L-L-L-Little Reviews: Six Five-Star Adult Contemporary Romance Audiobook Reviews

And now I've fallen behind with my reviews since school started.  If it wasn't for a blog tour or a advanced copy, which most of my audiobooks were just ones I wanted to read/listen to, so they are bottom of the review schedule.  But I am a bit behind on where I'd wanted to be for some of my review ARCs, so I'm going to fit in the last six audiobooks I listened to.  Two of them are from clear back in July, and three of these books are by Penny Reid.  I signed up for the Audible Escapes program, and so far it seems to kind of be more worth it than just the Audible one credit a month program, but we'll see.

We Own Tonight (Second Time Around #1) by Corinne Michaels:

Release Date: September 19th, 2017
Source:  Borrowed from Audible.com as part of Audible Escapes program
My rating:  5 stars  

So this one was a lot of fun because I'm pretty sure, no I know for sure after talking to the author at Book Bonanza, that the main love interest was based on DonnieWahlberg from NKOTB.  What I loved is how the author kept us just slightly out of the loop without leaving us totally hanging about everything.  I did get mad at the main character, Heather, for fighting the chance to be with her teen idol.  And then I did get mad at Eli/Donnie, for not telling her the big secret he had!  But honestly, I adored this, it was like if my NKOTB crush would come true and how I'd love it all to go. 

Here is the blurb from Goodreads:
From New York Times Bestseller, Corinne Michaels, comes a sexy new STANDALONE romance novel.

I’m not a one-night stand kind of woman. I’m especially not the woman who has a few drinks at a concert and ends up in bed with my childhood celebrity crush, Eli Walsh.

However, that’s exactly where I find myself.

What’s a girl to do after a drunken mistake? Run. I grab my clothes and get away from the powerful, irresistible, and best-sex-of-my-life superstar as fast as I can. His gorgeous green eyes, rock-hard body, and cocky smile have no place in my world. My life is complicated enough.

Someone forgot to tell him that.

Eli is relentless. Pushing his way into my heart, wearing me down, proving he’s nothing like I assumed, and everything I need. But when my world shatters to pieces, he holds the broken bits together. Unwillingly, I fall desperately in love with him.

He made me think we’d have forever . . . I should’ve listened when he said we could only own tonight.

• I forgot to mention that this title is the title of a song by NKOTB, so you can enjoy the video to that up above next to the blurb.

 Getting Played (Getting Some #2) by Emma Chase:

Release Date: June 11th, 2019
Source:  Borrowed from Audible.com as part of Audible Escapes program
My rating:  5 stars  

Now, to start off, our love interest, Dean, is good at football, in a band, has a very high IQ, and is a teacher, so that makes this total fantasy, but yeah, sometimes it is good to have that perfect of a guy, I mean I'm reading to get away, right?  I guess I didn't read the synopsis of the story very well, because I didn't realize she was going to end up pregnant!  Because that was a big twist I didn't see coming.  And also, when he offered to just be there for her physical needs if that was all she wanted, and she didn't want to take him up on it?  What?  That's crazy girl!  
But I loved the story, it was really good, really sweet, and now, I want to go back and read/listen to the first one.  Also, where is the teacher that I can find to hook up with myself as a school librarian?

Here is the blurb from Goodreads:
Head of the class...

Garrett Daniels has this whole life thing figured out.

The cocky, charismatic former high school star quarterback is an idolized football coach and "cool" teacher in the hometown where he's not just a golden boy—he's platinum. He has good friends, a great house on the lake, and the best damn sidekick a man could ask for: Snoopy, the albino beagle.

Then...Callie Carpenter comes home.

And knocks him right on his tight end zone.

Back to school...

Callie has a pretty sweet life herself...on the other side of the country. But circumstances—that she'd prefer to never speak of again—have brought her back home, helping out her parents and substitute teaching at her old high school.

Now she's facing bickering, raging hormones, constant gossip, awkward weirdness, and drama galore...and that's just the teachers.

Just like old times...

When Garrett offers to show his former high school sweetheart the secrets of his winning teacher ways, Callie jumps at the chance—and then has to stop herself from jumping him.

Good friends are all they can ever be.

Or...these teachers just might end up getting schooled—hard—by love. 


The Hooker and the Hermit (Rugby #1) by L.H. Cosway and Penny Reid:

Release Date: June 2nd, 2015
Source:  Borrowed from Audible.com as part of Audible Escapes program
My rating:  5 stars    

So, let's be honest.  When I first read the title, I wasn't sure about who the Hooker was, didn't realize it was a term for a rugby player.  So when the story started, I thought maybe Annie's neighbor was the hooker since she was obviously the hermit.  But then I learned who Ronan was and I was no longer confused about that.  Now let me say, I LOVED the male narrator's Irish accent.  In fact I can still hear his voice in my head if I think about how he said her name.  I did get really mad at her for being mad at him towards the end. But as I've mentioned many times, I know that is a part of romance so often.  In the end I loved the story enough that I started to download and listen to the next book in the series, but it just wasn't catching me so I gave up on it for now.

Here is the blurb from Goodreads:
New York’s Finest
Blogging as *The Socialmedialite*
April 22
LADIES AND GENTS! I have an announcement!

You know that guy I featured on my blog a few months ago? The really, really hot Irish rugby player who plays the position of ‘hooker’ in the RLI (Rugby League International)? The one with the anger management issues, the body of a gladiator and the face of a movie star? The one with the questionable fashion choices leading me to ask whether he was the lovechild of a leprechaun and a hobbit? Ronan Fitzpatrick? Yeah, that guy.

Well, I have a confession to make…

THE HERMIT

Annie Catrel, social media expert extraordinaire at Davidson & Croft Media and clandestine celebrity blogger, can make anyone shine in the court of public opinion. She is the Socialmedialite, anonymous creator of New York’s Finest and the internet’s darling. Virtual reality is Annie’s forte, but actual reality? Not so much.

