Tag Archives: audiobook

Audiobook Review: Jinx

Posted on by
1
Cover of "Jinx"

Image via Amazon

Rating: 2 out of 5

If you’ve been reading Book Club Babe, you already know that I’m a devoted Meg Cabot fan. I may have a whole shelf of her work, but this was the first time that I bought one of her books in audio.

I’m still waiting for Awaken, Cabot’s sequel to Underworld, which will be released this July. So I decided to check out Jinx (2007), one of her few stand-alone novels. Unfortunately, it was aptly named, but it was one big ball of bad luck.

Jinx is titled after the protagonist Jean Honeychurch’s nickname. Terrible things seem to keep happening to this 16-year-old, so she runs away from her home in rural Iowa to live with her aunt, uncle, and three cousins in New York City.

One of those cousins, Tory, immediately becomes Jean’s rival when Jean catches the eye of her crush, Zack. But what happens when this competition between cousins takes a paranormal turn for the worse?

I could go into more detail, and honestly, I wouldn’t spoil much. What’s the point of keeping part of the plot a secret for the whole first third of the novel, if you already know about it from reading the summary? Talk about anti-climactic!

I also already knew that Cabot has a tendency to be melodramatic, but I figured what should I expect when she’s writing about teenagers? Well, even young adult fiction has to have standards.

I kept getting horrible vibes a la Fifty Shades of Grey: whether it’s E.L. James droning on about her “inner goddess” or Meg Cabot harping about “the knot in my stomach,” authors need to tone down the obnoxious metaphors!

You know why the green light is such a powerful symbol in The Great Gatsby? Because Fitzgerald doesn’t talk about it every five sentences! I understand that Jean is a nervous outcast, but I wanted to drive into oncoming traffic every time she described her stomach knot. I get it, you’re scared! Stop wasting my time with over-used clichés and move on!

I empathized most with Zack, who seemed completely fed up with all this petty cat-fighting. Although cat-fighting might be inaccurate, since Jean is the typical girl oblivious that her love is actually not unrequited after all. Yawn.

Maybe I’m just too old for high school drama. It’s easy to tell a fictional character to snap out of it and get some confidence, but I know that it’s easier said than done in real life. I wish that I could go back and tell my 16-year-old self to stop worrying what the “popular” kids think about you, because those bullies weren’t worth the brain space anyway.

I’m just going to chalk Jinx up to being an older novel that’s not representative of Cabot’s level of work. I’m also skeptical of trying audio versions of her books in the future, since I may be more accepting of teenage immaturity in print. Hopefully, Awaken will redeem my previously high opinion of this queen of teen fiction! Fingers crossed!

Audiobook Review: Secrets of a Shoe Addict

Posted on by
1
Cover of "Secrets of a Shoe Addict"

Image via Amazon

Rating: 4 out of 5

Well, silly me, it looks like I dropped the ball on a couple of things. First off, I was told that “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” is indeed playing at an indie theater near me, so I’ll be checking it out tomorrow! Keep an eye out for that upcoming review!

Secondly, I didn’t take into account the audiobook I’ve been listening to when I asked for votes on my last five books of the year (I also forgot that I could create polls in WordPress, but that’s besides the point).

Thus, this review discusses book #21, and based on your input, the other four choices will be Artemis Fowl: The Last Guardian, My Week with Marilyn, The House of Mirth, and The Sandcastle Girls (reading order, however, is still tentative). Of course, I’d love to include a celebratory re-read of The Hobbit before its film release on December 14.

Anyways, Secrets of a Shoe Addict is Beth Harbison’s 2008 sequel to Shoe Addicts Anonymous. While Sandra and her friends began the series with a meetup group for female shopaholics, it’s Sandra’s sister Tiffany’s turn to get a group of women out of financial trouble.

During a chaotic PTA trip to Vegas, Tiffany accidentally purchases thousands of dollars worth of clothes, while her friends run into money mayhem of their own–Loreen by inadvertently hiring a male prostitute and Abbey by being blackmailed by an ex-boyfriend fresh out of prison.

