This book may have ruined me for all other romances. I stayed up until 3 am because it is unputdownable. I am still stunned as I sit to write this more than a week later, but I will try to piece together something coherent to explain the ways in which this book moved me.
This is where I normally provide a quick summary of the plot. In this case, I cannot do that. Don’t read the back. Don’t read the blurb. Don’t read any other reviews. Just pick it up, and read. Trust me.
The first four chapters gave me full body chills. Chills. I had to put it down after that because it was already getting late and I knew if I started one more, I’d never put it back down. I stewed over what I’d read the whole next day until I felt brave enough to pick it back up, knowing it would knock me out, in one way or another. I was right. I didn’t put it back down until I’d read every last word.
This is a love story, and the stakes are sky high. It’s about the universe conspiring to bring two people together, as many times as it takes. It’s about enduring love, tragic love, protective love, and being there in the ways that count, even if it can’t always be physically.
It’s about bearing vulnerabilities and sacrificing what might have been for what one day could be. It’s about life, about loss, about holding onto the family you find in others, and letting go of the ones that hurt you. It’s about taking risks for those you love, and not holding grudges for all the little hurts, or the big ones either. It’s about patience, and fighting for what you know is real, even if you’re the only one who still believes it.
There is so much packed in these pages, and the longing and yearning and waiting is enough to bring you to your knees. It is shaped to pull you in and wring you out in all the best and worst ways. I’m not sure I’ve ever felt this way about a book, and I’m not sure I ever will again. It is something special, and I’ll carry it with me, always. I hope you’ll read it too.
Details
Title::In The Likely Event Author::Rebecca Yarros Genre::Contemporary Romance Publisher::Montlake Length::350 pages Audio Length::10h 30m Audiobook Narrator::Carly Robins, Teddy Hamilton Audiobook Publisher::Brilliance Audio Published::August 1st, 2023 The Litertarian Rating:: 5-Stars
Life doesn’t always follow the plan, no matter how carefully and passionately you’ve outlined it. Even when you’re on track, the details of what you have to suffer through on the way to the end of the rainbow are often so frustrating, it might drive you to madness. Goals are not accomplished on a straight line. It’s more like a line graph with wild ebbs and flows making it look more like a Richter Scale reading than an exponential curve to success. But all the little detours move you forward, even when they seem like a step back, and eventually you learn that happily ever after looks a little different than what you once dreamed.
Kat-Katie-Kat is chasing her dreams in London, working for a boss who is living a picture-perfect life. Demeter is everything Kat wants to be, except she’s also an aloof, often degrading, unapologetic bitch. Kat dreams of being a successful advertise marketer, but is struggling to get Demeter to notice she exists at all, let alone any of her design and campaign ideas. One day, a mystery man named Alex shows up needing help with a couple of things. Kat and Alex work well together, but when she finds out he’s one of the higher-ups, she realizes how out of her league he is. Then, she gets fired (not because of Alex). That was certainly not part of the plan. She’s on a desperate search for another job in her field, when her dad and step-mother call on her expertise to help launch their new glamping resort in the countryside. She’s afraid if she leaves London, she may never end up going back, but there are few other options unless she wants to sleep under a bridge in the name of staying put. The glamping endeavor gives Katie a chance to show off how great she is at her dream job. She’s so good, in fact, it accidentally draws in exclusivity-connoisseur Demeter and her family to stay. It is then Katie begins to see that a picture-perfect life isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be.
This book is far more than a romance. It’s an anthem. It is self-discovery and integrity and enlightenment. Katie’s story is at once a girl-boss-revenge story and a coming-of-age reinvention, with a dash of mean-girl-justice on the side.
I was surprised how much I loved this book. It has a depth that I wasn’t expecting. I expected another run-of-the-mill contemporary romance, but this was a book all about girl power and making the most of whatever opportunity is in front of you. And standing up for what’s right, even when you don’t have to. And…yeah, sure, some romance too. Katie’s is the kind of story that sticks with you because its lessons are so meaningful, and the whole thing is just so darned endearing.
This is the kind of story that leaves you with warm fuzzies. Read this if you’re looking for something to make you feel more empowered and uplifted. If you’re not looking for just-another-romance. If you enjoy Emily Henry books, or The Devil Wears Prada (goes glamping, lol). I hope you get as much enjoyment out of it as I did!
What is it about sports romance? As someone with no interest in athletics whatsoever, I never thought I’d enjoy reading them, but I got curious and picked one off of KU (Kindle Unlimited – no risk!) and just see. Well. Ahem. Since then, I’ve read my fair share, and – no one is more surprised to hear what I’m about to say than I am – they’re awesome.