THE HOOKER

Ronan Fitzpatrick, aka the best hooker the world of rugby has seen in decades, despises the media—social or otherwise. The press has spun a web of lies depicting him as rugby’s wild and reckless bad boy. Suspended from his team, Ronan has come to Manhattan to escape the drama, lay low, fly under the radar. Only, Ronan isn’t easy to overlook, and he can’t escape the notice of the Socialmedialite…

THE PLAN

When Ronan is sent to Davidson & Croft Media to reshape his public image, he never expects to cross paths with shy but beautiful Annie, nor does he expect his fierce attraction to her. He couldn’t be happier when her boss suggests pairing them together.
What lengths will Annie take to keep her virtual identity concealed? And what happens when the hooker discovers who the hermit really is?

The Hooker and the Hermit is a collaboration between authors L.H. Cosway and Penny Reid, is a full length 100k word novel, and is a standalone. 


Neanderthal Marries Human (Knitting in the City #1.5) by Penny Reid:

Release Date: May 18th, 2016
Source:  Borrowed from Audible.com as part of Audible Escapes program
My rating:  5 stars   

So, while I've read the first and second books in this series, as well as a few others interspersed and out of order, I decided I wanted to jump back into the series and catch up on all the ones I missed out on.  So I decided to start with this one.  Of course there were several times I wanted to go back and reread the ones I had read just because I might not have remembered what was going on or because I just wanted to relive their story now that I had this extra bit of story to go with theirs.  The female narrator on this one really irritated me, she was so slow I had to speed her up.  I'm sure it had partly to do with the character, but then when the male narrator, my favorite, Sebastian York, came on, I had to immediately slow the speed back down to enjoy his smooth, rich voice.  Of course several of the people in the story are ones that are in the Winston Brothers series and I'm working on that series as well.  Filling in the ones I hadn't read yet too.  One thing I really liked and stood out to me was that bit about how the dress at the end of Pretty in Pink is just awful.  Am I the only one who hated it?  I thought I was, but this story makes me see that I'm not the only one.

Here is the blurb from Goodreads:
There are three things you should know about Quinn Sullivan: 1) He is madly in love with Janie Morris, 2) He’s not above playing dirty to get what (or who) he wants, and 3) He doesn’t know how to knit.

After just five months of dating Janie, Quinn—former Wendell and unapologetic autocrat—is ready to propose marriage. In fact, he’s more than ready. If it were up to Quinn, he would efficiently propose, marry, and beget Janie with child all in the same day—thereby avoiding the drama and angst that accompanies the four stages of pre-matrimony: engagement, meeting the parents, bachelor/bachelorette party, and overblown, superfluous wedding day traditions. But Janie, much to Quinn’s dismay, tosses a wrench in his efficacious endeavors and challenges him to prove his devotion by going through the matrimonial motions, no matter how minute and mundane.

Will Quinn last until the wedding day? Or will he yield to his tyrant impulses?

Regardless, one thing is for certain, Quinn Sullivan will have to learn to expect the Spanish Inquisition (i.e. the unexpected) if he plans to have and keep Janie Morris as his wife.

This book is not a standalone. It is the sequel to ‘Neanderthal Seeks Human,’ it is book #1.5 in the ‘Knitting in the City’ series, and it is a full length, 100k word novel.

Again, you must read ‘Neanderthal Seeks Human’ first before reading this book.

This book is written in first person, alternating POV (Janie Morris AND Quinn Sullivan; but more Janie than Quinn). 


Love Hacked (Knitting in the City #3) by Penny Reid:

Release Date: May 18th, 2016
Source:  Borrowed from Audible.com as part of Audible Escapes program
My rating:  5 stars   

So this was my continuation of the Knitting in the City series, and I'd already read book 2, Friends Without Benefits, so it was good to get to know Sandra's story. And Alex, who I didn't quite remember that much about.  I liked the younger man story, even though she really wasn't that much older than him.  This book made me totally guess and second guess myself so that I was going back and forth on what I thought might be happening.  I loved Sandra's t-shirts, I kind of would do that myself as much as I can.  And her "ZINGS!" were awesome.  Another great story, only making me more and more eager to read more in the series.

Here is the blurb from Goodreads:
There are three things you need to know about Sandra Fielding: 1) She makes all her first dates cry, 2) She hasn't been kissed in over two years, and 3) She knows how to knit.

Sandra has difficulty removing her psychotherapist hat. Of her last 30 dates, 29 have ended the same way: the man sobbing uncontrollably. After one such disaster, Sandra--near desperation and maybe a little tipsy--gives in to a seemingly harmless encounter with her hot waiter, Alex. Argumentative, secretive, and hostile Alex may be the opposite of everything Sandra knows is right for her. But now, the girl who has spent all her life helping others change for the better, must find a way to cope with falling for someone who refuses to change at all.    


Heidi's Guide to Four Letter Words by Tara Sivec and Andi Arndt:

Release Date: September 3rd, 2019
Source:  Borrowed from Audible.com as part of Audible Escapes program
My rating:  5 stars     

You guys, this book is one of the FUNNIEST books I have ever listened to!  I mean I was laughing so hard as I was driving sometimes that I'm sure people in the cars around me thought I was crazy or having a fit.  So much about this that I connected to, like her feelings about teaching at the end of her time, her love of Lularoe dresses, I just can't even.  But honestly there were so many funny things, Dirty Talking Malibu Barbie, why he was reading the word "pump", the thing she hears him saying in his house and what she does with the pizza that the delivery kid has, her dirty alphabet, her boobs being sad, reading the book for instructions, so so funny.  Her parents trying the things in the books, her tying him up, oh my gosh.  I think she was a bit crazy to be so mad at him, but again, drama, to go with the comedy in this one.  Loved it so much.  I'll probably have to buy a physical copy of this one at some point.  Great story.  Also loved narrator Andi Arndt's Minnesotan accent.

