Secrets of a Fire King: Stories

Edwards's debut collection features 11 beguiling, exquisitely crafted tales of transformation and the challenges of love. Bernadette Dunne provides deep emotional nuance to her reading, conveying precisely the awe of a first-time skydiver, the quiet desperation of an Asian mail-order bride or the surprise and jealousy of an old-guard colonialist wife meeting a modern-minded newcomer. Still, where on the page Edwards's writing springs to life and exerts a peculiar magic over the reader, here it's somewhat diminished, less captivating and singular. The stories have impressively diverse and realistically described settings, some reaching back in time by a century, others taking place on the other side of the world, but apart from the occasional use of a light French or British accent, Dunne's presentation does not vary with the stories, so after a while they begin to blend together. Listeners will appreciate Dunne's skillful handling of Edwards's poetic prose, but the production lacks any real sparks that would illuminate and complement the author's achievement of imagination in conjuring such different worlds so convincingly. A Penguin paperback (Reviews, Feb. 25, 1997).