Southern Lights

I should have known. It was a Danielle Steel book. I shouldn't have said, "Well, maybe this one will be different." This is absolutely the silliest, lightest, most one-sided book I have listened to. I feel so sorry for Nick Podehl who had to narrate this, especially the southern voices.

The main character is perfect. Her teenage daughter is perfect. They never fight. They are best friends. The daughter must go to Charleston to live with her dad and EVIL STEPMOTHER - who is completely evil. I wonder, has Danielle Steele ever been to South Carolina? We don't live on plantations with black servants. We don't hate yankees. We are not "steeped" in the confederacy. We don't sit around counting how many generals we had from our family in the Civil War and we will certainly apply to a Northern college if that's where we want to go. We also don't exclude people because they are not from the south. And the character's names!! SAVANNAH BEAUMONT??? Fiance named SCARLETT?? I don't think she could have written more stereotyped characters and beliefs.

The only other thing to say is that if you didn't get the gist of the plot after the first couple of hours - NOT TO WORRY! Danielle Steele will explain it over and over and over ad nauseum. I have never read anything where the same thing is said again and again, constantly.

I guess if you are a fan and you like her style of writing, you will probably like this. But if you're hoping for something different, I don't think this is it. Bye Y'all!

There were times where I thought the writing was just going on because it had to and it felt a bit drawn out.

A good story and even though I just had to finish it, it definitely could have been shorter.

I have never listened to something so boring. There was absolutely nothing to this book. I love Danielle Steel, but this was awful.

Was so bored with this book I almost didn't listen to the whole thing, but I kept thinking that surely there had to be a plot, or at least a lesson in the book, besides stereotyping Southerners. Danielle Steele needs to visit the South before writing about it. Bless her heart! :) I used to love reading her books, but stopped after they got SO depressing and boring. Guess nothing has changed.

This is the second book I have listened to by this author. Unlike "Friends forever" this book is not even build up in a way which makes senes. Think of a pile of ideas thrown together. Cheaply made.

I know it is "May cause miracles" which made the last two days great. For fiction Richard Yates: "Disturbing the peace"111

Great,Fresh, addictive.

All.

Buy "Friends forever" instead.

no

The book is empty and primitive to the extreme. On top of that it is full of snobbery.

Southern Lights ranks in the upper 25% of the other audiobooks I have listened to so far.

I love a good story about a good mother daughter relationship. This one was very good. I loved the description of the shopping sprees in Charleston and the ones in Europe.

Nick did a very good performance with this book. He didn't try to get into one of those disgusting voices that so many other readers do. He was straight forward and verbally told the story. Good job Nick!

My extreme reaction with this book was the relationship between the grandmother, mother and daughter. Three generations of love, respect and mutual uderstanding between three strong women. Didn't laugh or cry, but smiled a lot.

I have always loved books with women lawyers who are no non sense, smart and competient. Women who do what they have to do and do it well. This book had all of these qualities. Good job Danielle.

I like books that have something to do with the south, but this was the most insulting I've ever "read". I think DS needs to visit SC before she *tries* to write about it - "bless her heart" (and that's meant with the DS meaning, not the true southern meaning!). I'm insulted and disgusted at the same time!

This was a pitiful attempt at writing imho. If you didn't hear it the first time, you would have heard it after it was repeat for the 10th time, or the 15th....

Please take my suggestion and do not waste your money on this book. It's BORING, totally inaccurate and very poorly written. I don't see how this book ever made it through the editors to the publisher. I've read many "free" books from indie authors that topped this by far! Danielle Steel needs to do a lot more research before trying to write about the south - a place where she apparently knows nothing - "bless her heart".

DS is one of my favorite writers, but this one was not worth the $$ I spent. Some of the characters were not necessary for the story, it seemed like they didn't belong to the story. This may have been realeased in audio format in 2009, when was it written? Very dissappointed in this one.

An intriguing, Danielle Steel-like novel with a happy ending. Interesting detective work, nicely done.