Here is the blurb from Goodreads:
Cowritten by USA Today best-selling author Tara Sivec and award-winning narrator Andi Arndt, a hysterically funny, heartfelt romance about starting over and taking chances.

Nothing good ever comes from drinking a box of wine alone. So when I decided to entertain my drunken self by setting up some hand-me-down podcasting equipment and reading the steamy parts from romance novels, I never thought anyone would actually listen. The fact that I admitted my huge crush on my sexy next door neighbor made the whole thing even more mortifying. But sometimes life surprises you, and that’s how my podcast, Heidi’s Discount Erotica, was born.

Now I, Heidi Larsen, a sweet former kindergarten teacher in Waconia, Minnesota, lead a scandalous double life reading erotic novels to the listening world. And with each episode, I find myself embracing my new alter ego more and more. Now I’m starting to feel more comfortable in my own skin and do things I never would have dreamed of - like kissing my neighbor.

Look out, Waconia, because Heidi’s on the loose! She’s in your ears, in your hearts, and down your pants...wait, that didn’t sound as good as it did in my head. Well, you get the picture, don’tcha know! 

 

Discussion Post: Don't Judge a Book by Its Cover, or a Narrator by their Voice

I'm so far behind on my goal for discussion posts this year.  I had lots of ideas, but ran out of time.  As I've been listening to an audiobook with one of my favorite narrators this past week, I started thinking about how much I want to know what this narrator looks like.  If you're a romance audiobook fan, then you probably will recognize the name, Sebastian York.  His voice, it's just wowza.  It's like sex on tape.  Reminiscent of Barry White you might say.

 

Sorry about that, but I've been waiting to use this Castiel gif forever.  

Anyway, as far as I know, Sebastian York is one of those narrator mysteries, like Joe Arden and Shane East (although I think the last one is actually a pseudonym for Steve West).  

Of course, all I can think about is my lessons learned when I was a kid with the people on the radio.  I'd picture someone based on their voice, and then when they actually were somewhere live, or on TV or something, they looked soooooooooooo different from what my brain had built up as I listened to them.  

First, listen to Sebastian York's voice:

In my head, I see a very tough, muscular guy.  Like the covers of some of the books he narrates.

In one of the books by Meghan March that I listened to, I pictured him like the movie star Shemar Moore:

And even though I've met Jonny James, and you can hear him speak in the videos he often does on Facebook, I sometimes picture Sebastian York's voice with Jonny's looks.

And then there are the pictures posted on his? Twitter account, that look a lot like Tyler Hoechlin, the actor from MTV's Teen Wolf TV series.

But, as with my radio personality lesson, I can't help but wonder how far off my brain and ears are when they decide what he must look like.   Is he really a scrawny, skinny, nerdy guy?  (Okay with me, I like nerdy guys too!)  Is he an old man with a deep voice?  You've always got the James Earl Jones/Darth Vader voice as well!  What in the world could he possibly look like?

Anyway, it doesn't really matter.  I wish I had a recording of his voice, that wasn't a book I was listening to and wanted to stay awake to hear it all.  I'd put it on and fall asleep with his voice playing, hopefully giving me the types of dreams I could really enjoy.

 

Oooh, that gif reminds me I could totally see his voice coming from someone who looks like Jensen Ackles.

Here comes the discussion part.  Are you an audiobook fan?  Do you have any voices that you enjoy listening to as much as I love Sebastian York's voice?  If you are a fan of him as well, what do you think he looks like?  I'd love to see your picture ideas!  Drop a picture or link in the comments below for me.  

Also, while you're stopping by my blog, I've got a giveaway going on for another week I think, my Clear Your Shelf Giveaway Hop post, go check that out HERE. 

Audiobook Review: Why Not Me? by Mindy Kaling

Once again I checked another audiobook out from my public library.  Pretty sure that all the audiobooks I'll review will come from the library. Without a CD player in my car, I doubt I'd buy any.  But anyway, I have been wanting to read/listen to this one since it came out, especially as much as I loved listening to her first book, Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?, which if you click on the title, you can go read my review of that.  Now when I first started listening to this one, it started out in a way I was afraid I might not enjoy it as much.  The first few bits were more "Hollywood" seeming, like she'd left behind the charming "normal" persona that made me fall in love with her in the first book. But then, I kept listening, and once again, I feel like Mindy Kaling is my "sister from another mister" or at least we should be BFFs (a term she and her real best friend are not fans of though).

There is of course less about her life before all of her stardom, but there is still some there. Talking about her college life, and wanting to join a sorority. I think it was about the time she started talking about the sorority that she pulled me back in.  I can't remember if she really discussed how she became friends with BJ Novak, but I loved hearing about their friendship.  Her talk about having a mentor was also really interesting as well as humorous.  Her beginning that seemed more Hollywood-starlet to me, soon turned back to the way I wanted to hear about it, when she shared all the secrets about how they make you look good.  I also really loved hearing her talk about sex scenes, and how she enjoyed them, even if other actors and actresses talked about how awkward they were.

Now I've met BJ Novak, got to meet him back at BEA in 2014.  Here is my picture with him.

Now I feel like I need to meet Mindy as well.  I think she might have been at BEA this past summer and I missed her.  :-(

Another great book, and so much fun to listen to the author read it herself.  There's one part where she imagines if her life was different and she'd been a teacher. And so we get to hear a bunch of emails that are supposedly written as part of this life. The email signatures she has are so funny.  Once again I want to share all the little updates I posted on Goodreads as I was listening to the book.

