Two Past Midnight: Secret Window, Secret Garden

When first confronted by John Shooter, famous novelist Mort Rainey sees him as nothing more than an avid, albeit slightly eccentric, fan. However, Shooter's accusation of plagiarism and his overbearing attitude of malevolence send Rainey scattering to prove his innocence. As Rainey's evidence disappears, his sanity and safety go along with it, and soon he is approaching a reckoning with the determined Shooter. Besides a few audible page turns, James Woods offers a compelling reading, eliciting the stress and anxiety building up in Rainey as he comes unraveled. There's a slightly whiny pitch to Woods's voice that also makes him a good match for Rainey. This 1991 recording (of a novella taken from King's Four Past Midnight) is making its belated debut on CD after 17 years, and throughout it has the recognizable light background hiss of an older recording.