Love In a Nutshell by Janet Evanovich & Dorien Kelly - AudioBook Review

Audiobook Review: Love In a Nutshell
By: Janet Evanovich & Dorian Kelly
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Narrator: Loreli King
Contemporary Romance
3 Heart Review

Kate Appleton needs a job. Her husband has left her, she’s been fired from her position as a magazine editor, and the only place she wants to go is to her parents’ summer house, The Nutshell, in Keene’s Harbor, Michigan. Kate’s plan is to turn The Nutshell into a Bed and Breakfast. Problem is, she needs cash, and the only job she can land is less than savory. 

Matt Culhane wants Kate to spy on his brewery employees. Someone has been sabotaging his company, and Kate is just new enough in town that she can insert herself into Culhane’s business and snoop around for him. If Kate finds the culprit, Matt will pay her a $20,000 bonus. Needless to say, Kate is highly motivated. But several problems present themselves. Kate despises beer. No one seems to trust her. And she is falling hard for her boss.

Can these two smoke out a saboteur, save Kate’s family home, and keep a killer from closing in…all while resisting their undeniable attraction to one another? Filled with humor, heart, and loveable characters, Love in a Nutshell is delicious fun.

Classic Evanovich, this story features a quirky heroine who's a little off balance and a left of fitting in with regular society slightly. Also per usual it was the characters themselves that made this story stay with me and kept me listening to the audio.

I thought the mystery plot of the book was well paced and as the reader I didn't figure it out until much later in the story, which was really nice since some romances tend to very thinly veil the villain. The balance between the mystery and the romance was well done and both unfolded together in the story.

All in all, this is a average fun and cute read. BUT. Evanovich definitely has character traits that seem to almost always be present in all her characters and that makes them all start to run together. This is made worse by the fact that ALL of her stories include the same narrator and it makes the similarities of the characters that much more noticeable. It feels like all her heroines are Stephanie Plum, just in a new situation.

I will say that narrator Loreli King is ALWAYS excellent. It's not her fault as she does a really great job, which I'm sure is how she keeps getting hired to narrate Evanovich's books. But the audio publisher should really take note that this may not be the smartest decision.

Yes, there are some fans who will love the amazing job that Loreli does and not give a care about all of the books sounding like they have the same exact characters, but there are those of us who do. There are those of us who want something different from Evanonich, yet still "her". But by having the same narrator you are not helping readers to make that distinction between books and characters.

Again, this is a really nice read and works on both the romance and mystery sides of the plot. I liked the characters, but kept being drawn out of the book every time I thought to myself, "That's something Stephanie would say."

If you haven't tried any of the Plum series on audio then you should really stay away from them and just listen to all the non-Plum stories on audio - then they'll be excellent and would deserve 4+ Hearts.

Click here to listen to the audio excerpt, watch the book trailer or read an excerpt.

Happy Reading!
Cheeky Girl Sabrina

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The Holy Grail of AudioBooks For Me: Audio Book Review of Maybe This Time by Jennifer Cruise

Audio Lovin: AudioBook Review of Maybe This Time
By Jennifer Cruise
Narrated by Angela Dawe
Brilliance Audio – Unabridged – 11 hours, 5 Minutes
Story – 5 Heart Review
Narration – 5 Heart Review


Andie Miller is ready to move on with her life. She wants to marry her finance and leave behind everything in her past, especially her ex-husband, North Archer. But when Andie tries to gain closure with him, he asks one final favor of her. A distant cousin has died and left North the guardian of two orphans who have driven away three nannies already, and things are getting worse. He needs someone to take care of the situation, and he knows Andie can handle anything...


When Andie meets the two children, she realizes the situation is much worse than she feared. Carter and Alice aren't your average delinquents, and the creepy old house where they live is being run by the worst housekeeper since Mrs. Danvers. Complicating matters is Andie's fiance's suspicion that this is all a plan by North to get Andie back. He may be right because Andie's dreams have been haunted by North since she arrived at the old house. And that's not the only haunting...


Then her ex-brother-in-law arrives with a duplicitous journalist and a self-doubting parapsychologist, closely followed by an annoyed medium, Andie's tarot card-reading mother, her avenging ex-mother-in-law, and her jealous fiance. Just when Andie's sure things couldn't get more complicated, North arrives to make her wonder if maybe this time things could just turn out differently...


