ABOUT THE BOOKS:
Small Town Hearts by Lillie Vale
Rule #1 - Never fall for a summer boy.
Fresh out of high school, Babe Vogel should be thrilled to have the whole summer at her fingertips. She loves living in her lighthouse home in the sleepy Maine beach town of Oar’s Rest and being a barista at the Busy Bean, but she’s totally freaking out about how her life will change when her two best friends go to college in the fall. And when a reckless kiss causes all three of them to break up, she may lose them a lot sooner. On top of that, her ex-girlfriend is back in town, bringing with her a slew of memories, both good and bad.
And then there’s Levi Keller, the cute artist who’s spending all his free time at the coffee shop where she works. Levi’s from out of town, and even though Babe knows better than to fall for a tourist who will leave when summer ends, she can’t stop herself from wanting to know him. Can Babe keep her distance, or will she break the one rule she’s always had - to never fall for a summer boy?
The House in Poplar Wood by K.E. Ormsbee
For as long as the Vickery twins can remember, Lee and his mother have served Memory, while Felix and his father assist Death. This is the Agreement. But one Halloween, Gretchen Whipple smashes her way into their lives. Her bargain is simple: If the twins help her solve the murder of local girl Essie Hasting, she'll help them break the Agreement. The more the three investigate, however, the more they realize that something's gone terribly wrong in their town. Death is on the loose, and if history repeats itself, Essie's might not be the last murder in Poplar Wood. Simultaneously heartwarming and delightfully spooky, The House in Poplar Wood is a story about a boy's desire to be free, a girl's desire to make a difference, and a family's desire to be together again.
An Affair to Dismember by Elise Sax
Three months has been Gladie Burger’s limit when it comes to staying in one place. That’s why Gladie is more than a little skeptical when her Grandma Zelda—who is more than a little psychic-- recruits her into the family’s matchmaking business in the quaint small town of Cannes, California. What’s more, Gladie is also highly unqualified, having a terrible track record with romance. Still, Zelda is convinced that her granddaughter has her clairvoyant “gift.” But when the going gets tough, Gladie wonders if this gift has a return policy.
When Zelda’s neighbor drops dead in his kitchen, Gladie is swept into his bizarre family’s drama. Despite warnings from the (distractingly gorgeous) chief of police to steer clear of his investigation, Gladie is out to prove that her neighbor’s death was murder. It’s not too long before she’s in way over her head—with the hunky police chief, a dysfunctional family full of possible killers, and yet another mysterious and handsome man, whose attentions she’s unable to ignore. Gladie is clearly being pursued—either by true love or by a murderer. Who will catch her first?
Southern Spirits by Angie Fox
One simple mistake…
For a girl who is about to lose her family home,
Releases the ghost of a long-dead gangster,
And opens Verity Long’s eyes to a whole new world.
When out of work graphic designer Verity Long accidentally traps a ghost on her property, she’s saddled with more than a supernatural sidekick—she gains the ability see spirits. It leads to an offer she can’t refuse from the town’s bad boy, the brother of her ex and the last man she should ever partner with.
Ellis Wydell is in possession of a stunning historic property haunted by some of Sugarland Tennessee’s finest former citizens. Only some of them are growing restless—and destructive. He hires Verity to put an end to the disturbances. But soon, Verity learns there’s more to the mysterious estate than floating specters, secret passageways, and hidden rooms.
There’s a modern day mystery afoot, one that hinges on a decades-old murder. Verity isn't above questioning the living, or the dead. But can she discover the truth before the killer finds her?
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I've got a book series that I like and its right up my alley, but the narrator on the audio made me hate on the series when I started out by listening. So, I get that one.
ReplyDeleteOh, yeah, unhealthy and unsafe stuff that is touted even in passing is a no-go for me. Lately, I've been getting snarly about a few books that had gals smacking the guy around when it wasn't her in danger, but her feeling angry. The reverse would have readers up in arms.
Haha! I actually like the Southern Ghost Hunter series. I started with book four though and had it on audio. It does stay light and cheesy with a few thrills. Some stuff makes you raise an eyebrow. But, its nice for a lazy few hours here and there.
There are so many different factors that have me DNF-ing or that keep me pushing through to the end. I'd like to say they are hard and fast rules, but no... sometimes, it will work for one and not another.
Cute kitty sighting!
A string of bad narrators when I was first trying out audiobooks actually almost kept me from listening to them entirely. Now I can mostly just go with it, but man, I love when I find a good narrator!
DeleteI might continue with the SGH series when I'm in the mood for something like that. I can see it getting better, and it was fun enough. But sometimes my cheese tolerance will probably be too low. lol!
OMG hard pass on "hey, bulemia is a healthy and effective diet choice" *and* "to be attractive you must lose weight" *and* "it's OK for men to take upskirt shots if they're hot/powerful men" *and* basically everything else about that book. Wow.
ReplyDeleteI totally feel you on audiobooks- a slightly annoying narrator can absolutely kill the experience (sometimes so much so that I won't even try the book in print format). On the other hand, a great narrator has led to be listening books I otherwise wouldn't, because I know they're talented and I want to support their career. I tend not to DNF if I don't feel drawn to or involved with an MC (mostly because I feel that's a mood-driven thing for me, and subject to change daily). But I DNF if the writing is so sloppy, purple, or inconsistent that I get pushed out of the world, if there's an obvious agenda to the book, and if the pace is too slow/there isn't tension for the first half.
Oh, I will absolutely continue listening to a bad audiobook with a good narrator, but even the best book can't save a bad narration.
DeleteAlso, I am still angry about that book. The casual encouragement of bulimia is still mind-boggling to me, but when I think about the upskirt section, I literally feel my blood pressure rise. =|