For those who read Shoe Addicts Anonymous, their solution is unsurprising: Sandra reveals that her previous job as a sex operator was a great way to earn cash fast, so the women decide to create an adult phone service called “Happy Housewives” to get them out of debt.

This book was an excellent sequel; it was funny, outlandish, and not shy at all regarding the dirty talk. As I’ve said before, I only wish there were multiple readers on an audiobook, as if it were a theater production, so the dialogue feels more natural.

However, what Harbison does well in chick-lit is writing characters for every possible stage in a person’s life. Single, married, separated–she covers it all with finesse. She also balances the realistic with the escapist nicely. Even if you’ve never gone on a date with a puppeteer or hired an escort, you’ll have a blast hearing about these characters who do.

My only complaint would be the pacing, since once the conflict felt resolved, it took quite a while for the ends to get tied up. It took me over eight hours to finish the 26 chapters of this audiobook, and although the majority of it was entertaining, I felt the last few chapters were anticlimactic.

I know that most of you don’t read chick-lit, but if you ever want to step outside your comfort zone, Harbison’s a good author to try. Secrets of a Shoe Addict was a fun story of female friendship, and as an audiobook, a great way to pass the time–whether you’re battling morning rush hour, cooking dinner, or relaxing in bed. Perfect for sneaking more books into your busy schedule!

Audiobook Review: Something About You

Posted on by
2

Image via JulieJames.com

Rating: 4 out of 5

It’s certainly been an eventful week, as I moved the last of my stuff into my new apartment and celebrated a close friend’s bachelorette party this weekend. It’s about to get even busier too, since I officially start my new job tomorrow (Thus, Masterpiece Monday may be postponed until I get the hang of my new schedule, or re-formatted to a different day entirely. I’ll keep you posted about my plans.)

With all the traveling that I’ve been doing the past few weeks, I’ve been able to finish another audiobook. This one was called Something About You by Julie James. I’ve read James before, so I had no doubts that this would be a fun read.

The novel features the relationship between Cameron Lynde, an Assistant U.S. Attorney from Chicago, and Jack Pallas, an FBI agent. The two met under tense circumstances, when Cameron was pressured to not press charges against a crime lord which Jack tried to take down.

Three years later, fate brings them together when Cameron witnesses a murder and Jack is assigned to the homicide case. Their icy dislike for one another soon melts into some electric sexual tension, especially when Cameron’s life is at risk and Jack becomes her personal security.

James has a background in law and lives in Chicago, so all the legalese felt natural. With four other novels under her belt, she’s quickly becoming a bestselling name in the world of romance. I also enjoyed Just the Sexiest Man Alive and Practice Makes Perfect, and her two other titles in her FBI/U.S. Attorney series on currently on my to-read list.

It was my first time listening to a romance novel, which was entirely different compared to the humorous memoirs of Tina Fey, Mindy Kaling, and Chelsea Handler that I listened to earlier this year. Something About You is pretty steamy, so hearing the love scenes out loud amplified the experience.

A bad narrator can completely ruin an audiobook, but luckily Karen White did an excellent job given the circumstances. Although I would prefer a man to read male characters so that the dialogue sounds more realistic, I was engrossed nonetheless. Let’s just say on one road trip I missed my exit because I was so engaged with the story.

So whether you’re an amateur or veteran when it comes to romance novels, try listening to an audiobook version of one. The genre’s already great for escapism, and Something About You is a fun, sexy read to get sucked into. Just make sure that if you’re listening to it in your car, pay attention to the road!

Audiobook Review: Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?

Posted on by
2

Rating: 4 out of 5

Ever since I listened to Tina Fey’s Bossypants, I loved how audiobooks made my commute more enjoyable. Only interested in light-hearted books that require little concentration (because how hard would it be to pay attention to Moby Dick while avoiding crazy text-and-drivers?), I decided that Mindy Kaling’s Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) would make a good follow-up.

Mindy Kaling became famous for playing Kelly Kapoor on the American version of “The Office.” Her character is so obnoxiously shallow and narcissistic, but Mindy is actually someone most women could relate to. She’s a 30-something size-8 who likes gossip, guys with chest hair, and sneaking out of parties. I loved learning all the quirky tidbits about her, like how she creates revenge fantasies for her workouts, or how she hates the color navy.