I loved everything about this story and audio book! The story is so unique and kick-ass. As I mentioned in a teaser post I wrote while I was still listening to this, this might be the best audio book I've ever listened to and it was a combination of a great story and a perfect narrator.


This is a reunited lovers story with so much more. The romance between Andie and North drives this story but around it are amazing sub-plots of these two children and also the possible ghosts. It's all so perfectly intertwined, wrapped and warped together that it's nothing less than engaging and addictive.


I literally sat in my car in my garage not wanting to get out and go inside. After a long day of work when all you want to do is get home and see the hubby and fur-kids, it says so much when an audio book can make me want to linger even longer!


Narrator Angela Dawe once again transforms herself into some amazing voices. She really got each and every character so dead on. And her voice for Andie transforms with her character growth and emotions throughout the story. Really excellent. She sets the tone of this story in a way that I'm not sure I would have given it if I were reading and I have to say that would be regretful. This might be one of the first books that I think is fully complete as an audio book.


It's almost like Cruise wrote this to be performed by Angela Dawe rather than as a print book. It's such a cast of characters that it screams out to be performed.


Looking for your first audiobook? This is it. It's also a great recommendation for someone new to Cruise or to audio. You'll love this!

Audio Lovin: Audio Book Review of Falling For Gracie by Susan Mallery

Audio Lovin: Audio Book Review of Falling for Gracie
Written by Susan Mallery
Narrated by Savannah Richards
Brilliance Audio – Unabridged – 10 hours, 6 Minutes
Story – 4 Heart Review
Audio Narration – 4 Heart Review

First comes love, then comes marriage...

At least, that was Gracie's plan at the ripe old age of fourteen. She loved eighteen-year-old heartthrob Riley with a desperation that made her a town legend. Even now that she's all grown up, the locals in sleepy Los Lobos won't let her forget her youthful crush.

And how can she, when she's face to face with Riley at every turn? The onetime bad boy has come back to town seeking respectability – but the sparks that fly between them are anything but respectable! Gracie's determined to keep her distance, but when someone sets out to ruin both their reputations, the two discover that first love is sometimes better the second time around.

This story is so cute that it almost gave me a cavity! And I mean that in the best possible way. Susan Mallery really is a small-town romance goddess. She creates amazingly funny, sweet and sexy stories based in quirky, but lovable small towns. Falling for Gracie was a great example of everything there is to love about Susan Mallery romances.

The heroine Gracie is so much fun to delve into. Having an insider's view into her thoughts and life made me literally smile, get upset, be sad and laugh with happiness. There's more emotion packed into this story than just a fun, happy read. Particularly, Gracie's family issues are more than just surface level problems that might be easily handled. Instead, Mallery does an excellent job of building the layers of family dynamic and childhood issues to add to this cute romance.

There was a point or two where I wanted to yell at Gracie for being so trusting or for not standing up to her family, but these were only small story blips and really did fit the character. In fact, even though they frustrated me they added to the story and again stayed true to the character.

The narrator Savannah Richards really does an awesome job giving this story exactly the pep, angst and laughs this book deserved. She's animated, sometimes over the top so, but that's exactly what this sometimes zany romance needed!

She embodies Gracie so perfectly and really brings her and the story to life. Likewise, she does a fun job of creating voices for a cast of silly small town characters as well.

This is a great audio book for anyone wanting to give one a try for the first time or for fans of Susan Mallery who want to listen to what one of her books sounds like. It's also a great recommendation of a book or audio book for someone who reads women's fiction or chick-lit and would like to give romance a go. :)

Read An Excerpt Here

Listen to An Audio Clip Here

Have you read or listened to a Susan Mallery book? Did you love it? Anyone heard Savannah Richards narrate other books? If so, what did you hink? Come share with us!

Kicking Off AudioBook Awareness Month!

To kick off AudioBook Awareness Month, I thought I would do a re-play of one of my favorite posts I did on why I love audiobooks so much and a few of the ways you can use them to get in extra "reading" time.

Originally Posted 3/31/09
Cheeky Girl Loves Audio Books!

I admit I devour books like candy, but never thought I would enjoy having someone else – anyone other than the voices in my head that is – bring the characters to life for me. With an hour or so car commute each way to work, I decided to give audio books a try and I discovered a prefect way to pass the time and get some "quality" time in with my feisty girlfriends and those hot leading men!