Gigi Graham, daughter of legendary hockey phenom Garrett Graham, has her heart set on the Olympics. She’s played hockey her whole life and loves the sport. Trouble is, the national team is dragging their toes in finalizing their roster, and has hinted at her weaknesses behind the goal. Luke Ryder is the new co-captain of the men’s team, which recently merged with another (rival) college that went under. He’s had to work hard for everything his whole life, and is just hoping to not screw anything up for himself this last year of college. His reputation is hanging by a thread after an incident the year before. Garrett Graham is looking for a coach for a training camp he runs for youngsters, and Ryder wants the spot – badly enough to offer to help the renowned coach’s daughter to work on her hockey weaknesses in exchange for a good word with her dad. Sparks fly and secrets begin to pile up as Gigi and Ryder pursue the futures they’ve always dreamed of.
At almost 500 pages, you really get to sit in this story for awhile. For some, that might be a turnoff, but I almost always welcome large page counts, if the story supports them. Could it have been shorter? Of course. But with all the subplots introduced, the author really gives each their time in the sun and weaves through all the subtleties, creating a story just as complex as real life can be. And each thread was tied up nicely with a bow by the end. I was personally glad to have so much time with the characters.
This is the first book I’ve ever read of Elle Kennedy, but I’ve read this is the first book in a spinoff second-generation series. I like that idea. I’m assuming that Garret Graham was a hero of one of the first-generation books. He seems like he’d have been a great leading man back in the day *eyebrow wiggle*. I feel like there is enough of him in this book to satisfy fans of the previous series too. It’s always fun to see old characters make new story cameos, right?
I docked a star because the secrecy stretches on a little long for me. It kept coming up and I felt like I was reading the same we’re not ready to reveal ourselves yet over and over (maybe if it wasn’t spelled out so frequently it wouldn’t have bothered me as much). While I found this book compelling and entertaining and sweet, it was missing some deeper X-Factor for me I can’t quite put my finger on. All the elements were there, but it didn’t quite reach 5-star status for me (I don’t hand ’em out easy!).
I’d recommend this book for those who are big fans of sports romance, or are just looking for a good college romance to sink their teeth into for the summer. The great news is, if you like it, there are a lot more to keep you busy reading for some time to come!
The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren is a fun and hilarious quick summer read that will have you turning page after page to find out what happens next. From the get go, this book grabs hold of your attention and doesn’t let go until the third act, where I personally felt it had some problems. Not enough to ruin the entire effect though, and of course, we get our happy ending.
Olive is the unlucky twin. Cursed, really. Ami is the one who seems to get any and everything she wants. So when Olive is (almost) the only one who doesn’t get sudden and graphic food poisoning the night of Ami’s wedding, and is the only one who can redeem the honeymoon to Hawaii Ami won, it seems too good to be true. And it is. The only other person at the wedding who didn’t eat the tainted dinner, is the groom’s brother, Ethan — the one Olive has never gotten along with — and he’s taking his brother’s spot on the honeymoon trip. They’re reluctant to go together, but figure they can avoid each other and enjoy the tropics individually…that is, until they have a few run-ins with people they know and need to team up to navigate the complications.
This thing is built on tropes, folks. Enemies to lovers, misunderstandings, forced proximity, fake dating, one bed (it is the honeymoon suite after all) — I may even be missing a few. For me, sometimes the fake dating trope can be done real badly, but I think in this book the logic tracks, despite the extremely high likelihood they wouldn’t run into anyone they know there, let alone two such someones…in the same day. It may require a bit of suspension of disbelief, but if you can get there, the antics are pretty sweet.
It all works so well — until it doesn’t. When Ethan and Olive get back to real life and the unhoneymoon is over, things, of course, start to fall apart. I don’t want to spoil anything, but the third act conflict rubbed me the wrong way in this one. The trust between the two characters was broken (no cheating – can’t leave you guys hanging like that), and for me that’s hard to recover from. However, it was one of the more fun, funny, and entertaining books I’ve read this summer. Compelling, too. If you’re anything like me, you’ll fly through it. If you’re a fan of romantic comedy or just looking for a fun vacation read, this one is a great option!
Are you craving a sweet romance that will leave you with a big goofy smile? The Cheat Sheet series by Sarah Adams delivers on a low-stakes, pure bliss experience that serves as a perfect palette cleanser if you’ve been reading heavier things and need a little break. Did I mention there are sports? Because there’s just something about a good sports romance, amiright?
