One Perfect Couple - Ruth Ware

I'm a big fan of Ruth Ware's writing. I adore her suspense tales. Her latest is One Perfect Couple - and I think it's one of her best.

Lyla's boyfriend Nico convinces her to try out for a reality show with him. It's one that will have five couples hoping to be the 'perfect pair' and win the big prize at the end. 

There are reality shows of all type available on so many platforms these days. And the ante is being ramped up to attract viewers. (Admit it - you've watched at least one episode!)

Lyla has her doubts before they go and...I'm going to let you discover what happens next. Ware's plotting is devious - I honestly could not stop listening. There are many unexpected twists and turns woven into the narrative. The tension is palpable on every page.

Lyla is a great lead character - she's quick, clever, sees the big picture and isn't afraid to speak her mind. It's her viewpoint and action that we are listening to. And how about the flip side? You'll have no problem recognizing and despising the antagonist!

I knew this would be a fantastic listen for me. Ware's writing and Imogen Church's reading guaranteed it! Church has such a versatile voice - she's created a different, recognizable  voices for all the characters. She easily captures the emotions of the players with her voice. And the same with the danger and suspense of the plot. The listener is easy drawn into the story. She speaks clearly and enunciates well. I'm always impressed when a single reader can have me thinking there's more than one person!

An easy five stars for One Perfect Couple the book and the presentation. Hear for yourself - listen to an excerpt of One Perfect Couple.

The Square of Sevens - Laura Shepherd-Robinson

Oh. My. Gosh. Laura Shepherd-Robinson's novel, The Square of Sevens, is an absolutely fantastic listen!

Why? Well firstly it's set in and around 1730's England. Shepherd-Robinson's descriptions of time and place are carefully and beautifully drawn. The architecture, the daily lives of the rich and those who serve them. The language, the mores, the expectations of society. And...the machinations taking place behind closed doors.

An orphaned fortune teller is our protagonist. Red is taken in by a gentleman and raised as a lady. But. Oh, there's such a good but! Who was her mother and why was her father always on the lookout for an unnamed enemy? In addition to her voice, there's another. Lucifer Dark (love the name), is just as determined to keep those secrets locked up. Answers to those questions and more are what drives the book forward. Shepherd-Robinson's plotting is simply stellar. Clues, lies, truths, twists and turns are all scattered on the way to the final pages. All I can say without spoiling things for you is that the plot is so very clever! And those final chapters? Did not see that coming. 

Fortune-telling figures into everything. Red is an expert in an old method called the Square of Sevens. And it is this skill that lets her in many a door. I loved this bit - each chapter starts with a reading and what those two cards denote. Each one figures into what is going to happen in that chapter.

I chose to listen to The Square of Sevens. The reader was Imogen Wilde and she was the perfect choice for this book. Her speed of reading is not rushed, but is thoughtful. Her accent is lovely to listen to and she enunciates well. Her voice matched the mental images I had of the characters. She provides many voices for a large and varied cast. Wilde interprets Shepherd-Robinson's work very well - the emotion, the actions and in particular - the conversations. I felt like I was there in the 1700's.

An excellent performance of a fantastic book! Hear for yourself - listen to an audio excerpt of The Square of Sevens.  20 hours and 14 minutes.

Fairy Tale - Stephen King

Oh, I'm a long time fan of Stephen King's writing. I love getting lost in his imaginings - other worlds, other times, what we can't see, what we can see, (but don't want to) and more. Each book is new and fresh, infused with the touch only King can bring to a tale.

The latest book is Fairy Tale. What a wealth of possibilities that title hinted at! I think this descriptor from the publisher sums it up nicely.

"...spellbinding novel about a seventeen-year-old boy who inherits the keys to a parallel world where good and evil are at war, and the stakes could not be higher - for that world or ours."

I love the amount of detail King puts into his characters, settings, plotting and world building. They paint vivid mental images for me, bringing the story to life. Charlie is a great lead, easy to like and root for. And there's a dog. :0) I loved the whole idea of another world with a hidden entrance just waiting for the reader. King pulls out pieces of childhood fairy tales and weaves them into his imagined world. And as we know, not all tales are fairies and lightness....

I chose to listen to Fairy Tale. Seth Numrich was the reader and he was the perfect choice. (He has read a previous King book and I enjoyed his narration) The protagonist is a seventeen year old boy and Numrich's voice embodied the mental image I had created for Charlie. There are a wealth of characters in the book and Numrich does a fantastic job of providing different voices for the players, making it easy to know who is speaking. And there are some real challenging characters. He absolutely brings the book to life with his voice. The action, emotions, danger and more are easily portrayed. His voice is easy to understand, pleasant to listen to and is well enunciated. There's a nice little gravelly tone to his voice as well. His reading speed accentuated the dialogue. Fairy Tale makes for addictive listening. There's more around the next corner, and the next and the next. The run time of Fairy Tales is only 24 hours and 6 minutes. Yes, only, as I could have listened to much, much more! Hear for yourself - listen to an audio excerpt of Fairy Tale.