So many laughs for this book, and so much love for this actress/comedian/author.

Audiobook Review: The Wicked Will Rise (Dorothy Must Die #2) by Danielle Paige

This was the next audiobook I chose to listen to.  I had owned a copy of the book, but traded it for something I couldn't wait for awhile back.  So I had to borrow the audiobook from my public library.  It was a pretty good story. The narrator did a good job with different voices and keeping it interesting. As most second books seem to be in trilogies, it was what I call a "road trip" book.  Now, my review of this will probably, no definitely have spoilers if you haven't read the first book.  So in that case, you should just stop reading now, and go read my review of the first book, Dorothy Must Die. 

This book picks up basically where the last one left off.  The main character, Amy Gumm, failed in her mission to kill Dorothy.  She was able to get the Tin Woodsman's heart though, which was one of the things the Wizard told her she would need to be able to actually kill Dorothy.  In the battle, she lost sight of the rest of the witches in the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked, included her friend Nox.  Probably the one thing she is glad to have done is save the Princess Ozma.  Even if she isn't much help in her dazed and confused state.  Amy and Ozma get some help getting away from their friends the wingless monkeys, who got paper wings from the Wizard just for this mission.  And they get close to the monkeys' village when they run into the Lion.  And somehow, Amy must get his courage from him, another ingredient needed to kill Dorothy. The way that she does it, well, that is a surprise!  And then they are taken into the village high up in the trees where the monkeys live now.  While there, Amy discovers a secret about Ozma, and the boy named Pete that she'd seen back at the Palace in Emerald City.  Mombi shows up beat up and exhausted.  She tells Amy that she must talk to someone named Polychrome, who lives in the land of the rainbows. 

So part of the book takes place in a land of rainbows.  It is on this journey that she will find Nox again.  And together they must try to figure out how to stop Dorothy.  Only Glinda and Dorothy will not fight fair.  And they will soon find out that there is something peculiar between Dorothy and Amy, something that makes it really hard to kill each other.  And the Wizard, we'll finally find out what he's up to.  And you'll know whether he can be trusted, or if he has a plot worse that what Dorothy has! 

Another cliffhanger of an ending, and the big battle will still be coming in the third book!

Again, such fun with all the different places being created for the story.  I kind of want to smoke a rainbow cigarette, even though I'm very anti-smoking.  :-)

Audiobook Review: Yes, My Accent is Real: and Some Other Things I Haven't Told You by Kunal Nayyar

This was the last audiobook I downloaded from the public library to listen to.  And it was narrated by the author, one of the stars of my favorite tv show, The Big Bang Theory, he plays Raj. 

First off, he is so funny!  I'm sure just reading the book would have been funny, but listening to him read his own words was even funnier.  As the title says, yes, the accent is real.  And one thing that is so funny is thinking about the episode of The Big Bang Theory when all the guys are teasing Raj for how he says mustache.  Because that is how he really says it!  I wonder if it got written in because of something that happened in real life with the cast.

He tells the story basically going through most of his life, how he was born in England, but actually lived most of his life in India.  We learn about his childhood, how he was a top badminton player, as well as other things that he did as a child.  It is fun to hear about all the holidays that Indians celebrate.  That is even funny because of the humorous stories he has to go with each holiday, as well as the fact that each holiday part includes him saying that particular holiday being discussed is his favorite festival.  So, all of them basically.  He talks about his first kiss, and how it was influenced by Winnie Cooper on the tv show The Wonder Years, played by Danica McKellar. Why that is relevant other than telling about that memory, is because there was an episode of The Big Bang Theory where Danica McKellar plays a girl that Raj hooks up with!  So hearing him talk about the experience of actually kissing "Winnie Cooper" is wonderful.

We learn about his time in college, and all the things he dealt with as someone from another country. He talks about when he first started acting really, during college.  We hear about his romantic escapades in college.  All told in such humorous fashion.  I have to say that hearing about his parents, well they seem to be some of the best parents you could ever have.  Nothing at all like his character Raj's parents. 

Then, the end is where we finally get to hear about when he got on the tv show.  And one of my favorite parts was the very end when he meets his wife.  Hearing about the wedding and how all the traditions work was really pretty magical.  There was one thing he said during the part with meeting his wife and falling in love that really struck me as well.  He says whenever people ask him for advice about whoever they're dating, he asks the if this person is kind.  People will always say the person has a good sense of humor, or is attractive, etc.  But if someone is kind, that shows something real about them.  And it makes such sense. 

I enjoyed listening to him talk, and knowing his accent is real, that makes the tv show even better.  I think I might even have fallen in love with him just a bit listening to his story.  He truly seems like such a nice, funny guy.  I definitely recommend this book, and if you like audiobooks, I'd suggest listening to it.  Another fun audiobook.  I'll have to find some more memoir types of books that are read by the author, probably other comedians I'd guess.

Audiobook Review: Armada by Ernest Cline

Once again I have been blown away by this author.  And I'm actually a little mad at myself for trading away the ARC I had of this title. Even though I've listened to both this and the author's first book Ready Player One as audio books from the library, I'd still like to own a copy of them now.  I'm not a big video game player, but I know enough about it, and the people who play them, that I was able to enjoy that part of the story.  And once again the author threw in some 80s references, which is the era I grew up in, and I love everything 80s.  There were references to movies, music, and video games of the time.  But it didn't take place in that time, it was more of a today's time period.  It's once again a science fiction story, but it reminds me of the Scream movie franchise in a way.  It's a science fiction story that kind of pokes fun at science fiction stories of the past, while still giving them the credit they are due.