Mindy talks about her childhood friends, her jobs leading up to “The Office,” and how she handles fame. She dishes on her co-stars Steve Carell and Rainn Wilson. Even her friends BJ Novak, Mike Schur, and Brenda Withers provide the other various voices on the audiobook.

Bossypants literally made me laugh out loud, but Is Everyone… still got me to chuckle every now and then. Even though Mindy’s not as funny as Tina in my opinion, I think younger readers will appreciate Mindy’s struggle to date men not boys, over Tina’s frustrations with the mommy wars. But if you’re a fan of female comedians, you’ll probably love both of them.

So got any more great audiobooks ideas? Only requirements: must be read by the author and offer lots of laughs!

Favorite Quote: “Teenage girls, please don’t worry about being super popular in high school, or being the best actress in high school, or the best athlete. Not only do people not care about any of that the second you graduate, but when you get older, if you reference your successes in high school too much, it actually makes you look kind of pitiful, like some babbling old Tennessee Williams character with nothing else going on in her current life. What I’ve noticed is that almost no one who was a big star in high school is also big star later in life. For us overlooked kids, it’s so wonderfully fair.”

Audiobook Review: Bossypants

Posted on by
7
Cover

Image via Wikipedia

Rating: 5 out of 5

I’m back, fellow bloggers! Hope you all started the new year with a bang! Determined to broaden my horizons in 2012, I decided to buy my first audiobook. I was never interested in the medium after my middle school English teacher tortured us with an audio version of Gary Paulsen’s Hatchet, an excruciatingly boring book about a boy lost in the wilderness.

But I thought I’d give audiobooks another shot and bought Tina Fey’s Bossypants on iTunes. In case you’ve been living under a rock, Tina Fey is the delightfully hilarious comedian who became famous for her work on “Saturday Night Live,” the chick-flick “Mean Girls” with Lindsay Lohan, and her show “30 Rock,” which is currently in its sixth season.

I had wanted to read Bossypants (2011) for the longest time, because absolutely everybody was raving about it. Since I knew it was going to be outrageously funny, I thought it would make my approx. 30 minute commute to and from work more bearable.

I was not disappointed. Tina narrated the audiobook herself, and her voice is so entertaining. She discusses everything from her bad-ass dad and facial scar, to her rise to fame with her various acting and writing gigs. She talks about meeting Sarah Palin after her popular impersonation with Amy Poelher, her horrendous honeymoon cruise, and her opinions on being a working mom. Part memoir, part improv, it’s what anyone should hope their life story sounds like.

What I love about Tina, and what makes her so relatable is her down-to-earth personality. She’s beautiful, but not of the supermodel quality, and when she says she was dorky as a child, she’s not just being modest (She even has a PDF full of old family photos to prove it!). But she’s also smart, sensible, and determined to battle sexism both at work and at home.

My only complaint is a practical issue. I know it takes a lot of time and effort to record an audiobook, but I spent over $20 for 5.5 hours of listening. If you paid attention to my commute time, I finished the book in less than a week. Thus, if I purchased audiobooks for the whole year, I would spend over $1000! Granted, I don’t regret buying it, but since paper books are so much cheaper and last a lot longer, audiobooks might have to be an every-now-and-then thing.

Overall, if you love Tina Fey, you’ll obviously love this book, but even you don’t know much about her, I bet you’ll still love it. I’m not lying when I say I was literally laughing out loud, to the point where I’m sure the drivers around me thought I was nuts. Sometimes when people can’t shut up about a book, you should tread lightly, but in this case, just jump right in! You won’t be sorry!

Favorite Quotes:

“This worked out perfectly for me in college, because what nineteen-year-old Virginia boy doesn’t want a wide-hipped, sarcastic Greek girl with short hair that’s permed on top? What’s that you say? None of them want that? You are correct.” 

“Politics and prostitution have to be the only jobs where inexperience is considered a virtue. In what other profession would you brag about not knowing stuff? ‘I’m not one of those fancy Harvard heart surgeons. I’m just an unlicensed plumber with a dream and I’d like to cut your chest open.’ The crowd cheers.”