Reviews tagging 'Blood'

Thank You for Listening by Julia Whelan

17 reviews

alyssamhartley's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful informative medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

There is not enough words in the world to say how much I loved this book!!! The characters were sooooo loveable and all felt so important to the plot. For example, this is one of the only books I have read where the MC’s best friend has a true story of her own that could be its own book because it was so well written and plotted out. It didn’t take away from the main story though which is what made it so amazing. The love interest is such a fun character which a story of his own as well.

The range that this book had was amazing. It hit every topic I could imagine and just when I thought it hit everything, it found something else. I love books like this because it keeps me on my toes. For a lit fic/rom-com this book took some twists and turns that would rival more mystery and thriller novels. Not because they were scary because there were no horror plots in this book, but because they were so unpredictable and well thought out. 

This author truly thought of everything possible and left no questions lingering. My only gripe with this book is I did find some of the text/email conversations a little cringy and it definitely took me out of the story for a bit. I do think that the author might have done that on purpose, but it still was the only thing that was hard to get through for this book. 

I could not recommend a book more, especially if you are looking to listen to a book! The author is an audiobook narrator therefore she narrates this book and it is so cool! She is so talented and makes every voice sound so different you would think it is a full cast. Give this book a read or a listen, I promise you won’t regret it! Oh and definitely stick around for the author’s note at the end because that might have been my favorite author’s note I have ever read!
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jourdanicus's review against another edition

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funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

This was just the rom com I needed when I was perfectly in the mood for it. Sweet, funny, emotional but not up its own ass, and of course narrated by the author (who is one of my favorite audiobook narrators).
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blackveilbeccy's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

This was attempting to be really clever in using and subverting tropes, but it fell flat for me. This whole book felt disjointed due to the rapid tone and style changes. There were also so many characters and subplots that it felt chaotic. I found the FMC horrendously self-pitying and I know it’s silly, but I struggled with the author’s choice of first name for her. Almost none of the characters were likeable as they all came away looking self-absorbed. There were times I felt like DNF but the premise was interesting enough that I pushed through. The texting and epistolary elements were the most enjoyable and felt the most real. 
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l1brarygirl's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful reflective fast-paced
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Cute & funny romance written by one of my favorite audiobook narrators (and also narrated by her, duh). Made me laugh out loud at parts but it also had some serious parts. Also loved the author's note at the end. I couldn't put it down! 
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greatexpectations77's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Omg. I loved this book. I'm going to be a total devotee of Ms. Whelan because she is a perfect writer of flirting. Which is very hard! It's one of those things that's hard to describe but you know it when you're participating. And she completely nailed the cool, but not too cool, kind of teasing, but not mean or negging, just blissful little conversations. Have I ever been in love with a romance counterpart like this character? I don't think so. What a GIFT. This would have gotten 5 stars, but I felt like it lost a little steam in the last about third. But I will be watching Ms. Whelan CLOSELY for the next book drop because I am HOOKED. 
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texashippie's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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dogoodwithbooks's review against another edition

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funny hopeful medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

CW: Memory loss, eye trauma & loss of vision, death of a grandmother, extramarital affair, divorce, blood, emesis, hospitalization

I am literally in love with this book.

Thank You for Listening tells the story of a romance skeptic audiobook narrator, Sewanee Chester, returning to the romance genre to perform in one of the most popular romance novelists' last novel. Co-starring with one of the genre's most prolific male narrators, Brock McNight, Sewanee finds herself not only connecting with Brock on their disdain for the genre, but of their similarly shared pasts.

Reading Thank You for Listening was truly a delight. Every time I sat down to read, Whelan was able to transport me into Sewanee's world and I loved being in it. Sewanee is such a interesting character and I loved rooting for her throughout the book. I also loved seeing the chemistry between Sewanee and Brock in the book and I just wanted to get to the end so I can see their happily ever after (or at least their happily for now).

Even when I felt some parts of the book seem to drag on, it was all worth it in the end. If you're one for reading by audio or are looking for a book where a skeptic of all things romance connects with the unofficial romance "mascot", you will certainly enjoy reading Thank You for Listening.
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didireadthat's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Romance is a relatively new genre for me and sometimes I can't get over how cheesy some of the lines and smut scenes are that it usually breaks me out of the story and I will visibly roll my eyes. That feeling was exploited in the best way because the characters played off the cliches in their banter and it made it so much more funny to me while listening. Julia Whalen also did a great job with the accents and voice changes in a way it didn't feel overly fake and again playing off the fake voice as a key part of one of the characters added to the humor of the story. Swanee has her flaws (duh, part of the story) but I loved Nick all the way around. The part about Doug? the ex-boyfriend was a little underdeveloped and think could have been left out. 

The "twist" is easy to spot but it made me so excited to see everything lead up to it and comes in the middle of the book so there is plenty of time for more drama and apologies. The overall plot was strong and though the romance was heavy, there were other subplots that talked about disabilities, familial relationships, friendships and other trials of life that keep the book thoroughly engaging. 
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marleywrites's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

This book was great. I loved the author’s sense of humor and was really enjoying the banter between the main characters Nick and Sawanee. They were both so interesting and the author revealed little bits of them at a time which kept me intrigued the whole book. 

I adored the side characters of this book. They were great supports for the story and kept the pace moving. All the scenes with the Seasons folks were hilarious. I loved the best friend characters. 

This book was, on one hand, light hearted and fun. On the other, it also dealt realistically with working in an industry that’s toxic, an industry that takes more than it gives, and what it’s like to love someone with dementia. It was very much “the highs were high and the lows were low.”

I listened to this book on audiobook and I am loving the hype for it. I’m so glad people are falling in love with audiobooks because of this story! The author/narrator was incredible. What a performance! 

I rated this four stars, because some parts of it I didn’t fully resonance with, but it’s more of a personal thing. The parts I liked, I really loved, and I hope that others enjoy this story with great disability representation as well. 
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cady_sass's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I am *very* picky about audiobooks, to the point that I know it’s unfair and illogical and so I tend to not listen to them at all, but I like Julia Whalen. A lot. I find her very talented and enjoyable to listen to. Now, bring me a book of written by an audiobook narrator ABOUT audiobook narrators and it seems only fair (and totally obvious) that it need to be consumed via audio. Right? So, of course, I did. Now please refer back to my comment about being unfairly judgmental and illogically picky about audiobooks and take my review with a grain of salt. I believe this book is good and if I had read it on page I would’ve loved it more, possibly. The characters are unique and flawed and diverse, the banter is funny and witty and cute. BUT…. But… you can tell an audiobook narrator wrote this. There are characters who exist solely for the purpose of the narrator [author] showing off her skills in accents. Which, for the record, is good (with the exception of the Bostonian ex boyfriend with the most horrendous Boston accent I’ve ever hear and take person offense to), but there’s no real reason for them. I also have mixed feelings about a white author writing about the plight of a black woman in Hollywood… but it does seem (to me, another white woman, to note) to be handled somewhat carefully. Just perhaps not her story to tell, again, as a white woman who was a former actress. I guess all this to say some of this felt inauthentic but it’s hard to parse that from what I HEARD and wish I would’ve just read the book 🤷🏻‍♀️ don’t come for me. I still gave it 4 stars!! There’s quality story here and a lot of fun.
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