Our main character is Zack Lightman, who is a high school senior who loves video games.  His father died when he was a baby, in a sanitation plant accident.  So while he's never really known him, he's looked up to him his whole life, and almost emulated him with the video games he's played.  He is one of the top 10 in the world in his favorite video game.  He doesn't know what he wants to do with his life, even though his mother is pushing him to figure it out.  They have money he can use to go to college from his father's accident settlement.  But really, he just wants to continue working at his part time job at a video game store.  When we start the story Zack is sitting in class and when he looks out the window he sees what looks like one of the alien spaceships from his favorite game.  No one else seems to have seen it, so he doesn't say anything.  The next day when he gets to school, another spaceship from his video game, this time it belongs to the good guys, the Earth Defense Alliance, and it lands on the school lawn.  Two men in black get out, along with Ray, his friend who owns the video game store where he works part time.  They are looking for Zack.  It seems that there really are aliens, and they need him to help them fight before the aliens destroy the world.  Turns out that the video games are actually training programs and that the government has been using them to find out who would be good at helping with this problem for the day it comes.  Unfortunately the day they come to get Zack, well that is really the last chance for the EDA to get the best pilots and fight the aliens, as they are sending an armada to destroy the Earth. 

Zack is taken to a secret base where he and many, many other game players learn about how long the aliens have been around, and what is coming, and what they will be expected to do if they choose to enlist.  Zack becomes friends with a girl named Lex.  The first battle doesn't go that well when the aliens attack the site of the base and when one of the ships tries to come down to where they are all hidden beneath the ground fighting using their drones, well let's just say Zack disobeys orders and causes more problems.  After this Zack gets sent to the base on the moon.  Here he meets someone he never expected to meet, the person who is the number 1 in all the world in the video game Zack plays.  He makes new friends with others from the top 10 players who are also going to the moon base.  Once there he will find that his father's crazy theories he'd read about in his father's journals may be more true than imagined, and that everything may not be as it seems.  It seems the aliens attack and then give us enough time to catch up technologically before they attack again.  When the enemy ships fight, most often it is  like the stormtroopers in Star Wars, they miss most of their shots, just like what happens in video games as well. 

I won't tell you anymore.  You have to read and enjoy it for yourself.  Let's just say I loved all the cameos of scientists like Carl Sagan, Stephen Hawking, and Neil deGrasse Tyson.  Finding out how the movies out there tie in to the aliens, and how long NASA and the government have known about the aliens was also a lot of fun.  Zack was great, realistic, sarcastic, and so much fun.  You have another cast of great supporting characters, just like in the first book by the author.  If you like science fiction whatsoever, you need to read this.  Ernest Cline is quickly becoming one of my auto-read authors.  Both audio books were also read by Wil Wheaton, and I really do enjoy listening to the way he brings the story and the characters to life.  Also, while it totally ends in a satisfactory way, I would love a sequel with more about the aliens and what happens at the end.

Audiobook Review: The Conspiracy of Us by Maggie Hall

This was my next book that I chose to listen to as an audio book from the library.  And wow, was it good!  So good that there were times I didn't want to get out of my car to go do whatever I was supposed to be doing, because I wasn't ready to stop listening!  Now I know what all the hype about this book was about, and I can't wait for the next one to come out!

The main character is Avery.  She has had to move a lot throughout her whole life because of her mom's job. Whenever her mom gets a mandate, they move on to the next location.  In the current place they're living, Avery has tried to make friends and join in, and has even found a cute guy that is newer than she is, Jack, who might be interested in her as well. But when she sees a paper drop from his stuff, and she picks it up to find a picture of herself, she wonders what is going on. She then hears him on a phone call, but he has an English accent.  Her mom gets a mandate, which means they have to move right away, but Avery wants to go to prom with Jack, so she sneaks out to go.  At prom another very attractive guy, but also new to the area, shows up. This guy, Stellan, tells Avery she has to go with him, and he even pulls out a knife to threaten her.  Jack tries to get her away and explain that he might know who her father is, but then he gets a text, and tells her to go ahead with Stellan, and he'll catch up later.  She goes with Stellan, still with the chance to meet her father.  But this takes her on a private plane to Paris.  Stellan is one of those attractive guys, who knows he is, and is smug, even while being flirtatious.  Oh, and he is Russian.

Once in Paris, Avery gets a room in the Louvre, and finds out that this family she's been brought to join is part of "The Circle" which is made up of many politicians, movie stars, sports stars, etc.  But after being out shopping at a designer store, shut down just for her to pick a ball gown for an event coming up with all the families, she is attacked, and learns about a group called The Order. The Order is out to kill "The One,"  a male from one of the 12 families in the Circle.  She learns that the mandate means something to them, it is a prophecy that tells them The One, must have a union with the girl with the purple eyes.  Well, the family that Stellan works for is expecting twin babies, one a girl, that should have purple eyes.  But, Avery has purple eyes.  And she knows that if anyone else knows, they will think the prophecy is about her, and she will be married off.  So she escapes, first to Istanbul, where she is able to get to Jack again, and they now are on the run, trying to solve the clues left by an old neighbor of Avery's, who turns out to be Jack's mentor, and hoping to solve the clues, and get him back from the Order, who is going to kill him.

So many secrets, so many layers to the whole story.  I loved the whole Alexander the Great back story.  And how Napoleon tied into it.  And the ending, wow, left with a big cliffhanger.  I need to know what will happen with Stellan, how his part in the mandate will affect Avery's part.  And can she be with Jack, even though it is against all of the rules of The Circle.  I really had no complaints about the story whatsoever.  Other than there were a few times when something dangerous was going on, and Avery was calling Jack's name, and on the recording it began to remind me of Rose calling Jack in the Titanic movie.  I now cannot wait until the 2nd book comes out.  Which, hey, now I'm wondering if the egalley is available anywhere?  Guess I'll finish this review and go out to check on that!

