The Missing by Caroline Eriksson (Thriller, Audiobook, 9/10E)

 January 2017, Brilliance Audio, 6 hours 48 minutes, Audiobook, Review copy from Audible
 

Content strong exotic adult relationships, strong swearing, domestic violence, 

Summary from Audible

An ordinary outing takes Greta, Alex, and four-year-old Smilla across Sweden's mythical Lake Malice to a tiny, isolated island. While father and daughter tramp into the trees, Greta stays behind in the boat, lulled into a reverie by the misty, moody lake...only later to discover that the two haven't returned. Her frantic search proves futile. They've disappeared without a trace. 

Greta struggles to understand their eerie vanishing. She desperately needs to call Alex, to be reassured that Smilla is safe, or contact the police. But now her cell phone is missing too. Back at her cottage, she finds it hidden away under the bedsheets. Had she done that? Or had someone else been in the cottage? But who, and why? As Greta struggles to put the pieces together, she fears that her past has come back to torment her, or she's finally lost her grip on reality...

 

Nayu's thoughts 

First I must state I really loved this book, even if my initial comments may seem to hint the opposite. It was the most confusing read I've ever listened to/read. As someone who can struggle with concentrating because I read when I'm tired (any time of day), following a story with both multiple viewpoints and flashbacks made me thoroughly confused most of the time. I didn't know until the end whether Greta was hallucinating, having a mental breakdown, having cruel tricks played on her. I won't avoid similar reads in the future because I absolutely loved the way tidbits of necessary info was spread throughout the book. It was information that either confirmed my theories or simply confused me some more. 

Greta had a horrific childhood, which she didn't necessarily remember accurately. Her recent present life had it's own horrors which had me almost stop listening for good as they got really unpleasant (that's the exotic relationships part in the content warning). It's not exactly easy to skim past sections I don't like on audiobook as I do with a physical/ebook. But because I was desperate to know if there was a happy ending I kept going until the end, which managed to confuse me because I may have misunderstood what a character said to another (it could mean certain death which Greta miraculously avoided up to the end). 

The narration was first class, I was completely immersed into the insanity of the characters and the plot. I think I will relisten to it eventually, after many fluffy listens-I was a bit disturbed emotionally by the end and had to placate the horrors with super cute gaming, as the topics are very hard hitting and made me sad for those whose live through similar goings on. 

Suggested read 

You can find another brilliant thriller in Dead Silent by Mark Roberts (Thriller, 10/10E, short 'n' sweet review)

The Food of Love by Amanda Prowse, narrated by Amanda Prowse (Contemporary, Audiobook, 10E/10E)

 December 2016, Lake Union Publishing, 10 hours & 35 minutes, Audiobook, Review copy from Audible 

Content:  severe anorexia issues, occasional bad language (I think, can't quite remember), very sweet romance 

Summary from Audible

A loving mother. A perfect family. A shock wave that could shatter everything.

Freya Braithwaite knows she is lucky. Nineteen years of marriage to a man who still warms her soul and two beautiful teenage daughters to show for it: confident Charlotte and thoughtful Lexi. Her home is filled with love and laughter. 

But when Lexi's struggles with weight take control of her life, everything Freya once took for granted falls apart, leaving the whole family with a sense of helplessness that can only be confronted with understanding, unity and, above all, love. 

Nayu's thoughts

 Until I wrote this review I hadn't realised that Amanda was the narrator, which is really cool because she knows exactly how each voice should be! & the voices work really well. Shortly after finishing this book it was temporarily unavailable on Audible, who I'm reviewing it for. It may be because closer to the end there were several parts which hadn't been edited out, where Amanda made a mistake in the narration and then repeated herself. I personally didn't mind this, one of the unintended out-takes was hilarious, and answered a question I'd had as to how audiobooks in general are recorded. Thankfully you can now purchase it! 

This book is sheer brilliance. I adore family centred reads, which this definitely is. How Lexi's anorexia is discovered had me in tears. Freya goes into a lot of denial which drives her husband potty (at one point I thought they'd split up because of their differing views about Lexi). The lengths Lexi goes to avoid eating are so sad to read, knowing that many people in real life suffer similarly. What is most apparent is the bonds of love between all the family members. No matter how they feel about each individual situation, even when they are extremely mad at each other, they are linked through family love, and do what needs doing rather than what they want to do when times are tough. 

There is a lot of discord, especially when Freya is trying to pretend Lexi is getting past the anorexia. I sighed a lot when Freya lived in lala land (aka denial), but as both the family and myself were shocked with more revelations about the seriousness of Lexi's condition, Freya and reality met up. It was interesting that Freya knew she was too close to Freya to take difficult decisions, which made the medical and psychological help provided by the medical team very welcome, as some things were taken out of their hands. 

There was a very good depiction as to how anorexia affects siblings: poor Charlotte got forgotten about a lot while Lexi was the centre of their parents' interests. She had to skip out on going to events, especially when new disasters cropped up. Naturally Charlotte got a little bitter about it, but she was able to work though that in a sweet way that made me cry. 