I was very lucky that the very first audio book I tried was excellent – The Good, The Bad, and The Undead by Kim Harrison- which introduced me to the amazing Hollows world and I highly recommend the series both in audio and printed versions! I've since learned that audio books can be hit or miss – the success or failure hinging on the person reading and how well they handle the various characters.

You can usually tell within the first few tracks if the voice will connect with you or if you feel it paints the perfect world for you. My experience has been that most of the audio books are very well done. There have been only a few that were so bad I had to stop listening before I got through the first disc. I remember one distinct book that I really struggled to keep listening, since the first few tracks were just annoying! For some reason I hung in there and was rewarded with a light-hearted romp through France and a new series to follow!

Some great perks with Audio Books:

• Car Commuting - Put your time behind the wheel to good use!
• Great for putting on your iPod while you clean the house
• You can download Audio Books just like eBooks - Look for upcoming posts on the various different Audio Book retailers
• Great for travel when you don't want to carry paper books or have light to read by (I hate when they turn off all the lights on the plane and then my seatmate wants to sleep!)
• When you want the excitement of having a book read to you like when you were 5 (only obviously now your book selections have changed) :)
• Your local library already has a selection of Audio Books waiting to be discovered
• Too many more to list!

If you have any suggestions for audio books you would like to see reviewed, just leave me a comment below! If you're an author with an audio book - speak up and sing its praises!

In the upcoming days and weeks of June, I'll be posting audiobook reviews, giveaways, audiobook publisher spotlights and hopefully some cool interviews. I hope you'll check back every day to see what's new on the blog! (I'll still be including regular book reviews as well.)

- Happy Reading From Cheeky Reads -
Cheeky Girl Sabrina

June Is AudioBook Awareness Month!

I'm getting my Audiobook geek on all June long! It's national Audiobook Awareness Month and I'm planning a month of fun interviews, audiobook reviews, Audio Publisher Spotlights, post about the ins and outs of books you listen to instead of read, and of course...GIVEAWAYS!

There'll still be plenty of print and ebook news and reviews, but I'm hoping you'll share the audio love or give it a try for the first time this June. Don't knock it until you've tried it - maybe a few times to get the narrator and story you love - and I think you'll fall in love with how much "extra" reading it lets you enjoy!

Happy Reading & Listening!
Cheeky Girl Sabrina

BEST Audio Book EVER! (Well, mightly fine one at least)

Confession: I'm only half-way through a book and I'm ready to call it a winner. Seriously, I've been tweeting all morning on how freakin' fantastic the current Audio Book I'm listening to is. Which one you ask?

Maybe This Time by Jennifer Cruise released in audio by Brilliance Audio.

THIS is why I adore audio books and why I keep singing their praises to readers who have yet to try them out.

The story is performed by Angela Dawe and she nails every voice, owning every character. This is the first time I've written "performed by" and totally meant it. These characters come alive off the page and do great justice to Jennifer Cruise's story.

I mean it's a Jennifer Cruise story, which means chances are that it's going to be pretty good if not great, but this just raises it to another level. I can honestly say I think the Audio Book version might be better than the book itself because - I'll say it again - Angela Dawe owns these characters.

So fantastic! If you were looking for your first audio book to try, or if you tried one in the past and hated it, PLEASE try this one. It's the perfect example of what an Audio Book should be and can be!

Here's Brilliance Audio's website with a sample of this audio book. The audio book just gets better and better the further into it. :)

Here's an Amazon link.

And a Borders link.

Have you read or listened to Maybe This Time? Tell us what you thought or tell us the best Audio Book you've found!

Audio Book Review: Wicked Appetite by Janet Evanovich

Audio Book Review: Wicked Appetite
By: Janet Evanovich
Read by: Lorelei King
Macmillan Audio
Unabridged CD - Run time 7 hours 
3 Heart Review

Life in Marblehead has had a pleasant predictability, until Diesel arrives. Rumor has it that a collection of priceless ancient relics representing the Seven Deadly Sins have made their way to Boston’s North Shore. Partnered with pastry chef Lizzie Tucker, Diesel bullies and charms his way through historic Salem to track them down—and his criminal mastermind cousin Gerewulf Grimorie. The black-haired, black-hearted Wulf is on the hunt for the relic representing gluttony. Caught in a race against time, Diesel and Lizzie soon find out that more isn’t always better, as they battle Wulf and the first of the deadly sins.

