Turning Angel

By: Greg Iles

Narrated by: Dick Hill

Length: 17 hrs and 37 mins

Publisher's summary

Turning Angel marks the long-awaited return of Penn Cage, the lawyer hero of The Quiet Game, and introduces Drew Elliott, the highly respected doctor who saved Penn's life in a hiking accident when they were boys.

As two of the most prominent citizens of Natchez, Drew and Penn sit on the school board of their alma mater, St. Stephen's Prep. When the nude body of a young female student is found near the Mississippi River, the entire community is shocked - but no one more than Penn, who discovers that his best friend was entangled in a passionate relationship with the girl and may be accused of her murder.

On the surface, Kate Townsend seems the most unlikely murder victim imaginable. A star student and athlete, she'd been accepted to Harvard and carried the hope and pride of the town on her shoulders. But like her school and her town, Kate also had a secret life - one about which her adult lover knew little.

When Drew begs Penn to defend him, Penn allows his sense of obligation to override his instinct and agrees. Yet before he can begin, both men are drawn into a dangerous web of blackmail and violence. Penn finds himself doubting his friend's motives and searching for a path out of harm's way.

More dangerous yet is Shad Johnson, the black district attorney whose dream is to send a rich white man to death row in Mississippi. At Shad's order, Drew is jailed, the police cease hunting Kate's killer, and Penn realizes that only by finding Kate's murderer himself can he save his friend's life.

With his daughter's babysitter as his guide, Penn penetrates the secret world of St. Stephen's, a place that parents never see, where reality veers so radically from appearance that Penn risks losing his own moral compass. St. Stephen's is a dark mirror of the adult world, one populated by steroid-crazed jocks, girls desperate for attention, and jaded teens flirting with nihilism. And hidden among them all is one true psychopath.

©2005 Greg Iles (P)2005 Brilliance Audio

Great Story about delicate sex topics

At middle age, Penn Cage continues to be a strong character, combining high morals with a realistic attitude. He is not shocked by teen behavior, but more surprised that the teens in the story are really more adult than he is sometimes. This book is not for prudes. It is not particularly graphic, but does address teenage sex in a surprising way, including the beauty that can exist between a teenage girl and a much older man. One of the best quotes is spoken by a teenage girl addressing some of the more sexual behavior of teenagers "This is not the 80's anymore." What happened to "this is not the Victorian Age"? I was never a prude myself, but I always considered my own behavior to be a little more aggressive than most. Listening to this book, I find I am a little behind the times when compared to teenagers today. The delving into drugs and drug parties among teenagers also reminds us that "This is not the 80's anymore." The story is entertaining, but a little too long, so it drags in spots. It could be cut down by 25% and still have the same entertainment value. If you are offended by hearing the commonality of drugs and sex, you might pass on this book. Violence, although somewhat extensive for this small town, takes a back seat to the moral issues presented by drugs, sex and an affair with a much older man.

love love love

by happenstance I started the Penn cage books. I like southern fiction but not necessarily crime I began with The Bone Tree. then Natchez Burning. now this one. altho u don't have to read them in order, i now want to go back and reread them as so because i am sure there are some subplots that I missed. This book was just as good as the others. It was quick paced, unpredictable, great character development, emotionally stimulating, thought provoking; and, the narrator reminds me of Matthew McConoughy which is a definite plus. I didn't want this book to end.

Good storytelling

This reader is not my favorite but did a good job. I enjoyed Tom Stechschulte from The Quiet game better. I love all the books that Greg Iles that I have listened to and read. I look forward to the next one.

Least favorite of all, but not a bad book

I've been reading all of the books in this series, although not in order because of the way they were listed. I was told that this was a trilogy........come to find out there are more than three books in this trilogy........lol.

Let me begin by saying that all of the narrators reading this series have been quite good, including Dick Hill, the reader for this book.

I have thoroughly enjoyed the location, story line and characters, and complicated history and politics in this part of the south and I have learned a lot since I have never lived in the South. Especially love the fact that Iles' books are nice and long. I have already read four or five in this series and this particular book was my least favorite. Have just begun reading THE DEVIL'S PUNCHBOWL and was just told that IT was the third in the series. Hoping that this series continues for a while and it hasn't hurt a thing reading them out of order. Thank you, Mr. Iles for the wonderful entertainment. Keep up the good work and aloha.

great book!

loved it! it's well written and up there between Lee Child and John Grisham. The narrator just the spot too.

Great Book but AWFUL NARRATION

I'm a HUGE fan of Greg Iles but the narration by Dick Hill is AWFUL. All of sniffling and snorting is annoying and distracting!!! It's NOT necessary for us to understand what is going on with the story!!!

Times they are a changing....

I consider myself open minded but this book really got me to thinking about relationships and what is exceptable to me. The story line deals with the relationship between an adult Dr. and a high school student and had me thinking are young adults of today really this open when it comes to sexuality? Although the story line had me thinking "really" in several places, it was tastefully done and not trashy by any means. This was book 2 in the Penn Cage series and like the 1st book, this one also has moments that were a bit unrealistic. This narrator was not as good as the narrator of the 1st book but this point did not take away from the story. I am looking forward to the 3rd book to see what subject matter this captivating author turns to next!

Great story!

The reader was exceptional and enhanced the enjoyment of the novel. I was captivated by the plot and the characters. I will be reading or listening to more books in this series.

Exciting!

Loved it! Had me exclaiming out loud! Dick Hill does a great job narrating! The story kept me on the edge of my seat!

Great book - my first for Greg Iles

I'm not sure who suggested Greg Iles' books with the Penn Cage character, but I'm thrilled to find this author. I was interested from beginning to end. The characters were engaging and complex. Even the ones that I didn't like were compelling. I'm going to read Natchez Burning sometime in the next few months. I'm hooked.

This is another book of The Winter of Listening to my Friends' and Family's Suggestions. It's been a great change of pace. Thanks to everyone who made suggestions I'll be carrying this forward a couple of more months.