This is an extremely shocking read, I think it's true-to-life too, and I had to take a few breaks in listening to it because it got a bit too hard at times, but that's a personal issue I have. I take a lot of things to heart, which is why I don't read lots of books like this close together. I love it, and I'm already looking forward to relistening to it! 

Find out more on Amanda's website.

Suggested read 

For another read that deals with eating issues check out Nothing Tastes As Good by Claire Hennessy (Young Adult, 9/10E, short and sweet review) 

Two by Two by Nicholas Sparks , Narrator Ari Fliakos (Romance, Contemporary fiction, Audiobook, 10/10E, short 'n' sweet review)

  October 2016, Hachette Audio, 14 hours and 57 minutes, Audiobook, Review copy from Audible

Content: family life, some adult romance, tissues needed

Summary from Audible

At 32, Russell Green has it all: a loving family, a successful career and a beautiful house. But underneath his seemingly perfect life, cracks are beginning to appear...and no one is more surprised than Russ when the life he took for granted is turned upside down. 

Finding himself single-handedly caring for his young daughter, London, whilst trying to launch his own business, the only thing Russ knows is that he must shelter London from the consequences of these changes. 

Then a chance encounter with an old flame tempts him to take a chance on love again, and with the support of his family, Russ finally comes to understand the true nature of unconditional love.

Nayu's thoughts    

My first book by Nicholas and it's awesome! I'd heard of him through a friend who loves his books, so when it came up on Audible's monthly review list email that I get I thought I'd have a listen. I wasn't disappointed, but I didn't realise I'd be bawling my eyes out at the end through something tragic! I told another friend who asked why on earth I'd read his books (she knows how upset I can get over sad topics in books) because his books always have a mega twist at the end that leaves you a bit wrung out. 

It was a beautiful tale about Russell first becoming a father, then due to partially circumstancial separation with his wife, becomes a single dad. It's really tough on him, as it is for any single parent. He learns he can't rely on his family in some respects as much as he naievely hoped to constantly babysit his adorable girl while he works. He has a lot of hurdles, some he stumbles over, but thanks to his close relationship with his sister and a reconnected friendship with a woman he knew in the past he has enough support to get through the tough times. 

It got a bit daunting when the separation became an official thing, and it looked like he might lose custody of his daughter, as the two were close (no matter what his wife's lawyer said) and I was heartbroken by the thought of the two being separated. What got insinuated at one point had me fuming and feeling sick for Russell, as the implications were horrendous. As for the title, well it makes sense due to music and a children's book. 

The narration was spot on, and the only thing which bugged me as inappropriate was the random music parts. One part was entirely relevant, but the rest were just annoying and took me out of the atmosphere of the story a little. I hope to read more books by Nicholas in the future, although least now I'll be armed with a box of tissues before I read it!

Find out more on Nicholas's website. 

Family Tree by Susan Wiggs, Narrator Christina Traister (Contemporary Fiction, Romance, 9/10E, Audiobook, short 'n' sweet review)

July 2016, HarperCollins, 12 hours & 14 minutes, Audiobook, Review copy from Audible

Summary from Audible UK

 Annie Rush seems to have it all - a handsome husband and their fabulous life in Manhattan. But all of that is snatched away when she is involved in a life-changing accident. Awakening from a coma a year later, Annie finds that the life she knew has crumbled away. In the throes of grief, Annie grasps her new reality - she has to start over from scratch, which means heading home. Annie couldn't wait to escape the small town where she grew up, but now she finds herself warming to the close-knit community and its homespun values. There's also a face from the distant past - Donovan Lynch - and all the reasons she's never quite forgotten him come flooding back. Annie expects to pull herself together and return to the city, but fate has other plans...

Nayu's thoughts

I felt sorry for Annie prior to the accident causing a year long coma, and very sorry after. It was so tough on her to not remember things, to have to relearn how to move her body, to get used to the initial high fatigue which is hard because she was previously a very active person. Her evil ex becomes even evil-er (no such word but who cares), which made me feel even sorrier for Annie. Annie isn't one to mope (much), she works as hard as she can to find her feet following her coma. Thankfully she does have the support of her family, which in itself is a bit of a surprise because there were some issues with her father prior to the coma, so she's got something extra to deal with on top of everything else. 

I did cry a few times because there are moments when life overwhelms Annie. She rekindles friendship with someone from the past who could play a big part in her future. She learns the truth behind her previous job in the food cooking show business, which is cruel, and reignites her passion for food (once she's allowed in the kitchen), which is an outlet for any frustrations and her family get to try all the yummy food she creates. 

Occasionally I found the plot dragged, but this is only occasional, and I must stress I listened to this while I was tired (which is all the time) so it's probably a case of me being impatient due to being tired. Definitely going to relisten to it in the future! 

Find out more on Susan's website.