Audiobook Review: Miss Mayhem (Rebel Belle #2) by Rachel Hawkins

This was an audiobook that I downloaded from my public library.  I pretty much just listened to this one in the car, as I haven't been walking at the gym like I need to be.  Once again I really enjoyed the story.  This one didn't remind me of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer movie like the first book did.  Although I did draw some similarities in my brain to some of the tv series episodes in a way.  If you haven't read the first book in the series, Rebel Belle, you should probably stop here and click on the link to go read that review, because there probably might be some spoilers for the first one in this review.

Where we left off in the last book, David had come into his full powers as an Oracle, Harper was still his Paladin, Ryan had become a mage when Sailor died the night of Cotillion, and Bee had been kidnapped by the Ephors.  Since Ryan and Harper broke up, Ryan had begun dating Mary Beth, and Harper was dating David.  David's visions had been giving him really bad headaches, and they were big things, like earthquakes in other countries, things that they couldn't really do anything about.  So Ryan had put up some wards to try to restrict David's powers to only small visions.  Visions that they'd used to try to help their friends.  Including trying to keep one of the twins from meeting a really douchey frat guy and marrying him, and basically ruining her life.  Maybe.  At least that's how Harper sees the vision that David has about it.

It is on their way back from rescuing the twins that David gets a feeling that he needs to be somewhere.  And Harper can't get him to not go, so they get in the car with him and go.  Turns out they show up at this old house that was in ruins, but now seems to be magically rebuilt on the outskirts of town.  Here they meet one of the Ephors who tells Harper she must pass a big test that all Paladin's must pass, or that she will die.  And then he brings out Bee.  Bee has been being trained as a Paladin, but she is let go when they all show up.  David is of course curious about what the Ephors might have that he can use to help him.  And once again Harper is feeling like the Ephors may choose another big event for the final test to be a dramatic thing, this time the Miss Pine Grove pageant.  Something that she would normally never enter, but Bee convinces her to enter.

The tests happen, and while Harper does her best, in the psychological one, she sees things that she doesn't know how to deal with.  Once again it is the vision of her having to kill David when the Oracle powers take over.  Of course all of the events put a strain on David and Harper's relationship, and all the time that Harper and Ryan have to spend together causes problems for Ryan and Mary Beth.  While I kind of saw what was going to happen with Ryan later in the story, it still didn't go down very well.  And Bee coming home wasn't the homecoming they'd all expected.  Sure, everyone thought she'd been gone at Cheerleading Camp, but at first people didn't seem to even remember her.  Including her boyfriend Brandon.  There's something Bee does towards the end, that was kind of something I'd wondered if she'd do, but it is for a totally different reason than I'd been expecting.

This time I'd say we were left with kind of a big cliffhanger.  And I need to know what happens next!  If this book had really been an egalley on Edelweiss like I saw last week before it disappeared, I'd be all over it reading it before ones I needed to read probably!  Definitely a fun series, although I did cry in this one for sure!!!

Audiobook Review: Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins

I decided to download this as an audiobook from the library because some of the other books I'd wanted I had to be on a waiting list. And then I remembered I'd wanted to read this one.  It was definitely a good choice on my part!  I really enjoyed it!  As someone who is a huge Buffy the Vampire Slayer fan, the book really reminded me so much of the original BTVS movie.  Obviously it wasn't the exact same story, no vampires for one thing.  But a girl gets powers, has to protect someone, she has to hide her powers and new life from her boyfriend, and the big fight is going to go down at a formal dress event.  Those are the main similarities.  And what was even funny was that the book even referenced the BTVS tv show!  When the main character got her powers, she was wondering where her "Giles" was. 

The main character is Harper, such a perfect southern belle name.  And Harper is the perfect southern belle.  She is a proper lady, has the best guy in school for her boyfriend, she's popular - but not mean girl popular, her family history in the town is well-set, and she runs so many things at school - and works hard to make her school the best it can be.  She has a boy, David, who has been her arch-nemesis since grade school.  They're both at the top of the class, and he's on the school newspaper, always seeming to write articles that show her in a bad light to the rest of the school.  The story begins the night of Homecoming.  Harper shows up kind of late with her boyfriend Ryan, and her best friend Bee and her boyfriend, Brandon.  When she realizes she forgot to put on any lip gloss, she hurries to the girls' restroom to put some on.  Unfortunately while she's in there, the janitor comes stumbling in, and shuts and locks the door.  Harper notices he's bleeding, and before she can get away, he holds onto her and blows something into her mouth.  Then he dies.  There is some pounding on the door, and her history teacher breaks in brandishing a scimitar.  All of a sudden Harper has this strange power and knows how to fight, and she ends up having to fight and kill the history teacher.  She finally is able to escape, without getting any blood on herself somehow.  And out in the hallway she runs into David.  She's worried she'll be arrested for killing her teacher.  But when she goes back to the bathroom later, everything that was in there is gone. 

She soon finds out that she's unable to hurt David, but whenever he is in danger, she gets this horrible feeling inside, a noise in her head, and she has to go to protect him wherever and however.  Together they begin to try to figure out what is going on. The janitor has called her a "Paladin"and they look up what that is.  They go to ask David's aunt about it, and find out that David is an Oracle, and his aunt, isn't really his aunt, but a Mage.  Someone who can do magic that has been raising him, protecting him from the other Mages who want to kill him, because a male Oracle isn't as powerful as a female one, and so that's why they are rarely allowed to live very long.  The big vision that David has seen includes blood and mayhem at the winter cotillion that Harper is supposed to be attending, and that his aunt is in charge of.  Of course all this secretive behavior and meetings sets up rumors and gossip.  Harper's boyfriend and best friend wonder what she is up to, and it leads to problems with their relationships.  So Harper wants her life to not change, but she must protect David.  And she must survive the night of the cotillion. 

