and security. Of course, a bond forms between C.J. and this rough, tough cutie. A young friend of Alana's also takes a strong role, as well as C.J.'s best friend and investigator, Judy. Although there are lots of subplots and dips in the road, the story is easy to follow and interesting. It also showcases the rich and famous lifestyle of Miami.

Think it's time to get started (or REstarted) on the Suspicion series. And I've never been to Miami. That's where DEXTER is set. Next year's summer road trip???