I've had the hardest time ever writing this review. Please know that right off the bat. A fan of the Stephanie Plum series, I was super excited to learn that Janet had a new series coming out and was excited to see something different from her. Don't get me wrong, I love the Plum series, but after so many books I was looking to something refreshingly different but with the fun I knew would always be in Janet's writing.

What I personally felt about Wicked Appetite was that it felt too much like the Plum series. That was not helped by keeping the same narrator from the Plum series for this series. I love Lorelei King as a narrator and think she has made the Plum series come alive in audio, but in order for Wicked Appetite to really have it's own "voice" they should have chosen a new narrator.

Having Lorelei narrate this book only served to highlight how much of it mirrored the exact type of situtations, humor, jokes, etc that a reader would have in the Plum series. Yes, the Plum series is awesome but with a new series it SHOULD feel different and this just didn't for me.

Yes, Diesel is a cross-over character readers are already familiar with but I felt like Lizzie was a Stephanie clone. Add in Carl the Monkey and too many scenes where you forgot this is Lizzie instead of Stephanie and I just couldn't get into it.

It is a very fun story and maybe it would have been better this time for me to read the book. Not having Stephanie's exact "voice" might have helped me seperate the stories more. As it was, Lorelei King is Stephanie to me and I couldn't hear her reading this story and not be thinking Plum the whole time.

If you haven't done the Plum series by audio that might not be an issue for you or if you read the print book. If you love Evanovich then you will probably really enjoy this new book and series, but if you are looking for something new from her this isn't it. Yes, I wanted fun and zany but this was too similiar. It felt like when a favorite author's book has been re-released with a new title and cover and you buy it only to get a few pages in and realize you've read it before - it's still a great story, but it's not that something new you were hoping for.   

Audio Book Review: Married by Morning by Lisa Kleypas

Audio Book Review: Married by Morning

Written By: Lisa Kleypas
Performed by: Rosalyn Landor
Brilliance Audio Unabridged
9 Hours 52 Minutes
Writing: 5 Heart Review
Audio Performance: 5 Heart Review

He is everything she wants to avoid...

For two years, Catherine Marks has been a paid companion to the Hathaway sisters – a pleasant position, with one caveat. Her charges' older brother, Leo Hathaway, is thoroughly exasperating. Cat can hardly believe that their constant arguing could mask a mutual attraction. But when one quarrel ends in a sudden kiss, Cat is shocked at her powerful response – and even more so when Leo proposes a dangerous liaison.

She is not at all what she seems...

Leo must marry and produce an heir within a year to save his family home. Catherine's respectable demeanor hides a secret that would utterly destroy her. But to Leo, Cat is intriguing and infernally tempting, even to a man resolved never to love again. The danger Cat tried to outrun is about to separate them forever – unless two wary lovers can find a way to banish the shadows and give in to their desires...

I'm a big fan of Kleypas. I mean who isn't? But I've always read her contemporaries and had sort of purposefully ignored her historicals. Why? Because I think I could very well find myself reading her entire backlist of books to the exclusion of many other writers. Since I know Kleypas is a big name in romance and doesn't need a review here for people to know she has a book out, I narrowed my reading of her to comtemps because I feel there aren't enough of us singing the praises of the straight-up contemporary and how great they are.

When I received Married by Morning to review I decided to try out a Kleypas historical – and holy crap, what I have been missing! Married by Morning is now seriously in my all-time top books. One reason? LEO! Kleypas might have officially ruined me for all other romance heros. All that come after might see themselves compared to Leo and found lacking. My PERFECT HERO.

I loved almost every single thing about this book – pure perfection for me! Believe it or not, I loved it even more than I have many of her contemporary titles. The ending was slightly off from what I had expected, but not bad or anything that would have ruined the story at all. In fact, I thought there were many parts of the ending that brought the trust and relationship between Cat and Leo full circle.

Now, with all the Leo talk you might think that the heroine Catherine was only so-so or average. She was not at all. In fact, she was an amazingly relatable character that I found loving easy to do. Her quirky nature and imperfect looks – she wears glasses back when I imagine it was not at all fashionable for a women or man – made me root for her to match wits with Leo again and again.

As for the audio book performer Rosalyn Landor? One word: fantastic! Her changes in voice are slight, but you never question who is speaking as she inhabits each character completely. I loved how easily she was able to get across Leo’s cheeky tone when he’s trying to annoy Cat. Rosalyn’s performance really added to my love of both Leo and Catherine.