The Cheat Sheet
Bree and Nathan have been friends since high school. Both serious athletes, they take up running together to keep up their fitness. They stay fast friends through high school, until Bree has an accident that leaves her unable to continue her sport (ballet), and Nathan is off to college. They lose touch awhile, until they end up in the same town where Bree runs a dance studio & Nathan is a professional quarterback. They reconnect and take up their habit of running again, and it becomes a sacred tradition. All this time they’ve each harbored a secret crush on the other they are too afraid to pursue, because their friendship is such an integral part of their lives. But now, for the first time since they met, each of them are single at the same time, and Nathan doesn’t want to let the opportunity slip through his fingers. With the help of his friends, they create a cheat sheet of romantic ‘plays’ to try to woo the girl of his dreams.
The Rule Book
Being a sports agent has been Nora’s dream for as long as she can remember. Finally, in an industry dominated by men, she gets her chance to succeed – except her new (first) client is the one-who-got-away in college, (Nathan’s teammate) Derek Pender. She broke his heart, and now he’s out to punish her awhile before he drops her and gets a new agent – obviously there is a conflict of interest. Only thing is, Nora’s great at her job. In order to be professional, they make a set of ground rules to follow. But being near each other stirs up a lot of feelings, and after growing up a little more, they can recognize their own mistakes from the past. Will they be able to move forward as a team? Or will they need to part ways, for good this time?
Of the two, I rated The Cheat Sheet higher. Without giving anything away, The Rule Book used tropes that were a little too far-fetched to work well for me. The Cheat Sheet was so sweet and romantic, and I was just rooting for the two of them to be together. It was very low-stakes, and the only thing that bothered me was Bree’s inner monologue occasionally being a little too obnoxious. The Rule Book is a little more complex. Nora’s career is very much on the line, and Derek is holding onto a lot of anger from the past. The romance itself felt maybe more realistic (because of the complexity), but overall I just didn’t like it as much. They both have that Sarah Adams lighthearted tone, and while there is conflict, she never leaves you sweating for long.
They certainly fall into the romantic comedy umbrella. Plenty of antics ensue in both books of quirky situations the characters get themselves into that usually ultimately add to the romance. I found myself smiling so often while reading, and I honestly didn’t want to put them down!
The Cheat Sheet is completely spice free, and honestly? I didn’t even miss it. However, The Rule Book does have a dash of it. Both stories stand out to me as simply hopelessly romantic, not particularly sexy.
I like this series because I think it’s great for younger romance readers, and those who prefer less spice. Sometimes it’s nice to have something light and quick and enjoyable to read just for the joy of it. I’m learning Sarah Adams is a great place to turn to for that. I think When in Rome is still my favorite Sarah Adams book I’ve read though! It’s a celebrity small-town romance *swoon*.
Daphne’s fiancรฉ came back from his bachelor party weekend with a declaration of love on his lips. Unfortunately, it was for his childhood friend Petra, not her. She had packed up her entire life and moved to Michigan for the guy. She lived in the house he bought for them. And now? Now the only thing she has is her dream job as a children’s librarian…in the one place on earth she no longer wants to be. She has nowhere to go. Then Miles, Petra’s beau, shows up after he gets the NOTE she left him, ending their years long relationship. He wants answers, but they’re already long gone. Instead, he picks up a new roommate. Daphne & Miles are practical strangers, both mourning the death of relationships they’d put everything on the line for. In a bout of revenge, they decide to pretend they’ve found new love in each other. We know how the rest of the story goes, right? They grow closer, become true friends, help each other navigate the troubles in their lives, and the pesky little spark between them, once struck, refuses to die out.
The banter is top tier. Daphne and Miles get each other. The bond of friendship that anchors them is so genuine. They’re not just grieving together, they’re grieving the exact same thing. And when one of them is going through something rough, the other is there with immense support.
Although it is firmly inside romantic comedy territory, it has authentic depth that pulls the ol’ heartstrings. As Daphne sifts through the wreckage of her life to figure out what she even wants out of life, she has to really examine all the pieces of it. Would moving back ‘home’ solve any of her problems? Or is she just trying to run away…again?
In conclusion – drumroll please – I loved it. As far as Emily Henry goes, this ranks for me just under my favorite she’s written (Beach Read) for a solid runner-up. I loved Miles. I loved how he was revealed in layers, just a little bit at a time. I related so hard to Daphne in many ways. The difficulty of adult friendships, her self-doubt. Very little of this book felt tedious to get through (unlike Book Lovers, honestly). Although there were some things that bothered me, too.
