Mountain Laurel by Donna Fasano (Clean Romance)
Narration: Nicole Colburn’s narration comes to life when she is reading the dialogue, and there’s a lot of that. In addition, her male voices are reasonably convincing. Overall, her voice is seriously laid back and sometimes there’s a drone to it. Be sure to listen to the sample to see if it’s right for you. I stayed with her reading because I wanted to hear the story, and her dialogue performances are good enough to make the audio, a worthwhile listen.
Book Review: Mountain Laurel
This adventure begins with a bet between Laurel and her sister; then a stranger named Michael agrees to play the part of the man Laurel needs to win the wager. Hence, the romantic game-board is set.
This story has an expected conclusion. Its appeal depends on the twists and turns and problems doing their best to delay that end. If you like to climb the mountains and slippery slopes and slid down into the valleys of despair and then claw your way back out of them, along with two strangers trying to outwit their emotions, you’ll enjoy listening to this book.
I didn’t mind the roller coaster ride. The heroine and hero are both likable. I especially like Laurel because of the contrasts in her character. In certain respects she is strong, and yet in unexpected ways, she isn’t. Michael is a regular male centerfold, yet there is a depth to him, as if he inherited it from the streams up in the mountains. At the same time, in the face of women’s lib, he can be an amusing better-wait-and-see-if-I’m-allowed-to-come-to-the-rescue kind of guy. The interaction between these two is great. They don’t mind being who they are with each other and can clash most convincingly.
The supporting characters are in just the right quantity for a story of this length. The audio is only a little over five hours long. These individuals contribute to the overall aspect of the story as a reflection of a challenging reality without extremism.Their personal obstacles help us to learn more about the protagonists rather than competing with them through overwhelming conflicts of their own.
There are scenes which contain a fair amount of tension, and there is some genuine humor throughout. Some conflicts in the story receive too much attention, and one particular aspect of it needs more development to be plausible.
The sex scenes are clean, though the chemistry and physical attraction is evident between Laurel and Michael.
Mountain Laurel is the kind of story you listen to when you just want to tune into an easy romance.
An audio sample and download details are available.
Bibliography: Mountain Laurel by Donna Fasano
Length: 5 hours and 21 minutes
Publisher: ©1-10-2013 Donna Fasano