In Sunlight or in Shadow: Stories Inspired by the Paintings of Edward Hopper

In this thematic short story collection, 17 writers—including Lee Child, Jeffery Deaver, and Joyce Carol Oates—imagine back stories to paintings by American realist painter Hopper. The resulting tales are a diverse gathering of dark noir-tinged tales exploring the deep complexities of the human condition. Nine voice actors give life to the audio edition, each adding another layer of interpretation to the characters and plots set down by the writers. Highlights include Hillary Huber’s reading of Megan Abbott’s “Girlie Show,” a chronicle of a declining relationship between a wife and her artist husband, which Huber delivers with a calculated coolness. Chris Ciulla brings the character of Harry Bosch to life in Michael Connelly’s “Nighthawks,” a classic PI story in the Chandler tradition, and Arthur Morey is the perfect choice to relay Stephen King’s disturbingly ghoulish “The Music Room.” A CD containing images of the paintings adds to this multilayered, expertly produced audiobook. [em]A Pegasus hardcover. (Dec.) [/em]