AUDIOBOOK REVIEW: Crista McHugh's BREAKAWAY HEARTS (The Kelly Brothers Bk2)

 Title:  BREAKAWAY HEARTS

Series:  The Kelly Brothers, Book 1

Author:   Crista McHugh

Narrator:  Therese Plummer

Release Date:  1-15-15

Price:  $17.95

Publisher: Crista McHugh

Length:  5 hrs  19 min

Format:  Audible Audio Edition

Purchase at Audible

 My Ratings

Plot:  4.5/5
Setting:  4/5
Writing:  4.5/5
Originality of Plot:  4/5
Characters Development:  4.5/5
Ending:  5/5
Cover Art:  4/5
Narration:  5/5
Likelihood to Recommend:  5/5

Overall:  40.5/45 =  90%
 

Synopsis

Hockey star Ben Kelly has retreated to his mountain cabin in the ski town of Cascade, BC, to recuperate from a season-ending knee injury and contemplate his future in the NHL. He never expects to run into the one woman who got away. Nine years may have passed, but nothing has dulled the explosive chemistry between them. Now he wants more than just one night.

Hailey Eriksson had Olympic-sized dreams until an accidental pregnancy from a one-night stand halted her ambitions. Her life was shattered when her son died. Nothing will keep her from fulfilling her promise to him to make the Olympic team, especially not the charming Ben Kelly. Unfortunately, he’s out to sweep her off her feet this time, and she finds him harder and harder to resist with each passionate kiss. But when he learns about the child he never knew, will their rekindled romance be on thin ice?

Review

Sometimes some comes into your life, and you know they are the one.  And sometimes they are taken from your life for one reason or another.  Sometimes you find out why, and sometimes you don't.  Ben Kelly met the girl of his dreams, Haily Eriksson one night after a game.  Their chemestry was off the charts.  After a smoking hot evening in bed, a miscommunication tore these two apart.  Ben want on to be one of the top NHL players, until possible a career ending injure sidelined him.  And Hailey's dreams of playing for the national Olympic Women's Hockey team were also destroyed due to an untimely pregnancy.  These unfortunate circumstances brought these two back into each others lives.  Will their painful pasts and secrets, keep them from finding their way back to each other?

I totally fell in love with these two!  I adored Hailey's heart, personal strength, grit, and willingness to not let go of the sport she loved.  And Ben's transformations from NHL playboy to strong and compassionate man, was extremely endearing.  No matter how hard these two fought, I cheered for them the entire way.  I loved how strong, and sometimes stubborn, each of the characters were.  They both were slightly broken, when they found each other again.  It was like they were missing puzzle pieces.  Neither were complete with out the other.  In the end, they held each other up.  These two has several misses, but they destined to be together.  And not to give to much away, but the final scene was just so sweet.  It had me wiping away tears.

Therese Plummer is one of the top narrators in the business.  Having her narrate this series, is such a gift.  Her dictation and pacing are astonishing, and her character voices are unbelievable!!!!  As a female narrator, it's can be extremely hard to do convening male voices.  She does it seamlessly!  While listening to her narration, I tend to forget that it's only narrated by one person.  It tends to sounds more like an ensemble performance.  She was able to capture this stories deep emotions.  And she truly brought this story to life for me.    

This book is an emotional roller coaster for the listener.  It was sweet, funny, and even tragic in places!  I really couldn't put this audiobook down.  I was amazed at how well flushed out these characters were for such a short story.  The dialogue was smart and touching.  This has to be my favorite book in this series so far!  Christa McHugh and Therese Plummer hit this one out of the part!  If you are looking for a short, sweet read this one's for you.