The third act conflict was confusing and needlessly stressful (in my opinion). It stretched the bounds of my belief, but it wasn’t enough to ruin it for me.
The title. It’s explained in the opening anecdote, but other than that, it doesn’t feel like it applies in any meaningful way to the actual story. Not the only Emily Henry book to which this gripe applies though. Titles are hard. Hers are catchy. I get it.
It’s hard to go wrong with an Emily Henry book. She’s a sharp-witted writer with a modern style that is easy to read and lose yourself in. Her characters have so much complicated depth, and the narrative works long and hard to resolve their long-standing issues realistically. They’re more spunky than fluffy, and give you plenty of fodder to ruminate over long after the last pages are turned. I’d say of the four Henry’s I’ve read so far, for me this is a solid runner-up behind Beach Read (Happy Place settled at the rear).
Details
Title::Funny Story Author::Emily Henry Genre:: Romance Publisher::Berkley Length::395 pages Audio Length::11h 23m Audiobook Narrator::Julia Whelan Audiobook Publisher::Penguin Audio Published:: April 23rd, 2024 The Litertarian Rating:: 5-Stars
I’ve read a few Ali Hazelwood books. Love, Theoretically, Love on the Brain, The Love Hypothesis, Check & Mate — I was expecting Not in Love to be in a similar vein, but unlike the others, which are all romances and usually contain a pretty awkward sex scene or two, this book needs to come with a disclaimer:: This Book is Pure Porn. That being said, the underlying story between the orgasms is a decent story of revenge, personal growth, and lots of obsession.
Rue Seibert works in food security science for a pioneer woman in the field who founded her own company, Kline, so the university she worked for wouldn’t own her patent. Now Rue is on the cusp of needing her own patent, just when a finance company swoops in a buys up Kline’s loan. Rue’s hero believes they’ve come in to destroy everything she’s ever worked for, so they are enemy number one. But when Rue recognizes one of the finance guys from a recent hookup, and she learns more about her boss’ history with them, the lines of her allegiance start to blur.
So let’s just jump into it and talk about the sex. This is by far the sexiest (as in literally so much sex) Hazelwood story I’ve read so far – but I haven’t read them all, so can’t say for certain it has the most. Please, enlighten me in the comments. There’s a lot of it. I know I already said that like eight different ways, but really, you need to prepare yourself. If you took away the explicit sex scenes, there may be nothing more than a novella length story in front of you. This is erotica territory.
I couldn’t help but feel bad for the two main characters, who pretty much treat sex as a biological urge and nothing more. They use a sex app (not a dating app) to find others who just want to use each other’s bodies for pleasure. They are both so detached from their feelings that that’s all they think they want or can offer someone else. I guess it did leave room for them to grow, but it was an ick for me. Sex is more than just a physical connection. Or maybe I should say sex should be more than just a physical connection. But maybe that’s my age showing? It was uncomfortable to read so much of it, and the way Eli was obsessed with Rue kind of gave me creepy-sex guy vibes. Sorry, not sorry.
One of the things Rue and Eli exchanged (other than copious amounts of bodily fluids) were all the dark pieces of themselves. Truths they’ve never told anyone before because of the shame it brings them. Similar to Hate Mail by Donna Marchetti (solid 5-Star book), I loved it. They spoke, and the other listened, and there was acceptance. The acknowledgement of their regrets and flaws and imperfect choices – it makes the connection they forge feel genuine. They’re not falling for an image of the other person they’ve built up in their own mind – they’re falling for the whole person. The real person. In that way, I found it very romantic. Then again, the same could happen in a platonic friendship, but since they’re fucking, like, all the time, let’s call it romance.
There are also storylines with themes of food scarcity, complicated family relationships, social struggles, and strong friendships. There’s some good stuff in there, you just have to wade through a lot of fornication to get there, because I’m not sure if you’ve heard yet, but there’s a lot of it.
Overall, it was a decent story. Everything that was promised had a satisfying payoff, and we get a happily ever after. If you like Hazelwood’s science-y style, you still get a bit of that, but the main course is real raunchy. It just wasn’t the one for me.
