Otherwhere

A Gripping Psychological Thriller

By: Andrea Smith, M.J. Rigel

Narrated by: Alexander Cendese

Length: 7 hrs and 54 mins

Publisher's summary

For lovers of "Gone Girl" take a trip to Otherwhere . . .

Joelle Lawton wishes for a simpler life . . . a life where her husband doesn't cheat, her children don't resent her, and her career doesn't pose veiled threats. She wishes she could get past the depression that seeped into her life over a year ago, after the loss of her third child.

But you know what they say about being careful what you wish for...

Soccer mom Joelle Lawton's life is about to get way more complicated when danger lurks at every turn and she suddenly disappears without a trace to . . . otherwhere.

©2023 Andrea Smith (P)2024 Andrea Smith

Serendipity?

Joelle Webb Lawton's disappearance made for an interesting listen. The back and forth with the dates was hard to keep straight sometimes, but I was intrigued by the story as a whole.

I had my suspicions, but I liked the curveballs that were thrown throughout that had me questioning my thoughts.

Everyone's a contender, even her sister, Mia Webb Parker, who has no problems throwing shade. Her husband... well, duh. Of course the slimeball is a suspect. The psychic, neighbor, and a couple of others are thrown in the mix for good measure. I know I said this already, but I like that it kept me second guessing myself.

There are some very dark subjects covered, so keep that in mind. A couple of big ones are violence and murder, human trafficking, and non-con.

There's a little romance going on for some that lightened the subject matter some.

I received an author's copy of the audio book. The narrator is Alexander Cendese. I have a like / dislike thing with his narrations. Sometimes he over acts female voices, making them whiny and tough to listen to. Thankfully, most of the time that didn't occur here. It was one of my better listens from him.

Story: 4 stars
Narration: 3.5 stars
Listening Speed: 1.6x

Haunting story!

If you're looking for a well-written, fascinating, truly twisted story, Otherwhere is the one for you. It's a story about love, betrayal, resentment, loyalty, infidelity and so much more. Joelle and Eric Lawton have a rocky marriage amidst the pain of losing a baby, but Eric used her withdrawal as a justification for his cheating ways. Joelle is a dedicated teacher and is fully aware of her husband's infidelity, but doesn't want to have to face it. His recent side piece lives right down the street and has been in her house and her children are aware of her. Logan is a fellow teacher and friend. He knows that Eric is a poor excuse for a husband and hopes he has a chance with Joelle. When she and her sister, Mia, go to a psychic, Joelle is warned to be careful, but it won't be strangers. It can't get much worse than this, right? It gets a lot worse when Joelle goes missing after taking the dog for a walk and Eric doesn't seem too concerned that she's missing. Detective Victoria Mason has an ulterior motive in taking the case, because when her sister was taken in the same way she didn't get there in time. This story is crafted in a unique format. From 4 months before her disappearance to the day she is rescued, we see the story unfold through the eyes of each of the characters involved. It's a brilliant way to fill in all the blanks and to give you an idea of what's coming next. It's a tremendous story that I highly recommend.
I always look forward to audiobooks narrated by Alexander Cendese and he meets and beats my expectations with his presentation of this delightful cozy mystery. His dynamic, emotional voice and solid pace and modulation are perfect from start to finish and the characters feel alive.

Just when I thought . . .

This is one of those books that simply keeps you guessing, and just when you think you have it figured out---BAM! There's another twist tossed in. It was different from what this author generally writes, but darn if it wasn't good, suspenseful and the narration by Alexander Cendese, who did the voice-acting on ALL of the characters delivered an award-worthy performance. He so captured each character as if he knew them personally. One of my favorite listens of 2023!!

A Thriller!

WOW! This one was a humdinger. It had me biting my nails and I couldn’t wait to see what happened. Alexander did a great job narrating it. I loved how he could use different voices with the characters.

Incredible book! Narrated beautifully.

A mastery of twists and turns, “Otherwhere” will keep you on edge from start to finish. Soccer mom Joelle Lawton goes missing. Her sister reports it, but her husband is reluctant to consider it anything other than his wife being overwhelmed by her life.

All is NOT as it seems. The book is done in timeline increments, laying out the possible suspects in her disappearance, and just when the reader/listener thinks they’ve cracked the case – BOOM – another twist is introduced.

What stood out to me was the mastery of the talented voice actor, Alexander Cendese. He plays each character, whether male or female, as if he’s assumed their personality and gives a stellar performance throughout.

He captures the essence of this psychological thriller, and his expertise is evident in particular with the villain, tossing in maniacal laughter and psychotic responses as appropriate for the role. I highly recommend!

Really loved this!

I’m getting more into audiobooks & the narration on this is fantastic. Great crime story. Best part—I can listen to this engaging story in the yard without worry. Loved the twists & turns.

Awesome Story & Listen🎧Gripping & Intense!

This awesome crime drama, psychological thriller, is thought provoking, keeps you on your toes and takes you to the edge of your seat. The writing, plot and world building are fantastic, as are the character growth and development. Some would think that Joelle Lawton, a wife, a mother, a sister and teacher, had the perfect life, but those who know her know she is struggling with a loss and her marriages suffering from the loss, too. Her husband is stepping out on her and she not only knows it, but knows with who, Samantha. And when she disappears without a trace, it is her sister, Mia Parker, who reports her missing, not her husband. Detective Victoria Mason knows what Mia is going through, she has been there with her own sister and she wants on the case because she does not want the same fate for Mia’s sister as her own. The investigation is a go, and I enjoyed how it was presented and detailed, broken down by timelines, from what occurred before her disappearance, the investigation on the Detective’s end, the suspects, then the search up to the search and then the fallout. The story is engaging, and it keeps you guessing first with what happened to her and then how is it going to turn out. I loved all the layers to the story, everything that gets uncovered, pieces to the puzzle, that need to be glued together with extra pieces left over, because the investigation uncovers more than they bargained for. Thank you for another amazing story and wild ride, so well played and so well done! Bravo!

🎧📚🎧 Alexander Cendese did a great job bringing the characters and understood the characters he was portraying, giving each their own distinct voice, making it easy to follow along and tell who is who. He set the perfect tone for the story, captured all the characters’ emotions and had you feeling each one, including the rage and madness of the perp and the fear the victim felt. Cendese is an entertaining storyteller and a pleasure to listen to. Thank you for another great listen.  

Great, who done it!💜

This story was written uniquely with multiple timelines & scenes. At first I wasn’t sure I would like it but as the story continued I found myself really enjoying this technique.
Multiple suspects, lots of characters and full of suspense. I found myself on the edge of my seat more than once. I will not say more as I wouldn’t want to give anything away.
The narration was fantastic. Alexander Cendese did an amazing job with all the different characters.
This is a standalone, and I recommend this book.
Sisters Spotlight 💜

What a twisty story!

This one really shocked, surprised and thrilled me. This author did an amazing job weaving the tale. I was hesitant once all the back and forth with the timeline started but it all worked out immensely well. I was easily able to follow along and “cheer” or “ boo” for the cast. A great foundation with multiple characters introduced added with the twists and turns leads to a wonderful thriller.

I listened to this on audio. Alexander Cendese is the narrator. He is so impressive! There are a multitude of characters he needs to voice. He brings his “A” game and knocks them out of the park! I love his range! He is such a delight to listen to.