I Didn’t Do It

Hendricks’s newest mystery, following It Could Be Anyone, goes meta to explore the fallout from the murder of a beloved author at a thriller writers’ convention. After starting with a bang (actually, a stabbing,) this tightly plotted audio follows four authors attending Murderpalooza as they are targeted by an online stalker who uses the hashtag #nexttodie to reveal all their hidden secrets. An ensemble of narrators tackles the rotating points of view as the inevitable double-crosses and accusations begin. Catherine Ho is the standout as Suzanne, a newbie author convinced that she and the victim had a close friendship. Ho imbues Suzanne with the perfect aura of manic energy and a hint of menace. Emily Sutton-Smith voices midlist author Vicky as hopeful but jaded, seeing her chances to break out with her second novel slipping away. Kyle Burrow pulls double duty as Mike, a former A-list writer whose prestige has faded as his financial responsibilities have grown, and Davis, the newest publishing darling with an inflated ego. Burrow does his best to distinguish the two men’s narrations, but it leaves those chapters feeling somewhat stiff and stilted.