If you’ve been on the fence about trying audio books, this is one I can 100% say to try. It’s a great one to hear audio books at their best and with a great story to boot.

Again, I can’t say enough about how much I loved this book and now I’m doomed to reading Kleypas’ entire backlist of historicals. I’ve already gotten Love in the Afternoon that I can’t wait to start!

Happy Reading!

Audio Lovin’: Audio Book Review of Savor the Moment (Bride (Nora Roberts))

Performed by: Angela Dawe
Brilliance Audio Unabridged Version
Approx. 9 Hours
Story – 4 Heart Review
Voice Performance – 3 Heart Review

#1 New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts cordially invites you to meet childhood friends Parker, Emma, Laurel, and Mac — the founders of Vows, one of Connecticut’s premier wedding planning companies.

Laurel McBane has always relied on her friends for support, especially when her dream of attending culinary school was almost ruined by her parents’ financial problems. Now Laurel is repaying the kindness of her friends by creating extravagantly luscious tiers of cakes and other confectionary delights that add the perfect touch to their clients’ weddings.


As for romance, Laurel believes in it — in theory. But she’s too low-key to appreciate all the luxuries that other women seem to long for. What she does appreciate is a strong, intelligent man, a man just like Parker’s older brother, Delaney Brown, on whom Laurel has had a mega crush since childhood.


But some infatuations last longer than others, and Laurel is convinced that the Ivy League lawyer is still out of her reach. Plus, Del is too protective of Laurel to ever cross the line with her, or so she thinks. When Laurel’s quick- silver moods get the better of her — leading to an angry, hot, altogether mind-blowing kiss with Del — she’ll have to quiet the doubts in her mind to turn a moment of passion into forever…

Narrator Angela Dawe gets the heroine Laurel’s voice perfectly, but Emma and Mac’s voices tended to draw me out of the story. The male voices weren’t bad, but didn’t stand out to me as great or memorable. Again though, Laurel’s voice seemed to match the character perfectly.

This was a very solid, well-developed story and one would expect no less from La Nora. She’s a #1 best seller for a reason ladies – because she knows how to structure a story and create characters you can get wrapped up in.

As I listened to the story, I was struck by just how much detail was focused on Laurel’s baking and the weddings and wished that those details had been more in the background and the romance had more front and center time.

That was my only issue with this story that sometimes I got frustrated with all the details about stuff other than the romance. These are two fun, great characters that are made for each other – focus on them!

I wasn’t disappointed in the romance and loved all the other characters – if you don’t count the off voices – and can highly recommend this story whether in book form or in audio. If the romance would have had more face time then this book could have been a 5 Heart Review for me.

Audio Lovin': Audio Book Review of Reckless by Amanda Quick

Audio Lovin: Audio Book Review of Reckless by Amanda Quick
Performed by Anne Flosnik
Briilliance Audio Unabridged Version
11 Hours : 55 Minutes
Story – 3 Heart Review
Narrator – 5 Heart Review

At sixteen Phoebe Layton had imagined that Gabriel Banner was a brave and valiant knight, a noble-hearted hero born to rescue ladies in distress. Which was why, eight years later, when she desperately needed help to carry out a vital quest she could think of no one more suited to the job than Gabriel.

But when she lures her shining knight to a lonely midnight rendezvous, Phoebe finds herself sparring with a dangerously desirable man who is nothing like the hero of her dreams, and when he sweeps her into a torrid – and blatantly unchivalrous – embrace, she can’t help but fear that she’s made a dreadful mistake. It’s a kiss that will seal Phoebe’s fate. For now the exacting Earl of Wylde has a quest of his own: to possess the most intriguing, impulsive, outrageous female he has ever met…even if he has to slay a dragon to do it.

Right off the bat, I knew I was going to have fun with this audio book. The narrator (voice performer?) Anne Flosnik did excellent voices, and the hero and heroine had me wrapped around their little fingers very quickly.

This was audio book that had me literally smiling as I drove down the highway. First off, Anne does a wonderful job with the voices transporting you to the time period. What made me smile was that if ever there was an audio book made for a drinking game this is it and the narrator adds so much fun with her tone!

