One in a Million

AudioBook Review: Stars: 3 Narration 4 Story 3 Tanner is the last of the “charter boat crew’ and the most damaged from the oil-rig wreck, his own guilt over poor choices, and his determination to tone down his adrenaline-junkie recklessness. He’s got plenty of reasons, not the least of which is being the father (and man) that his son Troy deserves after so many moments of letting him down. Tanner deserves hope and happiness just as much as everyone else, but his own difficulty in trying to say do what I do NOW, and not what I did isn’t really making his job with Troy any easier – and Troy’s being his own teenaged self, with plenty of sullen moments, poor choices and even what seems to be a reckless disregard for his own future. Like father like son some say, but in Lucky Harbor, everyone is willing to offer up another chance, even when they aren’t surprised when you mess up. Callie is back in town to check on her grandmother Lucille and see if she’s capable of staying alone. With a successful wedding planning business – she’s never quite ‘off duty’, even as she spends more time believing that marriage, love and forever aren’t reality. She comes solidly into her own in her interactions with Troy, however, even as she can’t seem to separate the here and now from her high school crush on his father. Of all the heroines we’ve met – Callie is both the most cynical and shallow of the group – an on-line wedding planner just doesn’t make a ton of sense to me since I believe most want hands-on, but she’s making it work – despite her anti-romance stance. I was hoping for much more angst and depth for Tanner’s story- he deserved to have his story told and the issues given much more than a pass-over, and unfortunately the shallowness of Callie really didn’t allow for them to feel correct as a couple. The standout in this story was Troy, even as he could have been far more disruptive to the lives and their relationship- there were just pieces that needed more flushing out for me. Narration again provided by Angèle Masters, and she managed to balance the rather fluffy Callie with a more tortured Tanner, giving the sullen-teenager-ness of Troy it’s full due. Secondary characters give the story a bit of heft and solidly place it in Lucky Harbor – where everyone knows everything, and it was clear that having yet another ‘hometown girl’ come back to where she belonged was important to everyone. I received an AudioBook copy of the title from Hachette Audio for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.