One of my all-time favourite Lauren Blakely books

Never Have I Ever had so many things I wanted to say and yet, the words are just stuck. How many times can I say the word awesome in a review? I mean, I wouldn't be wrong, because this book is awesome, but I need to be a little more articulate than that. So, here goes…ramblings by Kelly LOL.

Once again, Lauren Blakely hits it out of the park. With Never Have I Ever, Lauren brings depth to her classic rom-com style. Don't worry, I'm not talking Unbreak My Heart type depth, sheesh, I'm still not over that. But Zach is a single father and the way he navigates that gives the story an extra depth that it wouldn't have had without it. A vulnerability. It made him likeable. Sweet. I might have developed a crush...oh well, in my defence, he's the sweetest dad ever, how could I not? But my crush wasn't limited to just him though, I'm an equal opportunities crusher and Piper got the crush treatment too. I just loved how they were together. The chemistry was palpable from the get-go and it never let up. The back and forth with the jibes was hilarious, I’m a huge fan of banter and I thought theirs was some of the best I’ve listened to recently. Once they finally gave in to their desire, holy mackerel! it was explosive. And did somebody say they wanted steam? Because, I swear, my windows started to condense with the heat level. Zach has a dirty mouth (Thank you, Goddess Lauren). This book is sexy and sweet and swoony. Yes, all the Ss again. But, it's also super funny and has some emotional moments, some of the scenes with the kids were killer—this emotional girl just couldn't handle it. But it just gave the book that much more of a heck yeah from me. Lucy is the sweetest ten-year-old and I dare you not to tear up with a particular scene with her. And Henry is a cutie seven-year-old that you just want to hug all day every day. The way Piper was with them was the icing on the cake, and once again proved that biology doesn't make a family, love does.

Lauren is the freaking Queen of audiobook casting. She always finds the perfect voices for her characters and is willing to introduce her listeners to narrators they may not have heard before. She doesn't just stick with the popular ones—not that there is anything wrong with that—she's an advocate for new talent...even if that's a new talent to you. And I love her for it. I cannot wait to see what she has in store next.

I would love…I’m begging, on my hands and knees, (okay, full disclosure, I'm sat on the bed, but it sounded good, right?) for Lauren to write a full story, or at least a novella, for Piper's sister, Paige (if this exists and I’ve missed it somebody better tell me right freaking now!). It's a topic close to my heart and I was so happy to have that included and be painted in a good light, that I'd love to see it expanded upon. There were several threads that would make great stories...or that are already available to read/ listen to, or that I know are coming. Exciting times for LB fans.

I have listened to many Jason Clarke audiobooks. I adore his narrations and have for several years, yes folks, before we knew what he looked like I was swooning over his voice, what I can say? I have good taste. So, I knew I was going to enjoy his performance, but I was actually surprised at how much I adored this particular performance. He delivered the perfect balance of sweet, caring dad, and top-notch lawyer, with a penchant for winding up his frenemy. The exchanges between Zach and Piper where hilarious, and once they started the move from enemies to friends, and then more, gah! It was everything, Jason performed it all to a T, and the vulnerability Zach had shone through. There were several scenes with the children that were fantastic, and one that gutted me. I know, I know, I'm too emotional. But you try and not be affected when you're an emotional person and the voice actor is killing it with the emotion and kid voices, I can only survive so much. He just nailed it all and it was fantastic. And exactly why he is so sought after.

I've never listened to Amanda Ronconi before, so, I'll admit, I was a little nervous. I'm a picky listener, that is not new information, I like what I like and if I don’t like it, well, yeah, that sucks but honesty is always key. I don't always follow the narrator trends. But I have a question. Why the heck has nobody been shouting about this particular narrator? Have they and I missed it? Then why did nobody make me pay attention? She was absolutely bloody brilliant. I need to go and purchase all the books she's worked on— I do own a couple, as it turns out, yay—because I need more of her awesomeness in my ears. Amanda was perfectly cast as Piper, she had the sweet, girl next door, type of vibe, but, could and would stand her ground and pull punches with the best of them, and that shone through beautifully in the performance. The way she switched from each character flawlessly was astounding. I couldn’t get enough.

I think this was the first time that Jason and Amanda have teamed up on an audiobook, and I have to say, it needs to happen again, and stat! Their voices blend so well. The change of character PoV wasn't drastic. It felt like an easy transition for the listener. They both can carry a British accent too, which, as we all know, is something of a stumbling block for this Brit, when she listens. I honestly can't say enough about the quality of the performances, if, for no other reason than the amazing narration, you should listen to this audiobook. The production was great too, with no noticeable issues. I also just want to add that the running time of this audiobook is ALL this book. No sneak peeks, no bonuses, it's all the story and I loved that. I loved that I got to spend over 8 hours with these characters and in their world, not to mention enjoying the voice talent of these particular actors.

3 people found this helpful

sweet romantic story

The book is sweet. yes just a day to day life of a wedding planner who falls in love with the divorce attorney. The story has nothing exciting and it is just a fine romance

1 person found this helpful

Full of ignored red flags

I worry about this type of book as it’s yet another grooming of women to convince us that love conquers all. I work with domestic abuse survivors and there are many red flags here couched in syrup. The first is ownership: a partner or potential partner who thinks they are entitled and that you are property is not displaying caring or love - it is ownership. Someone insanely jealous is not demonstrating love, they are marking their territory. What can be mistaken as love in the early stages of the relationship often turns to abuse and control later on, when you are too far down the line to extricate yourself.
And in real life, selfish bast*rd’s with no hearts don’t melt and blossom with the love of a good woman - these are myths deliberately told to make women compliant and hopeful. Leopards do not change their spots. Listen to the red flags - people usually tell us who they are in the early stages of relationships, but sadly hope usually triumphs over common sense: so if someone tells you who they are, LISTEN!
If the author, (or anyone else) wants to learn more, I’d recommend Lundy Bancroft’s book, ‘Why does he do that.’ highly informative. I wish every girl and young woman was armed with that knowledge, it would save more heartache than most people could imagine.

1 person found this helpful

boring

boring dull the woman narrator didn't sound right to silly girlie didn't fit at all i was planning to listen to the other books but after listening to this i will be removing them from my wish list
the story was dull even the way the bedroom scenes were spoken almost put me to sleep there's no emotion in the voices no excitement how this got good reviews i will never know.im gutted because i was looking forward to listening to the other books but no way will i take the chance of wasting my credit on them

1 person found this helpful

perfect mix of steamy and pure sweetness

A lot of romance stories have a big breakup/obstacle towards the end before the big finish which tends to make the story a bit angsty... this is different, it has obstacles but this is just a beautiful story, steamy in places but just an overall sweet, heart warming story. love it.

Loved it

I so liked the narrators. Really great job.
I think it would be even better to hear next time on dialogs to be used male and female voices accordingly. It would be nicer to hear a man talking instead of a woman going baritone trining to cover the male dialogues, which sometimes is funny.
All in all was a great read so I strongly recommend it.

Just lovely!!

Very easy read! Wanted to keep listening and enjoy the lovely story. Highly recommend for listening!

Easy listen

Enjoyed the story, loved Jason Clarkes performance, would definitely recommend if you are looking for a fast following easy listen.

Don't miss this 💖

I listened to this primarily because of Jason Clarke. Is there a better reason?
But it has become one of my favourites,
The characters come to life thanks to excellent writing and narration. The kids are adorable

I was constantly smiling

This story is very sweet and give a girl all the feels! very well written and brilliantly narrated by these artists. will be looking for more work done by all of them.