Audio

Audiobooks are reviewed. One example is Frog Music by Emma Donoghue. Set in 1876 San Francisco, this historical novel by Donoghue is a departure from her last book (Room). Compared to that work, Frog Music feels overstuffed, and the narrative time frame, jumping back and forth as it does, can leave the listener confused. Based on the real-life unsolved murder of Jenny Bonnet, the story has more than enough squalor and moral depredation to go around, as Jenny's friend Blanche Beunon attempts to solve the crime while at the same time straightening out her own life. While the narration by Khristine Hvam is top-notch, in the end what could have been a fast-paced crime story ends up bogged down in the (albeit interesting) details.