Details
Title::Not in Love Author::Ali Hazelwood Genre:: Erotic Romance Publisher::Berkley Length::384 pages Audio Length::11h 55m Audiobook Narrator::Callie Dalton & Jason Clarke Audiobook Publisher::Penguin Audio Published:: June 11th, 2024 The Litertarian Rating:: 2-Stars
Many romance novels are almost sickly-sweet, like candy. Bubbly and sunshine-y. You know the ones. Summertime Punchline by Betty Corrello is different. Its humor is drier, its romance less sure-footed than most. The characters may or may not be fated (I could argue both ways), but in the end, their love is chosen, not inevitable, and it gives the story a different flavor. Like a chocolate covered pretzel, maybe. A little salty. A little zing. A little something special.
Delfina Silva-Miller is a stand-up comic on the edge of getting everything she’s worked toward for the past decade. Right on the edge – then she topples off, landing in the last place she ever wanted to be. In one fell swoop she finds herself jobless, single, and homeless (just a typical run-of-the-mill boyfriend-banged-her-roommate-the-day-she-quit-her-job situation). She still has a spot booked on an epic comedy festival in a few months, but suddenly, she can’t use any of the material she has about the asshat boyfriend, and nowhere to stay in the meantime. So, with her tail tucked between her legs, she makes her way down the Jersey shore, to the town of Evergreen, where she grew up. Trouble is, she ran away from that town kicking and screaming immediately after graduation with no plans to ever return. There was nothing for her there except her kind little Italian grandmother who raised her. Her mother died before she could remember, her father was a druggie drunk failure typa guy, and the boy she was in a near constant love-hate relationship with growing up never chose her when it counted. She returns to find Evergreen different from the decade before, but some things never change. Eddie is still around, her father got sober, her grandmother does weekly aquarobics, and incredibly, there’s an open mic night in a bar downtown that’s perfect for her to work on her new material (just guess who owns the place). She has to get a new set written – a great one – but being back in her hometown stirs up a lot of old hurts, and grown-up Del finds herself needing to heal old wounds before the jokes will flow.
Y’all know by now I’m a sucker for good writing, and damn girl – this one slaps. A few examples of lines I absolutely lust after:
My last shot to repot my lifelong dream like a grocery store houseplant and make it bloom.
The next morning, I left town before Evergreen had rubbed the sleep from its eyes…
It wasn’t like Eddie and I avoided the deep end; we’d met each other in the deep end.
Eddie trailed behind me, laughter winking in his eyes alongside the flickering multicolor lights that surrounded us.
[regarding families] It was arguing without any ill will; it was lunging like a python without dispensing any venom; it was lancing close to the jugular and pulling back at the last nanosecond, kissing your victim on the forehead as you slipped away.
The banter in this book is frankly unparalleled. I laughed out loud – often pausing to appreciate the genius & sometimes the sheer surprise of whatever retort came next. I can’t remember the last time I was so delighted by back-and-forth between characters. And not just once. Like, a dozen times. For that alone, I will treasure this book. For me, that goes a long way.
Now, the romance. Del and Eddie don’t have a linear insta-lovefest. They met at an age where being cool was more important than being genuine, and though they found authenticity and truth in each other occasionally back then, ultimately cool won out and they never could connect. Now as adults, their feelings are complex, and the details of their lives even moreso. The ties of their past are still there, maybe even stronger than ever, but is letting it draw them close again the right thing? Or will it end up pushing them further apart than ever before?
I appreciated the hesitancy in both characters to not only admit their feelings to themselves (let alone each other), or to give into temptations, and I think that’s a testament to how real these characters and their world felt. Some of the early flashback scenes annoyed me a little bit because it was interrupting a story I was quickly falling into, but ultimately, they helped to color the nuance of Del & Eddie’s relationship, which is far from typical. Their relationship is layered and complicated, and I really loved that it was their ‘complicated’ home lives that set them apart in their friend group and drew them together. Not unlike my husband and I.
The nuance was so vibrant that it was sometimes hard to grasp onto. Sometimes the characters would do or say something that didn’t exactly fit the puzzle of them I’d built in my brain up to that point. Maybe something about the timeline of when things were presented just had me tripping up a little bit sometimes.
I also wish some of the details were explored a little bit more somehow. Alfonso the little man who lives in their building. A good scene with Valerie and Del interacting (more than the little we were offered). More comedy? I was left feeling like there were maybe more loose ends that could have been tied up, at least a little more neatly in some cases.
Overall, I loved the book, and it will live proudly upon my shelf for a long time to come. It’s smart, surprising, complicated, and ultimately hopeful. A summertime romance with some punch – and punchlines. Pick this one up if you’re in the mood for a snarky, complex romance with some painfully realistic throwbacks to high school side-character energy.
