Stabenow, Dana. Blindfold game.

STABENOW, Dana. Blindfold game. Read by Bernadette Dunne. 8 cds. 9.5 hrs. Books on Tape. 2006. 1-4159-2599-2. $57.60. Vinyl; plot notes. SA

This timely thriller features Sarah, an officer in the US Coast Guard and second-in-command of the cutter Sojourner Truth currently patrolling the Bering Sea, and her husband, Hugh, a CIA analyst. Both grew up in Alaska. When Hugh hears rumors that quantities of radioactive cesium have been purchased in Russia, he suspects that a terrorist strike against his home state may be brewing. Unfortunately, the CIA head, an incompetent blowhard, refuses to take him seriously, and he must act pretty much on his own. Meanwhile, a freighter loaded with containers has set out from a Russian port across the Bering Sea. One of the containers has the cesium dirty bomb and the terrorists concealed inside. The plot switches between Hugh's attempts to discover and stop the freighter, and Sarah aboard the Sojourner Truth. Careful and convincing details of the far northern geography and weather and life on a Coast Guard cutter on patrol add interest and authority to the story.

Reader Dunne gives an all-out, practically fully voiced performance, using a variety of accents and tonal qualities to depict men, women, and children. At times her efforts seem strained, as she must change quickly from one character to another, but she keeps the suspense high and the pace fast at all times, which is what really matters in audio adventure novels. Pat Dole, Richmond, VA

S--Recommended for senior high school students.

A--Recommended for advanced students and adults. This code will help librarians and teachers working in high schools where there are honors and advanced placement students. This also will help extend KLIATT's usefulness in public libraries.