Author: Carla NeggersNarrated by: Susan Boyce
Title: Secrets of the Lost Summer
Publisher: AudioGo
Format:Unabridged Audio CD
Length: 10 hrs: 13 mins
Publication: 2012
Source: Publisher via Audiobookjukebox
Rating: 3 out 5
AudioGo
A wave of hope carries Olivia Frost back to her small New England hometown nestled in the beautiful Swift River Valley. She's transforming a historic home into an idyllic getaway. Picturesque and perfect, if only the absentee owner will fix up the eyesore next door.…Dylan McCaffrey's ramshackle house is an inheritance he never counted on. It also holds the key to a generations-old lost treasure he can't resist…any more than he can resist his new neighbor. Against this breathtaking landscape, Dylan and Olivia pursue long-buried secrets and discover a mystery wrapped in a love story…past and present.
Thoughts: This is one that I should have read because this audio lost me now and then. Basically it was too easy for me to tune it in and out. The narrator does do a good job of distinguishing between the male and female characters. Boyce has one of those soothing voices that kind of relaxs you, so not good for a long drive. The sound quality was good but I will point out that Olivia, one of the main characters, when she was being spoken about in the narrative, she is called by the wrong name twice. So, right when I was finally caught up in the story, this threw me off for a moment.
Now about the story, Olivia has just been betrayed by someone that she called a friend. Instead of fighting back, she seizes the opportunity to follow her dream, which may lead her to the love she wasn't expecting to find in Dylan McCaffrey, the heir to a dump that he knows nothing about until Olivia graciously points it out. This is a tale of love, laughter, loss and triumph with a blend of suspense. I found the story as a whole to be wonderful even though I said that I was in and out of it, the story is compelling enough that the message, and emotion speaks through those pieces that I did hear.
I think my favorite character would have to be Grace and of course those were some of the parts that I was more focused on in the audio. It is intriguing how her past defined her life and how those secrets she was made and decided to keep are the ones that help Dylan discover what his father was up to before he died. The romance between Olivia and Dylan is sweet and I loved the various dynamics between all the couples young and old. I get that this is a story about finding one's place in the world and being happy doing what you love with or without that special person.
I've read a couple of her books. They are easy to pick up and put down and pick back up. I read one of them on a plane trip many years ago, it was a murder mystery. I loved the main character's name, Quinn Harlowe. The book was eerie though because the setting was in the northeastern part of the U.S., she drove a Saab convertible, ospreys played a big part...and it was odd because I was in the northeastern part of the U.S., I rode in a Saab convertible, and I saw plenty of ospreys. Thanks for the review!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your review :)
ReplyDeleteI've always wanted to try one of her books. I like the premise of this one. Mystery, family secrets, and romance, this book has it all. Oh,and the cover is really pretty.
I've never tried audiobooks b/c I had a fear of being distracted and missing parts of the narration. But, then again, sometimes I forget earlier parts of the story when reading physical books.
This was a good review. Calling a character's name wrong is a no, no. I can understand why you got lost.
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