One cannot escape the past. Crimes cannot be erased. And those who were affected cannot simply be forgotten.
The Midnight Feast is another edge-of-your seat, layered, multiple POV mystery by Lucy Foley that tells of the secret trauma of one fateful summer night on the English coast, and its rippling effects through time.
Opening weekend at The Manor is slated to be the event of a lifetime with Francesca Woodland at its helm. The cabins are full, the facilities impeccable, and every detail has been fussed over and perfected down to the architect, the staff, the wine, and the turndown service. But by the time it’s over, the police are called in to investigate the dead bodies left in the aftermath.
The first 15% of this book followed the same blueprint as The Guest List (also by Lucy Foley), which had me scratching my head a little bit. Doubling down on a good thing, I guess. Instead of a new, exclusive, wedding venue on an Irish island, this book is based on a new, exclusive, glamping resort-type facility on the English coast. I feel like it probably could have been a little more original, but it’s ultimately forgivable.
We flip back and forth between the present and past diary entries kept by one of the characters on a summer holiday, revealing one entry at a time what happened all those years ago to create so much tension in the present. Probably my favorite part of a book like this one is how each of the POV characters fit into the grander story, and that is one thing this book does so well. Everyone has a link to the past, and they all have a role to play in the present, too.
I loved the folklore thread in the weave. Like any good English town, this one has a longstanding lore surrounding a hundred-eyed tree deep in the forest, and The Birds who seek justice on wrongdoing done in the community. It was a little exhausting reading the words “the birds, the birds, the birds” again and again, but the layer of uncertainty and supernatural it adds really worked for me.
About halfway through I knew this was going to be a banger. I listened as an audiobook and was honestly surprised when I looked down and saw I was only at the midpoint. It has the punch of a climax already at that point, but we get so much more, and the true climax is even more satisfying. If you’re looking for something thrilling and satisfying with elements of horror, this book is for you. Good luck putting it down!
We know and love Julia Whelan for reading us beautiful stories from authors like Emily Henry, Abby Jimenez, Rachel Hawkins, V.E. Schwab, Taylor Jenkins Reid, and many many more as an audiobook narrator, but did you know she writes books too? Thank You for Listening is her second book, and it’s clear this woman knows her way around the romance genre. I recommend the audiobook, obviously.
Sewanee is an audiobook narrator who has left the romance genre behind her under a pseudonym she no longer acknowledges. She dislikes the genre so much, she dreads covering for her boss at a romance convention in Vegas, but in a surprising turn of events, the trip ends with a scintillating evening with an Irish stranger she will never forget. When she returns to real life, the offer of a lifetime is waiting for her — join one of the industry’s most popular (and illusive) male narrators in the final post-humous project of one of the greatest romance authors of all time (her Sewan song, if you will). Against her personal reservations, she agrees to do the project as they are offering her a stupid amount of money that will enable her to care for the aging grandmother who always had her back. Working with Brock (the heartthrob narrator) turns out to be an unexpected delight, and when she runs into the mysterious stranger from Vegas again, things begin to tangle into delicious complexity.
A good contemporary romance novel will give you more to chew on than simply the girl-meets-boy, heart-eyes, fall-in-love storyline, and in that regard, Thank You for Listening delivers. An accident in Sewanee’s past leaves her with life-changing consequences to deal with, her grandmother’s decline is a huge emotional vampire, her best friend is getting to live the life she wanted for herself, and each of her parents have lessons to teach her before the story closes.
I appreciated the slow-burn natural romance development between Sewanee & her suitor(s). One thing I can say with confidence is that everything that happens is supported by the story. That is to say nothing felt “too convenient” or not rational, even in the midst of several well-used tropes (and they’re even called out by Sewanee when they happen, which adds to the witty humor of the novel).
Julia was able to call upon her first-hand knowledge of how audiobook production works, the industry as a whole, and even included a few tricks of the trade in this novel (green apples, amiright?). I loved all the details — her expertise really had a chance to shine here.
This was definitely a 5-Star read for me, and if you like your romance complex with a side of self-discovery, then this one is certainly for you!
Details
Title::Thank You for Listening Author:: Julia Whelan Genre:: Contemporary Romance Publisher::Avon Length::432 pages Audio Length::11h 16m Audiobook Narrator::Julia Whelan Audiobook Publisher::Harper Audio Published:: August 2nd, 2022 The Litertarian Rating:: 5-Stars