***Audiobook was provided by the author in trade for a fair review*** 

AUDIOBOOK REVIEW: Crista McHugh's THE SWEETEST SEDUCTION (The Kelly Brothers, Book 1)

Title:  THE SWEETEST SEDUCTION
Series:  The Kelly Brothers, Book 1
Author:  Crista McHugh
Narrator:  Therese Plummer
Release Date:  1/16/15
Price:  $17.95
Publisher: Crista McHugh
Length:  5 hrs 17 min
Format:  Audible Edition
Purchase at Audible or Amazon



My Ratings

Plot:  4/5
Setting:  4/5
Writing:  5/5
Originality of Plot:  4/5
Characters Development:  4/5
Ending:  5/5
Heat Level: 4/5
Cover Art:  4/5
Narration:  5/5
Likelihood to Recommend:  5/5

Overall:  44/50 =  88%




Synopsis

Lia Mantovani has created one of the hottest restaurants on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile, but all that could disappear if she loses her lease with Kelly Properties. Having had her dreams ripped away from her before, she’ll do everything in her power to keep her restaurant. Her fate hangs on the whims of the frustratingly handsome Adam Kelly.

Adam has spent years trying to convince world famous chef Amadeus Schlittler to open a restaurant in Chicago, but he wants the prime location held by Lia. Business has always come first… until sparks fly when Adam meets her. When things get hot outside the kitchen, though, they’re both in danger of getting burned. 

Review

Meddling mothers might just be the biggest thing that chief Lia Mantovani and real estate mogul Adam Kelly have in common.  The two mothers decided to trick Lia into cooking an marvelous, authentic Italian dinner for Mrs. Kelly and her boys.  They hoped that Lia would find a love match with one of the Kelly boys.  After meeting Lia and trying her amazing cooking, Adam isn't sure which he like more her flavorful food or her sexy body.  Sparks fly between these two from the very beginning. To get away from the prying eyes of their family, they decide to escape on the Kelly family boat.  Then things escalate quickly, until the two are interrupted by passerby. 

Adam's having one heck of a week.  He meets this amazingly interesting women, while also working on a deal to bring world famous chef, Amadeus Schlittler, into one of his Chicago properties.  To bad the only place chef Schlittler is willing to set up a restaurant, is right where Lia's restaurant is currently located.  Adam had no idea that he held the lease for Lia's restaurant space, until he walked in with eviction papers.  Now that's the way to a women's heart!  Adam and Lia have two big even bigger problems.  He isn't the kind of man that mixed business with pleasure, and she isn't the kind of women who would rely on man.   

I picked up this book expecting a light hearted, run-of-the-mill contemporary romance, but this book was anything but cookie cutter!  Although this was a short audiobook, the author took the time to create rich characters and storylines that hooked me in.  I fell in love with Lia and Adam right off the bat, and their chemistry heated up my headphones.  I liked how Adam was this confident, powerful male, but he didn't feel the need to control Lia.  And I love how Lia had so much passion for her cooking, that she wouldn't let anyone get in the way.  Both characters made mistkes, but over all they were good people.  I loved how both characters were smart, talented, driven, and family oriented.  From the outside they seemed so different, but underneath it all they were very similar.  They both went about doing things in very different ways, which lead to many of their misunderstandings and miscommunications.  I really enjoyed the sweet HEA ending in this book.     

I will admit, that the biggest reason I picked up this audiobook was fact that the narrator was Therese Plummer.  She my might just be my all-time favorite female narrator.  When it comes to narrating romance titles, she has a magic touch.  Her voice had a sweet tone to it, that lends well to this genre. She has a wonderful ability to give such an emotional performance, that totally captures the listeners attention.  Therese takes the time to give each character their own very specific voice.  Not to mention that she creates such wonderful male voices, that the audiobook almost sounds like it has narrated by a male and a female.  I got so lost in her fantastic performance that finished this audiobook in one day!       

Overall, THE SWEETEST SEDUCTION had a lot of heart for such a short book.  The storyline kept me hooked from the first chapter.  This was a smart contemporary romance, with deep characters and  great dialogue. This first book in the Kelly Brothers series, sets the readers up for a real treat.  I can't wait to see  what kid of mischief Adam's brothers have in store for us.  If you're looking for new romance series, with a spectacular narrator, this is the one for you!

 ***Audiobook was provided by the publisher in trade for a fair review***