Thank You for Listening

 

Thank You for Listening by Julia Whelan

Fiction

2022 HarperAudio

Narrator: Julia Whelan

Finished on July 28, 2023

Rating: 4/5 (Very Good)

Publisher's Blurb:

For Sewanee Chester, being an audiobook narrator is a long way from her old dreams, but the days of being a star on film sets are long behind her. She’s found success and satisfaction from the inside of a sound booth and it allows her to care for her beloved, ailing grandmother. When she arrives in Las Vegas last-minute for a book convention, Sewanee unexpectedly spends a whirlwind night with a charming stranger.

On her return home, Sewanee discovers one of the world’s most beloved romance novelists wanted her to perform her last book—with Brock McNight, the industry’s hottest, most secretive voice. Sewanee doesn’t buy what romance novels are selling—not after her own dreams were tragically cut short—and she stopped narrating them years ago. But her admiration of the late author, and the opportunity to get her grandmother more help, makes her decision for her.

As Sewanee begins work on the book, resurrecting her old romance pseudonym, she and Brock forge a real connection, hidden behind the comfort of anonymity. Soon, she is dreaming again, but secrets are revealed, and the realities of life come crashing down around her once more.

If she can learn to risk everything for desires she has long buried, she will discover a world of intimacy and acceptance she never believed would be hers.

From the author of My Oxford Year, Julia Whelan’s uplifting novel tells the story of a former actress turned successful audiobook narrator—who has lost sight of her dreams after a tragic accident—and her journey of self-discovery, love, and acceptance when she agrees to narrate one last romance novel.

I rarely read romance novels, but this month I wound up reading two simultaneously! The tropes aren't exactly the same as those in The Lost and Found Bookshop, but as I listened to Whelan's novel I had to remind myself which characters were in her book and which were in Susan Wiggs'. Both protagonists struggle with the age-old question of "Should I stay or should I go?" and both stories include an aging grandparent with dementia. I'm a big fan of books narrated by Julia Whelan and it was fun listening to her read her own novel, which she swears is not autobiographical despite similarities to her own life and career. In spite of the over-abundance of tropes and predictability (and a couple of steamy sex scenes), Whelan's book has more substance than Wiggs'. It was fun getting a glimpse into audiobook production, and there's nothing better than laughing out loud while listening to a book. Recommend!