Tag: 4.5 stars

An Advanced Listening Copy Review of Switched by Sarah Ready

Switched
Series: Ghosted #2
Author: Sarah Ready

Narrators:
Kelsey Navarro Foster

James Anderson Foster
To Be Published: February 20, 2024
Audiobook: 10 hours 12 minutes

Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Listened To:  February 2-12, 2024
Jessica’s Rating: 4.5 stars

Book Description:

For Serena Otaki, free-spirited Californian, life is simple. She loves smashing atoms at The Large Hadron Collider near Geneva, Switzerland. She loves Star Trek, spicy tofu, and her cat, Captain Purrk. She loves her messy (slob-fest) apartment, her chaotic brand of organizing, and staying permanently, happily unattached.

Life is perfect. She has one true love—physics.
Loving a man isn’t in her future.

For Henry Joules, uptight Brit, life is simple. He loves making analog black holes, drinking piping hot tea, and organizing his pencil tray. He loves his family, red meat, and obsessively cleaning his spotless apartment.

Life is perfect. He has many loves—physics, family, friends. He can’t wait to find the woman of his dreams.
Love and marriage are in his future.

One perfect night Serena and Henry meet. Sparks fly, particles collide, the universe comes to a halt, and…

It was a mistake.
They’re too different.
It won’t work.

Love isn’t in their future.

Until an electric storm causes an unexpected event at the particle collider and suddenly—they’ve switched.

Serena is in Henry’s body.
Henry is in Serena’s body.

And both life and love are suddenly very, very complicated.

Jessica’s Review:

Wow, Jessica listened to another romance novel and really enjoyed it! This is the second in the Ghosted series. It isn’t necessary to have read Ghosted before this one because Jillian and Daniel’s story is mentioned in Switched, but I really do recommend it! Their story also continues since Switched happens after Ghosted.  So far in this series we have extremely smart FMCs (female main characters) with STEM careers, that are also nerdy but adorable.  It’s great to have strong female characters with this type of career!

To be honest, I wasn’t really interested in the book until Serena and Henry switched bodies. I think it was a ‘me’ thing with some things going on in my life. But once that switch happened the book took off for me. 

Switched is very entertaining and hilarious at times.  We see what happens when you are not just in another person’s body, but someone of the opposite gender! Both Serena and Henry have experiences as the opposite sex. And really, we do see that women really are the stronger gender! Full on hilarity ensues, I just don’t want to say what as a minor spoiler.  We do have a small amount of spice that I could have done without.  Remember…. I’ve figured out that I seem to be a ‘fade to black’/ ‘behind closed door’ romance reader.

Here are some of the tropes we have in Switched:
Fake Dating

One Night Stand
Forced Proximity

We have two narrators: Kelsey Navarro Foster and James Anderson Foster, who are married in ‘real life’! Kelsey did a fabulous job! She really captured everything with the characters down to the ‘bad English accent’ with Serena attempting to be Henry.  James only narrated for one chapter, and for that I was thankful as his voice for this chapter did not work for me. 

Sarah Ready is an author I discovered last year and Switched is the third book I have listened to from her, and I have enjoyed them all!  She’s an author I plan to read/listen to more. And with a third book in the Ghosted series coming out in July, I am ready for another book from her!  And for one who doesn’t really read much romance, that is saying something! And let me just say that the covers of the books in this series… It’s very tempting for me to want physical copies of them because they are just… Gorgeous!

Many thanks to the publisher for having these audiobooks available to listen to and reviewing!

Pre-Order Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK

 

ALC Review: Her Husband’s Mistake by Daniel Hurst

Her Husband’s Mistake
Author: Daniel Hurst

Narrators:
Tamsin Kennard

Nathaniel Priestley
To Be Published:
September 30, 2023
Audiobook
: 5 Hours 36 minutes

Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Listened To: September 18-19, 2023
Jessica’s Rating: 4.5 stars

Audiobook Description:

A week in New York with my family should be the trip of a lifetime–yet I’ve been on edge the whole time because fifteen years ago, when we were living in this city, my husband did something that ripped our lives apart. I swore I would never come back, but he insisted. As we stroll along the Hudson River, drinking coffee in the sunshine, anyone would think we’re the perfect family. But the truth is far more complicated.

Jessica’s Review:

I am pasting the Goodreads book description for this review as the book’s description everywhere else gives to much plot away for this short book!  This was also the book description I read, so I wasn’t spoiled if I had read the book description elsewhere I would have been.

