Stay

By: Allie Larkin

Narrated by: Julia Whelan

Length: 9 hrs and 58 mins

Publisher's summary

Savannah “Van” Leone has loved Peter since the day they met. The problem is, Peter has loved Van’s best friend, Janie, since the moment they met. And now they’re walking down the aisle, with Van standing nearby in a Halloween-orange bridesmaid dress, her smile as hollow as one on a jack-o’-lantern. After the wedding Van drowns her sorrows in Kool-Aid-vodka cocktails and reruns of Rin Tin Tin, and does what any woman in her situation would do: She buys a German Shepherd over the Internet.

The pocket-size puppy Van is expecting turns out to be a clumsy, hundred-pound beast that only responds to Slovak. Van is at the end of her rope – until she realizes that this quirky giant may be the only living being who will always be loyal to her, no matter what. Van affectionately names the dog Joe, and thus begins a friendship that will alter Van’s life in ways she never imagined.

Joe leads Van to Dr. Alex Brandt, a rugged vet with floppy blond hair and a winning smile. But just as things are starting to heat up, the newlyweds return from their honeymoon, forcing Van to decide just how much she’s willing to sacrifice in order to have everything she ever wanted.

Warm and witty, poignant and funny, Stay marks the arrival of an irresistible new voice.

©2010 Allie Larkin (P)2010 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

love the book!

a fun read. I listen to it over and over. Love her books! hopefully another will be out soon!

Glad I read this.

Friendship with all its vagaries -- love, laughter, joy, tears, angst, anger, fear - and the various ages within the scope of friendship run around in the head and experiences of the main protagonist, Savannah ("Van"). Through her we meet these friends and watch the evolving and growth of same. Sometimes it was difficult for me to read as sometimes friendships are difficult to navigate - just like life. Julia Whelan does her always outstanding narration.

fascinating

love it would read another book by her it makes you to dream wish happy

Very cute

A nice, light, readable romance. You need to be a dog lover to appreciate it!

decent story, quick read

liked the story. it was cute. a little easy to figure out. the only thing that annoyed me was the 'he said'/'she said' after almost every spoken line of conversation between people. I think I'm smart enough to know who's speaking without having to hear 'he said ' after every sentence.

Loved it!

If you could sum up Stay in three words, what would they be?

Witty, heartwarming, entertaining...

What was one of the most memorable moments of Stay?

The poop, the vomit, the vet...

What about Julia Whelan’s performance did you like?

Everything!

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Woman's best friend!

Any additional comments?

All around fun, yet touching book. I didn't want it to end!

Totally Average

This book got rave reviews on Amazon and good reviews here. I don't understand why. I found the story to be totally predictable and it wasn't even interesting until the dog makes his appearance well into the book. The narrator's accent (New Jersey/Boston?) came and went but she did a great job changing voices for each character.

I did not find the characters likeable except for Alex and Joe (the dog). Whiney would be the best description. A teenage girl would love this book but it's run-of-the-mill for everybody else.

There is nothing new here.

A nice story

This book was recommended to me because I have already read 2 or 3 other books in which the main character is a dog. I did enjoy listening to this book as it was an easy read, perfect for summer. The story is essentially a love story with a dog as match maker. The story is decent and the narration is pretty good. There were times where the voices that the narrator used for the men sounded too similar. I give the book three stars because I did like the book but I wasn't super impressed with the construction of the characters or the plot.

Lovely story

I really really like this book and I usually like Julia Whelan as I have listened to many of her narrations. But her over the top grating Boston accent for a character from Westchester County, NY was just too much. I am from the south and now live in NYC where I listen to the accents all the time. People from Westchester do not say "Caaawwwfee."

Every time I got really into the story, she would say something I would feel offended for entire groups of people from South Boston to Rochester.

Otherwise, I really loved the story. I just wish I had read it with my eyes instead of my ears.

Sweet & relatable

This book was heartwarming and funny and romantic. The narrator gets the NY accent just right!