cover image Shoot Him if He Runs

Shoot Him if He Runs

Stuart Woods, , read by Tony Roberts. . Penguin Audio, $29.95 (0pp) ISBN 978-0-14-314246-1

Tony Roberts shows off his comedic and dramatic skills in Woods's newest addition to the Stone Barrington saga. The elegant cop-turned-lawyer's new adventure has a welcome lightheartedness. He, his crime-fighting paramour, Holly, and their friends Dino and Genevieve fly to the Caribbean island of St. Marks on a sub-rosa assignment from the CIA to find a homicidal rogue agent rumored to be living in disguise on the island paradise. Woods and Roberts guide us through what turns out to be mainly a lovely vacation for the quartet—with cocktails, elaborate dinners and brisk swims along sparkling white sandy nude beaches marred by an assassination or two and a few anxious moments at the hands of the island's police chiefs. The result is more diverting than thrilling, with Roberts adding considerably to the overall entertainment value via his sly use of amusing British, French and clipped East Coast American accents. One of the nasty police chiefs, for example, sounds suspiciously like Peter Sellers's irrepressible Inspector Clouseau. Simultaneous release with Putnam hardcover (Reviews, Aug. 6). (Oct.)