Just what do I mean? Well, without giving away any spoilers, I can tell you the hero and heroine are on a quest to find a book called the Lady and the Sorcerer. Now – take the word Sorcerer and make it Sore-soar-roar in a sing song voice and you have an instant drinking game! Mrs. Quick includes the title of the book so many times you’ll be drunk before you’re even past the first few chapters. It could have been insanely annoying, but again, the way the narrator says the line cracked me up every time.

My issues with this audio book didn’t involve the great narration. Instead, I was disappointed in the characters as the story moved forward. I adored the heroine Phoebe at the beginning of the story, but found myself falling out of love with her as the story progressed. Why? Because the author created such a smart, intelligent and witty woman in Phoebe and then made her seem to regress in intelligence and become more naïve as the story went on. Phoebe lost the wit and spunk she showed in the first few chapters and this made me lose interest in the story.

There were also a few parts of the story I felt didn’t feel right. Phoebe and Gabriel were smart and yet they only watch the front of a building when trying to catch a thief. Hello – everyone knows thieves don’t go in the front door! It felt like this part of the plot was forced and didn’t go well with what the characters would have thought to have done.

Gabriel was a hero readers will swoon over and Phoebe is great in the beginning. She’s still “her” at the end, but I just felt that the story didn’t hold up the promise of her character that was presented at the beginning. It’s like, LOOK – awesome strong historical female, and then she slowly loses her intelligence. I just shake my head as I write this because Phoebe rocked it at the start of the story.

I did get many chuckles – even beyond the drinking game phrases – and enjoyed listening to this historical romance. I will definitely be listening to more of Amanda Quick’s audio book and cannot say enough about how well Anne Flosnik did with the voices.

Audio Lovin": Queen of Babble Gets Hitched by Meg Cabot

Queen of Babble Audio Version
By Meg Cabot
Ready by: Justine Eyre
Books on Tape
2 Heart Review

So I'm catching up on all the reviews for all the audio books I've been listening to lately. I spent a lot of time in my car driving and was starting to forget all the audio books that had crossed my path. Enjoy and if you don't do the audio book thing, check out my post here about why I think they are the bomb. Yes, I did just totally dork out. :)

Having listened to the audio books of the previous Queen of Babble titles, I was already familiar with the characters and the readers voice and inflection. I think that made this particular audio book easier to get into despite a lead female character who had slightly annoyed me previously.

The gang's all here again, with the hero Luke starting to show his true colors and steady sidekick Chazz suddenly deciding he's loved Lizzie for years. After the very first book, I had high hopes for Luke as a real hero and was disappointed that he turned out to be such a...well...wanker.

Having Lizzie and Chazz come together does work perfectly, but there was something about the ending that left me unsatisfied. It seemed like a bit of a cop-out by Lizzie and by Chazz as neither gets what they had said they wanted. But, I guess compromise is what it's all about.

I really enjoyed the Ava Geck character and would have liked for her to play a bigger par t of the story. The way Ava and Lizzie come together at the end was a nice touch and you could see Ava grow as direct result of Lizzie's influence.

The loss of Lizzie's grandmother was very well done and threaded throughout the story so well that you felt it didn't just serve as a senseless plot twist.

If you've read the other Queen of Babble books, I recommend you read or listen to this one as well. It's a great ending to a story even if this book lacks a little something.

Audio Lovin': REVIEW of The Magic of You by Johanna Lindsey

The Magic of You Audio Version
By Johanna Lindsey
Read By Laural Merlington
Brilliance Audio

4 Heart Review

As wild and reckless as the most incorrigible of her male cousins, young Amy Malory has reached marriageable age, and she has set her amorous sights on a most unsuitable mate: the handsome, straitlaced ship's captain who once nearly had her uncle James hung for piracy.

Warren Anderson is shocked by the brazen advances of his despised enemy's high-spirited niece. Still tormented by past treachery, he is determined to resist Amy's charms. But an overpowering yearning for the enchanting minx threatens to defeat his defiant heart...and force its sensuous surrender to a love that could stoke the fires of a perilous family feud.

So, I'm not shy about how much I love the Malory series! I cannot get enough of them and love the interaction between the Malory family and the Andersons who can't seem to stop marrying their women! The books do such a great job of creating male characters both full of emotion and who are also men of action. We get so much insight into the thoughts and feelings of Lindsey's men and I guess that’s a big part of what draws me to these stories – that I love the outward gruff and toughness of the men juxtaposed with their internal old softies.