As I wrote this review, again I wanted to keep comparing to the BTVS movie.  And it's not in a bad way at all, because I loved the movie, and the tv show, and I loved this book.  Probably the only reason I gave the book a 4 instead of a 5 is because of how much it seems like the same story in a way.  What I loved about this story though, is that even though Harper has problems with her boyfriend, unlike in the BTVS movie, this boyfriend is a wonderful southern gentleman, and really just a nice guy.  I like the way he is realistically written as a teen boy, but still able to be a nice guy, and not a jerk.  And the best friend isn't a jerk like in the movie, Bee actually is able to stay friends and be loyal. Now the other girls in the crowd, that's another story, but that is normal for a group of popular girls as well.  I like that while Harper notices her feelings to Ryan changing, and notices that maybe he's starting to feel something for Mary Beth, she is adult enough to realize that he isn't cheating on her, but still a teenager in that she doesn't quite want to give him away so easily. 

Really the only problem I kind of had was picturing David.  Does anyone have a picture of what the author maybe was thinking?  I just can't quite seem to picture anything that would be even remotely attractive from the way he was described, but I know he has to be one of those guys that is nerdy on the surface, but under the glasses and horrible clothing, still cute. 

I really loved this book, will have to listen to the audiobook of the 2nd one now and then review it as well.  I was also very excited to see on someone's Waiting on Wednesday post yesterday that there is going to be a third book in the series.  So that is cool, hopefully I love the 2nd one as much as the 1st, and then will be very anxious for that 3rd one.

Audiobook Review: Rapture (Fallen #4) by Lauren Kate

Once again I have enjoyed another audio book downloaded through my public library using the Overdrive app.  Now, I haven't been exercising like I'm supposed to be, so I pretty much listened to this whole book in my car, with a bit on the plane rides to and from New Orleans a couple weeks ago.  While I still have issues with the narrator, by this time I'm pretty used to her voice and how she does the different characters.   All in all, I feel this was a pretty great conclusion to the whole series, even though there is now going to be a book #5.  If you haven't read the books up until this point, then I'm sorry, this will have spoilers for those books.  You can go back and read any of those reviews here:  Fallen, Torment, and Passion.  Now, on for my review of this book. (Excuse any incorrect character name spellings as I didn't read, but listened, so don't know for sure some of the spellings).

As we ended the last book with a huge possible end of the world situation going to be caused by Lucifer himself, that is exactly where we pick up again.  Turns out that there are some relics that Daniel had studied that should help them figure out where the angels' fall from heaven happened.  And that is what they must do, they must find those relics and get to the site of the fall in order to stop Lucifer from grabbing all the angels and taking them straight from the fall to the current day.  Because if they did that, all of history would be rewritten, and Luce and Daniel would never have the chance to get together, even with their curse.  So the story takes place as the angels we know and love, Daniel, Cam, Roland, Arriane, Annabelle, Molly, and Gabby, as well as Luce and her Nephilim friends Miles and Shelby, set off in search of the relics, but they come up against the Scales and the Outcasts.  They will find other obstacles, places that the relics were originally may have been moved, and other villains from the past, like Miss Sophia.  They are able to use the memories that Luce is now retrieving more easily thanks to her trips through the announcers into her past lives in the last book.  They will also find some new allies, relatives of Miss Sophia, as well as those that were once considered their enemies.  And we learn so much more about Luce, about how she and Daniel actually first met, and just why Lucifer went to so much trouble as Bill in the book before this one.

While I had an inkling about the reason for Lucifer's interference, it was nice to find the way it happened was done perfectly.  Many parts that we learned about heaven and before the fall totally reminded me of the Supernatural tv series that I love so much.  And not to offend anyone, but the part where angels were created by God for the sole purpose of adoring him, well that just really hits me in my not sure about what I think about God.  Who creates something just for that sole purpose?  It is similar to adopting a kid or buying a pet with the only thought that they will be there for you, not that you are there for them?  I don't know, that just sticks in my head.  And my complaints about the audiobook have to do with the narrator.  Once again I understand she is lowering her voice for the male characters, but often the way she did Daniel made him sound like a really dumb guy.  Just the way she did the voice, not necessarily his lines or anything specifically from the book. 

Overall, a great series, a great ending to the series as I said before.  I love the way the author ended it, I won't give that away, but I feel like it should be a very satisfactory ending and way to make sure that we know just how true the love between Daniel and Luce is.   I know that there is a #5, but it is going to be Cam's story, and that is something I'm eager to read.  Oh, on the end of the audio, there was an interview with the author, and it is funny that Cam is modeled on her husband, and they way she talks about that.  Now, I'm still waiting for the movie of the first book, and need to go do the research to find out when it will be coming to a theater near me!

Audio Book Review: Torment (Fallen #2) by Lauren Kate

I decided to listen to this book after reading and mostly enjoying the first book, Fallen.  I finally figured out how to download audio books from the local library, and I'm now taking advantage of it.  I had mixed feelings about this book as well.  In my review of the first book, I mentioned how it definitely reminded me of Twilight.  However in this book, the guy that Luce is in love with, Daniel, totally embodies the controlling qualities that people seemed to attribute to Edward in Twilight, except that Edward was nowhere near this bad.  Daniel actually told Luce she should be "obeying" him.  That was the exact word, "obey".  Wow, my mouth hung open when I heard that on the audio book. 

