Heart & Soul

I thoroughly enjoyed this one!

Revisado: 03-13-21 El oyente recibió este título gratis

This is the story of a young girl, enslaved and forced to serve as a healer to the Plainsmen tribe. Even though she heals, Siena is considered an abhorrent because of her magical powers. A lucky escape brings her into the community of the Forestfolk, where as long as she hides her abilities, she can finally live free. But when tragedy strikes her new Forestfolk tribesmen, Siena must choose whether she should stay safe by hiding who she really is, or risk all by embracing herself fully.

This is a charming, coming-of-age story that offers adventure as well as escape. You really feel for Siena from the very start and want to follow her on her journey to self-acceptance. The story is richly drawn, as is the worldbuilding, and it has real heart so that you can't help but be drawn in. With little, if any, graphic violence and nothing more than the blush of young love, this story is appropriate for all ages. I'd definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a unique and engaging fantasy for themselves or to share with family and friends.

The narration was quite good and expressive. However, to be honest, I'd give it a 4.5. The narrators male voices sounded a bit to young and not quite masculine enough, although it got better as the story went along. I think that, especially for younger readers, they won't notice or consider it an issue.

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Cute, but many missed opportunities...

Revisado: 01-31-18

Any additional comments?

This was a cute story. Lara Jean, the main character, is totally adorable and it's fun being inside of her head. Her relationship with her family is engaging and fun to listen to and I love that the girls are half-Korean, even though their Korean culture doesn't really come into play all that often.The biggest issue I had with the story, overall, was that the romance with...



****Possible Spoiler****



...Peter really falls flat. They spent quite a bit of time bickering with each other. Not cute, flirty bickering, just Lara Jean suddenly getting annoyed with Peter, just as they're about to get close. Meanwhile, he seems totally unphased by her mood swings. In fact, Peter came across as fairly emotionless--until required by virtue of the plot--throughout most of the story.

There were several times, storywise (like when they took the road trip to collect furniture), when the author could have had these two really bond on a much deeper level--really learn about each other--but instead, chose to provide us with a brief moment of connection between them that whisked right by us and didn't amount to much in the end. So, even though I was rooting for them to get together, I wasn't exactly invested in their relationship. I just wanted the obligatory HEA, and that's about it.

The concept of the letter was largely forgotten for most of the story but comes into play when needed and the best parts of the story are, by far, the family dynamics and the relationship between Lara Jean and her sisters.

The narrator, Laura Knight Keating, did a very good job, especially with the girls and most especially with the main character, Lara Jean.

Overall, this was a light, enjoyable listen/read. I'm not sure why it's labeled as "simmering" since I don't remember anything even remotely graphic. I'd honestly classify this story as a sweet, light romance that leans more heavily on the coming-of-age and family-dynamics end of the storytelling spectrum.

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Not at all what I expected and it's FANTASTIC!

Revisado: 07-11-17

Any additional comments?

Okay, I'll be honest. At first, I did judge this book by its cover (and its title) and thought I knew exactly what I was getting. Not that either the title nor the cover are bad, quite the contrary, in fact. They're both very appealing. But I did assume that Cheater, Faker, Troublemaker was yet another typical Bad Boy, YA story, the same sort we've all read at least 1000 times before. WELL, BOY WAS I WRONG!

At its heart, CFTM is the story of two very broken people, grappling with how to help each other put the pieces back together again. These characters are dancing around ghosts, running recklessly across a minefield, and it's so fascinating to witness them maneuver, or fail to maneuver, around the many obstacles in their path. I think what struck me the most about CFTM was that it sits very comfortably in the space between Literary Fiction and YA Lit, bringing together the best of both worlds. While the story is relatable and accessible as YA fiction, I was absolutely blown away by the lyrical, almost poetic writing the author often used, even to describe the tiniest of things, like: "She was his bubblegum girl, only fun until she lost her flavor." or "Straight vodka tasted like salvation. Like a liquid pill for the kind of pain I didn't know how to fix." There were also times when I literally laughed out loud and I'm a super-cynical reader so that's a really hard thing to get me to do. I'm so impressed with Ms. Rosen because what she's doing here is not just conveying a simple story, but taking you on a journey, and with two characters you actually care about. And boy, what a journey it is!

The actors also take this story to a whole new level, each bringing a certain amount of depth and pathos to their roles, especially Christine Lakin, who sounds so much like a teenage girl in her intonation, it's eerie. Aaron Landon is excellent as well.

Cheater, Faker, Troublemaker is well worth the time invested. It's such a breath of fresh air and definitely a must-listen, IMHO. I can't recommend it highly enough, especially to those who are tired of the same-old, same-old when it comes to Romance or YA Lit.

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Irritating Main Character and Slow Story

Revisado: 05-19-17

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

Had the Heroine of the story not been so utterly annoying, and had the male voices been done better (the narrator makes the male voices sound like a child pretending to be an adult), the audible version would have merited an additional star. The non-MC girl voices weren't great either, but they were passable.

What was most disappointing about Amanda M. Lee’s story?

The story takes a long time to get going. The first 1/3 of the first book feels like a "Day-in-the-Life" of a college student. There's practically no reference to, or hint of, anything supernatural, so it's mostly college students partying, having sex and bickering.

Also, (****POSSIBLE SPOILER****) I really didn't like how the alleged date rapes were treated. It took far too long for Zoe (the main character) to intervene. (****END OF POSSIBLE SPOILER****)

Lastly, Zoe was just plain irritating. She often thinks she's being snarky when she's just being mean. She's bossy and judgemental--actually wishing bodily harm on characters that annoy her. It's unfortunate because the premise, a college full of supernaturals, is a fun idea. I'm not super excited to keep going with the series, but I'll give it a go. I recommend buying the omnibus over buying each story individually because you're essentially paying the same price and there's always a chance the storytelling will get better.

How could the performance have been better?

If the male voices had been done better (the narrator makes the male voices sound like a child pretending to be an adult), the audible version would have merited an additional star. It was difficult to relate to, and really care for, the characters because of this. The non-MC girl voices weren't great either, but passable. One of the girl's voices is done in a high-pitched, grating tone and the other is in this weird, languid tone. If the narrator had dialed the voices back a bit, they would have been better.

What character would you cut from Covenant College?

All of the characters have a role and add to the mix, making the story more interesting than if there were fewer characters.

Any additional comments?

Overall, the story is okay and fine enough to pass the time. If the main character, Zoe, wasn't quite so annoying and the narrator's voices weren't quite so irritating, I would have rated this a solid 3, or if it were possible 3.5 stars, but unfortunately, that's not the case.

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