This Malory book is no different. In fact, Warren is the gruffest of the Andersons having been badly hurt and thrown over by the woman he loved years before. Hearing him struggle to maintain his Oscar the Grouch routine is loads of fun, especially when headstrong Amy tries her hardest to make him smile at every turn.

Amy is every bit a Malory and it's interesting to see a female of the family get hit with the love bug. She doesn't disappoint as she shows the Malory spunk and determination to make Warren hers. I enjoyed Amy as a character and found her to be a perfect foil for Warren.

I believe this is the same reader of the other Malory audio books I've listened to, and she does manage to give all the characters their own distinctive personalities. You never have to guess who is speaking and she inflects just the right emotion into her voice for each situation.

What can I say – It's another terrific Malory book by Johanna Lindsey and I just can't get enough of them! Whether you read them or listen to them, check out this Malory series if you like historical romance. You won't be disappointed!

Audio Lovin': Review of Naughty Neighbor by Janet Evanovich

Naughty Neighbor
Written By Janet Evanovich
Read by C.J. Critt
Harper Audio
3 Heart Review

I had one major problem (and a few small ones, but more about those later) with this audio book – it was over much too soon! The story is on the shorter side, and I felt these characters had so much more to say and I wanted to get to know them more!

Here's the description from the audio case:

Louisa Brannigan's neighbor is a handsome hell-raiser – and he's driving Louisa crazy. He makes terrible coffee, steals her newspaper, and listens through her walls. But when she's fired from her government job, Louisa is persuaded to join his undercover investigation. Sneaking around in the shadows is more fun than she ever imagined, especially when the getaway car is a Porsche.

Pete Streeter never figured on finding such an attractive partner in crime. Louisa is all he ever wanted in a woman, and more. But once he's taught her to enjoy living on the edge, will she finally feel safe in his love?

This quirky little story really tickled me and I didn't expect that since my initial impression was that this might be a random audio miss. The voice of C.J. Critt immediately felt off to me. It seemed more mature and slightly gruffer than what the story seemed to call for. BUT, Critt is an excellent performer and her enthusiasm and comedic timing will eventually make you forget that her voice isn't exactly matching the heroine's personality. Kudos to Critt for making the characters come alive so well.

I found myself pleasantly surprised as the characters grew on me. Again, part of that was due to the enthusiasm of Critt, but mostly it was the appeal of the characters as Evanovich expertly unveils them. I was particularly drawn to Pete Streeter and his unpretentious attitude and easygoing banter with Louisa. Having the hero fall hard first makes for a nice change, and Pete really puts his heart out there early. Gotta love a man not afraid to commit!

Louisa was a little less developed, so I didn't feel nearly as drawn to her. Still likable, but she could have used more background or some deeper insight into why she valued her independence so much that she was almost willing to let Pete walk away. That felt a little forced to me and I didn't fully see it fitting into the personality that had been painted of her. Otherwise, she was delightful and so was the story.

All in all, this is a cute little audio book that showcases some great work by Critt and by Evanovich. If you are anything like me though, you'll want more substance to the story so you can hang out with Louisa and Pete for a little while longer.

Audio Lovin': Review of 16 Lighthouse Road By Debbie Macomber

16 Lighthouse Road Audio Book
By Debbie Macomber
Ready by: Sandra Burr
Brilliance Audio

I will admit I'm a latecomer to Debbie Macomber and her Cedar Cove stories. I was lucky enough to pick one up to read on our community loaner library shelf, and I discovered a writer with a sweetly sentimental contemporary voice. When I'm in the mood for a straightforward romance with warm feelings of home, I now reach for one of Debbie's books.

16 Lighthouse Road is my first foray into the lives of Judge Olivia, her mother Charlotte, and her selection of friends and family. I was very happy with the audio recording and the voice work done by Sandra Burr and the story was everything you should expect from Debbie.

The character Olivia is very interesting and as the story goes on you want to see more and more into her past and her future. I really connected with Olivia and was rooting for her relationship with local newspaper editor Jack to take off. Olivia's mother Charlotte adds just the right mix of humor to lighten the mood when the darker parts of the story threaten to take over.

The story of Cecilia and Ian Randall was both satisfying and slightly annoying to me. At times I felt so sorry for them, and at other, I wanted to yell at them just to sit down and talk and they might be able to work things out. I thought their romance was naively sweet and their hardships make their miscommunication understandable. Even so, I just wanted them to listen to each other!

