Rules at the School by the Sea - Jenny Colgan

Jenny Colgan is my go to, favorite feel good author. I've started listening to her books and find I am enjoying them even more. 

Rules at the School by the Sea was first published in 2010 across the pond, but has just been released by Harper Collins Audio. 

Maggie is our lead character. She survived her first year as a teacher at a British girl's boarding school and year two is just beginning. Colgan's lead characters are always someone you'd like to be friends with in real life. What's different about this series is that a core group of her young charges are also given a voice.  In the first book, I questioned the inclusion of the young teen's plotline, but their experiences are relevant and just as engaging and I was happy to see they were back. And of course there are stumbling blocks on Maggie's path, both personal and professional. There was one large question left hanging at the end of the first book and I was quite eager to see if things played out the way I wanted them to. There's a varied group of supporting players that have their own stories as well.

I really appreciate the continuity provided to a series by using the same narrator every time. In this case it's Jilly Bond who does an absolutely fantastic job! She provides unique and distinctive voices for all of the characters. It's easy to suss out who is speaking. She captures the personalities of all the characters - young, old, male and female with her voice and I easily created vivid mental images of each one. She portrays the emotions of the characters as well. Her accents are easy to understand and quite pleasant to listen to. A great job bringing a wonderful story to life! You could certainly listen to this as a stand alone, but I enjoy starting at the beginning of a series. Hear for yourself  - listen to an excerpt of Rules at the School by the Sea. And this listener is eager to listen to the next book!