Wild Wise Woman

Male-focused romance drivel

Revisado: 08-16-24

The female protagonist doesn't really exist in this story; just the husband who spends the whole book learning he has no idea who she is. Their attraction to one another is mystifying, and her ludicrous "secret life", once revealed, is weirdly dumb and vaguely proselytizing. The narrator sounds like he's delivering a textbook.

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Too similar to her other book

Revisado: 05-20-24

This may be unfair, because I was unfamiliar with the author. I listened to her most recent novel, "My Darling Girl", after buying it on sale, and I enjoyed it so much I went searching for her other novels. To my surprise, I had this one, "The Winter People", unlistened to and buried in my vast library. So I queued it up immediately, which was probably a mistake. If I'd read it in 2014 I would have forgotten enough to have then enjoyed "Darling Girl", but as it is, the stories were too evocative of one another, even both using the phrase, "That's NOT (so&so)", spoken by a character who's about to meet a mysterious end. So if I do attempt another of her stories, it will be only if I find one on sale, and after a bit.

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A delightful surprise

Revisado: 05-16-24

Overall, 4.5 stars for both story and performance, but really a top-notch audiobook for the genre. I bought this as a Daily Deal, and expected yet-another housewife thriller, but this took an eerie and wonderful turn about halfway through. The main character came across as naive and oblivious sometimes, but honestly, isn't that more realistic? She redeems herself, for sure. This has triggered the exact point of Daily Deals, because I discovered another unheard Jennifer McMahon book in my vast Audible library, and I expect I'll be purchasing more!

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A bit precious, but on solid ground

Revisado: 05-06-24

This recreation of the early days (1960) of the women's liberation movement amongst young Jewish housewives in Philadelphia is well-told and well-read. There are a few verbal anachronisms but nothing crazy, and the friendship between a handful of young women with both everything and nothing in common developed nicely, but s-l-o-w-l-y. There's not a lot of intrigue, and it ends about where you'd expect the Hallmark movie version to end.

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I hate writing negative reviews

Revisado: 05-02-24

This book isn't bad, but it isn't good. The entire thing would probably have rated one more star if it hasn't been for the narrator's painful baby-voice. She speaks a little of the narrative in a normal cadence, but the bulk of the book is read first person in a pathetic, whiny, breathy baby voice. All the characters are unlikeable, and STUPID.

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Predictable yet absurd

Revisado: 04-23-24

I'll have to take note of both the author and narrator. The reader's voice is pleasant enough, but she speaks in a staccato fashion and mispronounces Spokane and clamber. The story? Oy! Men are evil. Women are stupid. Listening is the equivalent of screaming "don't go in the basement" at a cheesy horror film.

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Well-written and realistic

Revisado: 02-10-24

In some ways *too* realistic, in that the story is predictable and staid. I'm glad that the podcaster was represented as a serious and compassionate person, as many true crime podcasters are smarmy and irreverent, but she was also boring as hell. Early on I felt I was listening to a transcript of a Hallmark movie; everyone was so perfect and thoughtful unless they turned out to be secretly sinister. I stuck with it to the end - well, almost. I bailed during the author's interminable afterword.

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Pure drivel

Revisado: 11-07-23

Was this written by a 5th grader? The storytelling, the writing itself is fairly good, if you don't care about content, but the medical, psychological and OMG LEGAL inaccuracies are staggering and painful to listen to. Thankfully I wasted $3 (and a few hours), and not a credit.

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esto le resultó útil a 2 personas

Intriguing start; pedestrian finish

Revisado: 09-16-23

I stopped myself from sharing this book with my online bookclub before I had finished it. I'm glad that I did. The novel has a good start, clean storytelling, and I'm a Scott Brick fan, so I don't mind his brokenhearted delivery. I found a lot of dark humor in the first 3/4 of the book, enjoyed the camaraderie of the characters, and the insider-glimpses into audiobook narrating. The mystery was confounding - I could not guess the reasons behind the criminals' motivation. I hung on waiting for a masterful reveal.

Which never comes. The truth is learned, but it's one of those Stupid Truths that you with you didn't know. When you reflect on the first half of the novel, you realize that it *really* doesn't make sense, And the follow-up twist doesn't help.

The epilogue is painful, drawn-out, fatuous and extraneous. Skip it. I'm not sorry I listened to the book. But I'm sorry it comes off the rails in the final portion.

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esto le resultó útil a 1 persona

Sounds like it was home-recorded, but not bad

Revisado: 08-09-23

The narrator's voice is elderly, patrician, and mostly appropriate, but there are many obvious edits and glitches. I think this recording was made a long time ago.

I have long adored the 1932 film "The Old Dark House" and thank Audible for making the source novel available for free to members. It's not a perfect rendition, but the novel is eerie and erudite, stirring and appalling, in ways a movie can never be. A gem.

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