Audiobook Review: The Humans by Matt Haig
The Humans
Author: Matt Haig
Narrator: Mark Meadows
Published: May 9, 2013
Audiobook: 8 hours 11 minutes
Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Listened To: May 6-11, 2025
Jessica’s Rating: 3.5 stars
Book Description:
When an extraterrestrial visitor arrives on Earth, his first impressions of the human species are less than positive. Taking the form of Professor Andrew Martin, a leading mathematician at Cambridge University, the visitor wants to complete his task and return home to his planet and a utopian society of immortality and infinite knowledge.
He is disgusted by the way humans look, what they eat, and the wars they witness on the news, and is totally baffled by concepts such as love and family. But as time goes on, he starts to realize there may be more to this weird species than he has been led to believe. He drinks wine, reads Emily Dickinson, listens to Talking Heads, and begins to bond with the family he lives with, in disguise. In picking up the pieces of the professor’s shattered personal life, the narrator sees hope and redemption in the humans’ imperfections and begins to question the very mission that brought him there–a mission that involves not only thwarting human progress…but murder.
Jessica’s Review:
This was a book club read for May. Overall, I did enjoy it; I just had some issues with the narrator. An unnamed alien takes over the form of Math professor Andrew Martin because he (Andrew Martin) made a math discovery which could cause the human race to gain advantages in their development as a species. This could be a detriment to them, so the unnamed narrator is sent to destroy all evidence of the discovery…. and more.
This is the basic synopsis of the story but the journey this unnamed narrator goes on is the entire story. His first thoughts of humans are that they are ugly (especially their noses)! I wondered why a nose was on the cover of the book. And then you read it and know! Humans are also greedy, selfish, and worse!
I was entertained with our unnamed narrator and his discovery of the necessity of clothing for humans at the beginning of his journey. Along with the after-effects of that throughout the novel. The reader sees the ‘new’ Andrew Martin with his family and in a way the ‘new’ Andrew Martin becomes human: He begins to experience empathy, love, understanding and more. But this ‘new’ Andrew Martin also makes mistakes as we humans do. He then has a conundrum of sorts: Complete his mission and return to his home planet or stay in human form.
This book was entertaining and I did giggle quite a bit. I did have some issues with the narrator; he did not totally work for me. His narration was a bit flat and toneless, which made it harder for me to listen to. I did get used to it, but it didn’t really work for me. This could also be the narrator’s interpretation and presentation of the alien character. The narration did cause me to rate this novel 3.5 stars.
It is a good book, but I would say read it over listening to the narration.
ALC Review: The Love Haters by Katherine Center
The Love Haters
Author: Katherine Center
Narrator: Patti Murin
To Be Published: May 20, 2025
Audiobook: 10 hours 33 minutes
Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Listened To: March 31-April 6, 2025
Jessica’s Rating: 3.5 stars
Book Description:
It’s a thin line between love and love-hating.
Katie Vaughn has been burned by love in the past—now she may be lighting her career on fire. She has two choices: wait to get laid off from her job as a video producer or, at her coworker Cole’s request, take a career-making gig profiling Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West.
The catch? Katie’s not exactly qualified. She can’t swim—but fakes it that she can.
Plus: Cole is Hutch’s brother. And they don’t get along. Next stop paradise!
But paradise is messier than it seems. As Katie gets entangled with Hutch (the most scientifically good-looking man she has ever seen . . . but also a bit of a love hater), along with his colorful Aunt Rue and his rescue Great Dane, she gets trapped in a lie. Or two.
Swim lessons, helicopter flights, conga lines, drinking contests, hurricanes, and stolen kisses ensue—along with chances to tell the truth, to face old fears, and to be truly brave at last.
Jessica’s Review:
The Love Haters is far from my favorite book written by Center, but I did still enjoy it! It’s a rom com and will make for a great summer beach read, especially if you are vacationing in the Florida Keys this year! I’ve never been to Key West, but now I would surely like to go!