Jack and Lorna are from the UK originally and were living in New York until Jack did something and they suddenly left and returned to the UK with their young children. They vowed to never return until… Fast forward fifteen years with their children turning 18 and 21… big birthdays!!!  Guess what both kids want??? A trip to NYC!! Knowing their kids wouldn’t stop mentioning a NYC trip Jack and Lorna decide to give that gift to them. And now we have this book and what happens!

Her Husband’s Mistake is my second book by Daniel Hurst that I have listened to this year and I have enjoyed both. He is an author I will look out for! This one was very short coming in at 5.5 hours long and so it moves the entire time!  Get ready for a roller coaster of intensity with this one!

Jack and Lorna were not very likeable for me, but the kids were. So much happens so quickly it’s a book you don’t want to put down!  And it even went in a direction that I would not have guessed was going to happen! I was shocked: I actually had to relisten to that chapter when I got to a certain point in the audiobook!

The narrators did a good job with their narrations, I did like Tamsin Kennard’s voice more than Nathaniel Priestley. 

Many thanks to the publisher Bookoutoure Audio for granting me an alc to listen to and review! I enjoyed this very quick listen!

Preorder Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK

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Release Week Review: Audiobook Review of Curves for Days by Laura Moher

Curves for Days
Series: Big Love from Galway #1
Author: Laura Moher

Narrators:
Paul Bellantoni

Michelle Price
Published: August 22, 2023
Audiobook: 10 hours 23 minutes

Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Listened To:  August 11-16, 2023
Jessica’s Rating: 4.5 stars 

Audiobook Description:

Rose Barnes has got curves for days—and to Angus Drummond, the big, bearded contractor working on her new house, she’s the perfect thorn in his side. Little does she know Angus is perturbed on a daily basis by his attraction to this cheery, smart-ass woman with her sunshiny enthusiasm, her kindness, and her beautiful body.

Angus feels he has a debt to pay to the world and doesn’t deserve love until he pays it. Best to keep his mind on his work and his hands to himself. But the more Rose sees of Angus’s gruff, honorable thoughtfulness, and the more rusty laughter she surprises from him, the more she wants him too.

As their unlikely friendship becomes love, antagonism turns to partnership, and Rose’s house becomes a home. But Rose is keeping a secret that could blow up everything with Angus, and sure enough, it comes to light at the worst possible time…

Jessica’s Review:

This was a book that is 1000% written for me! I adored it nearly completely and identified with the FMC (female main character) Rose. Rose is plus sized and this is just a feel-good book with a great deal of body positivity and women of all sizes need that!

Rose is extremely relatable (I think any woman who is of a larger size in any end will identify with her). She is also friendly and helpful, and some women will love that she has a mouth on her and will use any and all the expletives she feels she needs, intended or not! She has a quarter jar and puts a quarter in it every time an expletive is said.  She would be a rich woman if that jar was full but….  This isn’t a spoiler as it is mentioned in the first few lines of the novel, Rose actually is rich due to a winning $80 million lottery ticket left to her!

Due to her circumstances Rose has trust issues and a past with a traumatic experience, she finds herself in Galway, North Carolina and decides to start over there.  She meets Angus who is Mr. Grumpy who ends up working on her new-to-her house.  We have the sweet and grumpy trope here!  This book is a slow burn with some steam to it! And dang, it was steamy enough for me! It was probably a level 2 of 5 for the steamy scenes. I don’t think I would be much steam-wise for the serious romance reader, but we do have open bedroom scenes. 

I really enjoyed the growth of the relationship between Angus and Rose. Even though he is grumpy he is also a Mr. Softy at heart. They both have issues that have to be worked out.  Curves for Days is a bit deceptive with the cover as there are many serious issues brought up, and this would be the trigger warnings: 

Body Shaming
Rape
Veterans’ issues including PTSD and suicide

The veteran’s issues that Angus deals with and his work with veteran’s is very important and going in I had no idea this was going to be a romance with serious issues throughout.  These issues that veterans experience and are unable to get help are really brought to the forefront of this book.  Our veterans’ really need so much more done for them than what is done now.  Bravo to Moher for bringing attention to this.

The only thing I didn’t really like was the given ‘third act conflict where I was becoming less of an Angus fan.  I am totally #TeamRose and adore her! By the end of the novel, I was very happy!

Both Paul Bellantoni and Michelle Price did a fantastic job with their narrations as Angus and Rose.  They really brought both of those characters to life for me. And I really liked Bellantoni’s voice!

I really enjoyed this first in the series and look forward to the next book that comes… Next April! It seems so far away now, but will be here before I know it!

Many thanks to the publisher for granting me an alc (advanced listening copy) to listen to and review. I really enjoyed this one!

Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK

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