The side story of Grace and her husband was surprising and that's why I loved it. Today i'll check out Debbie's Website to see if Grace has her own story since her story as the most compelling to me. I really want to know what happens to her and her husband.

Fans of Debbie and sweet contemporaries, will love 16 Lighthouse Road. With great characters, a very personal and memorable setting and great writing, this book will satisfy your need for a charming romance.

AUDIO LOVIN: Review of Remember Me by Sophie Kinsella

Remember Me
By Sophie Kinsella
Read By Charlotte Parry
Random House Audio
2 Heart Review

I enjoy Sophie Kinsella’s books, and for a bit I had to have every one. Somewhere, probably before Shopaholic & Baby, I lost interest or found someone new and forgot about Ms. Kinsella. So, when I saw the audiobook for Remember Me and saw her name on the cover I thought why not?

When twenty-eight-year-old Lexi Smart wakes up in a London hospital, she’s in for a big surprise. Her teeth are perfect. Her body is toned. Her handbag is Vuitton. Having survived a car accident—in a Mercedes no less—Lexi has lost a big chunk of her memory, three years to be exact, and she’s about to find out just how much things have changed.

Somehow Lexi went from a twenty-five-year-old working girl to a corporate big shot with a sleek new loft, a personal assistant, a carb-free diet, and a set of glamorous new friends. And who is this gorgeous husband—who also happens to be a multimillionaire? With her mind still stuck three years in reverse, Lexi greets this brave new world determined to be the person she…well, seems to be. That is, until an adorably disheveled architect drops the biggest bombshell of all.

Suddenly Lexi is scrambling to catch her balance. Her new life, it turns out, comes complete with secrets, schemes, and intrigue. How on earth did all this happen? Will she ever remember? And what will happen when she does?

For the most part, I enjoyed this audiobook and its quirky tone. As much as the amnesia storyline might seem hokey or generic, Kinsella actually creates a story that leaves you guessing and offers up some new ideas on the subject. Lexi is a likeable character that I wanted to root for, but she quickly begins to irritate me. For some reason, I want her to use her common sense and open her eyes instead of blindly trusting everyone. I want to like her, I really do!

Charlotte’s reading of the book is good, it’s just unfortunate that some of the lines she is forced to read made me want to chuck the CD out the window! I couldn’t get passed her grating out “STOP IT” every other line. I kept wondering why Ms. Kinsella couldn’t have found an alternative phrase every now and again.

This is a cute story that doesn’t end the way you might expect it to. If you need something fun to pass the time this is a good choice. If you are looking for a really great audiobook, this wouldn’t be my first recommendation. I wanted a heroine with more gumption and sass and less blind obedience. I think the audio version of the book might point out the shortcomings in the phrases and Lexi’s characterization more than what might have been evident in the printed book.

Audio Lovin' Review: Plum Lucky By Janet Evanovich

Plum Lucky - Audio Book
By: Janet Evanovich
Read By: Lorelei King

As a between the numbers Stephanie Plum novel, Plum Lucky hits the perfect note of sassy, fun and fast paced. The narrator of Plum Lucky, Lorelei King, does an amazing job of setting the right tempo and hitting the lines in just the way you imagine them in your mind.

I enjoy the Stephanie Plum novels, but I don't wait with baited breath for their release. In fact, I've only read a few so I'm trying to go back and catch up with the story. When I’m in the mood for a spunky, light read, I know that the Plum novels will usually do the trick.

For Plum Lucky, we get away from the romantic push and pull between Ranger and Joe. Since I haven't read the entire series, I can only guess how Janet keeps that from getting stale. This time, we get to see Stephanie mix it up with Diesel, whose personality is so easy going that you wish he was around more often.

The book isn't heavy on romance, since it's pretty clear that even if Stephanie has the hots for Diesel, she's not excited enough to act on anything. I would have enjoyed the book more with at least a little more sexual tension or a few sexual interchanges beyond just verbally.

The regular cast of characters makes an appearance, including Grandma Mazer, a leprechaun (yes! I said leprechaun) Lula and a rocket launcher. Together they make for some nice LOL moments. On the flip side, I'm always annoyed by Stephanie's mom – I can't even find her ironically funny. For my money, I would totally hire the mob to whack her!

The Audio Books is a good listen. Just be careful – you'll be smiling and laughing like a silly head – I was driving along with an idiot grin on my face and realized other drivers probably thought I was insane!