We have Katie Vaughn who is at a crossroads jobwise: Take a job in Key West featuring a Coast Guard hero who saved Jennifer Aniston’s dog (Yes, that Jennifer Aniston!) or risk getting fired. The catch is: Katie can’t swim. Being this is a romcom, of course Katie takes the job. And chaos in many forms appears throughout the story! With chances of being fired still popping up throughout the novel
The Coast Guard hero Hutch is her boss’s brother and Katie’s type. Katie meets Aunt Rue and a Great Dane named George Bailey (Yes, that George Bailey!) Aunt Rue and George Bailey enhance the story and at times steal the show! And Aunt Rue has some friends, so it’s like The Golden Girls at times!
There is some seriousness to the novel: Katie has body image issues. Seemingly like all women, but Katie’s tends to be worse due to her stepmother and a previous relationship where the media was all over Katie. Over the course of the novel, we see Katie go through a transformation with her body issues.
Katie’s body issues did seem to overshadow at times, but we get some potential romance and coast guard training in as well! Hutch was a ‘bit dreamy’ too. You can tell the Center did some research on Coast Guard training. Did she go through training like Katie did???? I enjoyed the ending and this is a fun read.
Patti Murin is the narrator. She is one I will listen to and she delivers on her narration every time!
Many thanks to the publisher Macmillan Audio for granting me an alc to listen to and review! I enjoyed it!
Pre-Order Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Audiobook Review: The Accidental Dating Experiment by Lauren Blakely
The Accidental Dating Experiment
Series: How to Date #4
Author: Lauren Blakely
Narrators:
Andi Arndt
Jacob Morgan
Published: April 11, 2024
Audiobook: 6 hours 55 minutes
Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Listened To: November 11-13, 2024
Jessica’s Rating: 3.5 stars
Book Description:
Eight years ago I fell into a secret summer fling with my best friend’s little sister before our lives went in different directions. Now, I’m the grumpy to Juliet’s sunshine on a popular dating podcast we host, and when a wealthy fan gives us a charming coastal cottage as the biggest thank you ever, we head to the town where I grew up to give it a makeover.
And find the house has only one bed. Located under a mirrored ceiling.
To make matters even harder, the bright, big-hearted woman I’ve been pining for tells me she wants to try to find the one and would I please be her dating coach for the week?
Like hell I’ll let her date other men. I’ll coach her on three dates with me.
But the second I take her out, I don’t feel like her teacher. I feel like she’s mine, especially when the first night ends with us tangled up together in that bed.
Each night we grow closer, but this dating experiment forces me to face my greatest fear–whether a man like me is worthy of her love.
Even though I’m already head over heels for her.
Jessica’s Review:
The Accidental Dating Experiment is not my typical genre I read or listen to. But I saw it was free on my Audible account and it sounded cute, so I went for it! Well… I didn’t realize it was going to be smutty! LOL. My fault for not researching the author before I listened to the book as her ‘go to’ phrase is:
Cute But Spicy
Books That Make You Blush
So the joke’s on me then… I also didn’t know that this is book four in a series, it did seem like a standalone book to me. But I actually enjoyed listening to this novel.
The banter that Monroe and Juliet have on their job of the podcast was (!) and their chemistry in general was hot an I found myself saying “go ahead and get back together!”.
Again, I’m not a spicy reader and the spice in this novel was too much for me, but I made it through. Just give me fade to black scenes, I don’t need specific details. I guess I will have to look more into romance books I may choose to read in the future…
It was an enjoyable book with the cute romantic tropes of grumpy/sunshine, fake dating, second chance romance, and the one bed situation.
The epilogue ended things well and I really enjoyed the ending.
Both narrators, Andi Arndt and Jacob Morgan, brought the characters of Juliet and Monroe to life. They were perfect narrators for these characters!
3.5 stars is a good review for a book that is out of my normal genre with too much spice for this listener.
Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK