Among La Plante's Best

I am frankly surprised that Lynda La Plante has received so many writing awards (including a couple of Television Emmys). She is never going to be confused with Conan-Doyle, Christie, or Hammett - nor included in the modern pantheon with Patterson, Connelly, and Gardner. Her imagination is prolific and she plots and paces Crime Thrillers admirably.. but La Plante's writing is a little too "commercial" and she has an odd talent for creating uniquely unlikable characters.

This one features Governor (Warden) 'Helen Hewitt' - a typical La Plante feminist/progressive protagonist (who is, of course, the target of headshaking institutional/societal misogyny🙄) - who takes over the management of a nightmarish British prison on a par with anything seen on 'Oz'.
Fortunately, La Plante decides this time to make her main character supportable (legit unjustly a "token" female & political pawn at the mercy of the Department Of Corrections bureaucracy) and human (getting drunk with colleagues, making occasional bad decisions, and frequently lonely).
Refreshingly, this is a La Plante sleuth that I could empathize with and cheer on - making the investigation(s) more captivating.

The book is set up as a series of occurences in the experiences of this newly-promoted young female Warden managing the incarceration of 550 all-male inmates at HMP Barfield (including a couple who are genuinely "evil"), rebuilding a facility nearly destroyed in a riot, and dealing with openly hostile unscrupulous/dirty prison guards
..and the format works very well.
This chronicle doesn't have the structure of a "novel" - rather presenting a story arc that reminded me of a season of a Television Program.

The combination of an uncommonly laudable character (by La Plante standards), an interesting storytelling matrix, and the author's typically capable vocabulary/prose/dialogue yields a most enjoyable read.

Narrator Lucy Price Lewis clearly enjoys this offering, too: her tone is undeniably interested and emotive. Price Lewis is (as always) professional with regards to diction, timbre, cadence, and pacing - but has a marvelous voice-acting repertoire on this project.. and delivers that striking tone.
In toto, the performance is far above-average.

This imperfect but impressive audiobook rates 8.5 stars out of 10. The "Mystery" elements are notably lacking, but the ingredients of a "Crime-Thriller" are delivered with style. I got the book as a 'Plus' option - but even if they asked for a Credit, it would be worth it.

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