So, this story picks up where the last one left off.  Daniel has taken Luce to a school out in California, one that he says she will be safe at.  In the meantime, Daniel and Cam are part of some kind of truce, and the story passes day by day of the truce.  But Luce is far away from all her old friends and family.  And as far as they know, she is still at Sword and Cross, the school from the last story.  Daniel tells her she cannot leave the campus, it's not safe.  Even when she goes down to the beach with other kids from the school, he gets upset with her, and tells her she can't even go that far.  The other kids at the school, well some of them, are Nephilim, or half angel/half human.  They have two teachers that are just part of the "gifted" program, what the human students think it is.  One is an angel and one is a demon.  Luce does have several close calls, but she also learns a lot while at the school.  She learns about all the shadows that she'd always seen.  It turns out they're called announcers, and they can use them to see events in the past.  They can even be used for traveling from one place to another.  Kind of like a transporter on Star Trek or a little wormhole that can be opened up and traveled through.

Of course at the end, the time is pretty much up for the truce.  We've got a new enemy, the Outcasts, and they are pretty creepy.  There is a trip to Las Vegas, and Luce starts seeing past families by looking in the announcers.  She makes a new friend, and even a guy friend, one that makes her wonder if Daniel and the soul-shattering love they have, is really what she wants. What if she could just live a normal life, with a normal boy, would it be worth it?  And what would happen to the curse? 

Honestly it just irritates me when people won't tell the other person what they ask questions about.  Nothing at all.  I think it is ridiculous the way Daniel treats her.  Especially when other people, Cam, other angels/demons, will tell her things.  Maybe not everything she needs to know, but at least some kind of information.  Things that can help her figure things out. Although, other than the "obeying" part, I feel like if a guy I loved, who was an angel, told me I needed to do something to be safe, I would probably do it.  But then, I guess it would be a pretty short, boring story. 

The ending was pretty exciting though, and so I immediately, actually before I even finished the 2nd one, had to download the audio book of the third book, Passion, so that I could pick up right where I left off.  And that is what I'm listening to in the car and when I exercise. 

Audiobook Review: Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling

For my 3rd audiobook to listen to, I chose this one because it was narrated by the author, and I am a huge fan of Mindy Kaling, especially after her show.  This was so much fun to listen to.

The book goes through her family life, growing up, school, college, moving to NYC, getting jobs like on The Office, etc.  To hear her telling it was so much fun.  I have to say as I listened to it, I just knew that I need to be friends with her.  She talked about how she ended up with a friend that they could sit and talk about things and no one else could understand why they did that.  I can totally be the same way, and seem to have different friends for each of the things I want to talk that way about.  A lot of the things she talked about made me think that if you were popular back in school, you might not find the things as relatable and funny as I did.  I loved hearing of her love of food and also being dressed for photo shoots. 

For the most part I agreed with almost all she talked about.  But there were two main things I did not:  chest hair (on men of course), and not taking free cupcakes when offered. 

Not too much more to say without going on and on about every single chapter, so I'll just share my Goodreads updates as I read it:

If you enjoy a self-deprecating, yet full of self confidence persona, Mindy Kaling is the person to listen to, or read if you have time for the actual book.  I used Scribd again, and still had issues with listening to it in my car.  Probably not going to continue listening with that after my free 30 days.

Audio Review: Off the Page (Between the Lines #2) by Jodi Picoult and Samantha van Leer

If you remember I decided to try audio books when I drove to Branson back on Memorial Day weekend for a family vacation.  And the first book I tried was Between the Lines, which I loved, and decided maybe listening to audio books in my car might be something I really liked.  After listening to this sequel, I may now be addicted to audio books both in the car, as well as when I am walking at the park.

I have to say, I find myself really missing this world now that I'm done listening to it.  I find myself wanting to go back in and be with the characters and see what they are doing now.  As with the last book I love the characters and the dialogue and the whole story itself.  There were times I wanted to cry, and of course times I was laughing out loud, just as with the last book.  Again there is more than one narrator, three of the characters, well kind of four, have their own person narrating.  If you haven't read the first book, there might be some spoilers, although supposedly you don't have to read the first book to read this one, at least that is what I've heard people say.  And there is a pretty good recap at some point, from each of the characters in their own way.

Prince Oliver was able to come out of the book to be with Delilah, when Edgar, the son of Jessamyn Jacobs, the author of the fairy tale, decided to go in and make the book his own.  So Delilah and Oliver had to first convince Jessamyn to move to where Delilah lives. Then it was time for him to start school.  Delilah and her friend Jules had to do a lot of prepping for Oliver to try to prepare him for high school.  But Oliver, for the most part, kind of walks in and almost is instantly popular, a la the movie Encino Man.  At least that is kind of what I was reminded of as I listened to the story.  Things seem to be just about perfect.  Until Oliver's friendliness and popularity cause issues between him and Delilah, and Edgar's mom has an episode where she ends up in the hospital overnight. 

At first Edgar is excited to be in the story.  Until the other characters don't seem to like his space version of the story, and he has problems keeping them on task.  And soon other things start happening.  Like the book sending a message on its own asking Oliver to come back.  Then things start getting crazy.  Frump, who had been changed to a boy in Edgar's version of the story, starts changing back to a dog. When he tries to make a wish to have what he wants most, he ends up outside of the book with Oliver and Delilah, but still as a dog.  Delilah's dog Humphrey gets sent into the book in his place, where he can now talk.  But he's a dog still, not a boy in a dog's body like Frump was.  And then, well, Seraphima also wishes herself out of the book, to be with Frump.   When she does that, then Jules is sent into the book.  Now Jules and Edgar get to know each other.  And may have their own little romance going. 

Before the book is over, we will lose one beloved character.  Another will develop a deadly illness, new romances will break up, and there will be other tragedies. But this is a fairy tale, so there will be a happy ending, romantic and family both.  Although not all ends may be tied up as neatly as I'd like, I smiled throughout the whole ending, and as I said before, missed the characters when it was over.

I love, love, love this book and the one before.  If you haven't read these yet, you totally should.