Of Literature and Lattes

De: Katherine Reay

Narrado por: Laura Kirman

Duración: 9 h y 26 m

Resumen del Editor

Return to the cozy and delightful town of Winsome, where two people discover the grace of letting go and the joy found in unexpected change.

After fleeing her hometown three years earlier, Alyssa Harrison never planned to return. Then the Silicon Valley start-up she worked for collapsed and turned her world upside down. She is broke, under FBI investigation, and without a place to go. Having exhausted every option, she comes home to Winsome, Illinois, to regroup and move on as quickly as possible. Yet, as friends and family welcome her back, Alyssa begins to see a place for herself in this small Midwestern community.

Jeremy Mitchell moved from Seattle to Winsome to be near his daughter and to open the coffee shop he's been dreaming of for years. Problem is, the business is bleeding money - and he's not quite sure why. When he meets Alyssa, he senses an immediate connection, but what he needs most is someone to help him save his floundering business. After asking for her help, he wonders if something might grow between them - but forces beyond their control soon complicate their already complex lives, and the future they both hoped for is not at all what they anticipated.

With the help of Winsome's small-town charm and quirky residents, Alyssa and Jeremy discover the beauty and romance of second chances.

Sweet and thoughtful contemporary listen

Stand-alone novel featuring characters from The Printed Letter Bookshop

Book length: 86,000 words

Includes discussion questions for book clubs

"In her ode to small towns and second chances, Katherine Reay writes with affection and insight about the finer things in life." (Karen Dukess, author of The Last Book Party)

"The town of Winsome reminds me of Jan Karon's Mitford, with its endearing characters, complex lives, and surprises where you don't expect them. Reay has penned another poignant tale set in Winsome, Illinois, weaving truth, forgiveness, and beauty into a touching, multilayered, yet totally cozy story. You'll root for these characters and will be sad to leave this charming town." (Lauren K. Denton, best-selling author of The Hideaway and Glory Road)

"Like all of Reay's novels, Of Literature and Lattes delivers a story with details so vivid you can feel the fabric slipping between your fingers, characters so rich they could slide into the booth across from you, and a message so hopeful and redemptive it will linger in your mind long after you turn the final page. Of Literature and Lattes brings the town of Winsome alive again, and I couldn't wait to return and savor a story of forgiveness, of fresh starts, of literary delights, and of love." (Melissa Ferguson, author of The Dating Charade)

©2020 Katherine Reay (P)2020 Thomas Nelson

Narration killed enjoyment

I can not imagine why anyone would choose a British narrator for a book about a small town in Illinois. It was actually painful to listen to this book, which is a shame, because the story is very enjoyable.
The narrator made every character over 40 sound 90 years old, & the male voices were truly awful. In addition, the narrator would occasionally forget which accent she should be using mid-sentence. Idea became idear, and all the ending “g”s disappeared, as in anythin’ and everythin’.
Just read the book instead.

Good book, terrible narration

If I could give the narrator zero stars I would. Book was a cute follow up to the first one, but they chose a British narrator for no apparent reason. Her male voices were particularly awful. And she said idear instead of idea over and over.

Really worth a read

I loved the first book, The Printed Letter Bookshop, and this was a follow up with some of the characters alluded to in the first book coming back as primary characters in this book. The problem was, Alyssa was REALLY unpleasant for almost the whole story which made her hard to care about for me. Jeremy, too. The fact they were the main characters was what made this a 4...the other characters were MUCH more interesting. Great message about forgiveness without being preachy. The narrator was just fine EXCEPT when she tried to do men's voices. THEY WERE AWFUL! And her British accent made their American accents wrong. So most of the narration was fine, but so not ok when she had to do too many different voices!! That said, it was a great listen and I feel like I spent my time well listening to it.

Another wonderful book by katherine Reay!

I’m a huge fan of Katherine Reay. I have read all of her books, and they are all wonderful! She writes stories that are about real life and relationships, and they are all heartwarming and thought-provoking. This book was sort of a sequel to The Printed Letter Bookshop, although you could read it as a standalone novel. However, you would miss some of the backstory, especially for Janet. The characters are well developed and likable, and their struggles are very relatable. There is a sweet love story of course, but also a larger story of family and community, and how we all support each other. I really enjoyed this book, and I would highly recommend it to anyone who just loves a good story!
My only criticism is for the narrator. she has a British accent and a very lovely normal voice. However, her American accent and character voices are awful. The male characters were especially bad. One guy sounded like he either had a bad cold or desperately needed sinus surgery! I’m not sure why a British narrator was chosen for a book set an America, but this time it did not work well. but don’t let that keep you from getting this book, because it is still enjoyable. I just hope they decide to bring back the narrator of The Printed Letter Bookshop for the next book in the series!

Very Poor Choice of Narrator

I loved the story, it was a great follow on to the Printed Letter Bookshop.

But I cannot understand how the producers could pick a British narrator who was unable to do a credible American accent. Midwesterners do not sound like they all came from New Jersey. Additionally, all the the male characters sounded like old men with stuffy noses, even the ones who were supposed to be in their 30s or 40s.

After listening to the wonderful narrator read the Printed Letter Bookshop, it was doubly difficult to listen to this narrator's rendition of all the crossover characters. Truly disappointing!

Horrible narration

When I realized I still had 5 hours of listening left, I ditched this and switched to the print version. The narrator is horrible. Why would a grown woman sound like a 4 year old with a slight lisp? Why do most of the men sound like they have head colds? Where did this woman get her idea of what Americans sound like? Good story, but unlistenable in this version.

Narrator practically ruined the book

i wanted to follow the characters from the first book, but the narrator did not fit the setting or the voices of the characters. how do you mix british and boston accents with a story set in the midwest? also, the voices of the men sometimes came out irritating. boston accents with words like idear garandmar and beccar really shocked me. Becca was a major character, at least pronounce her name correctly. i decided to listen to the end, but i recommend reading instead.

Definitely read this one--narration is terrible.

I have never reviewed an Audible book before, but feel compelled to on this one. I love all of Katherine Reay's books, but the narration is ruining this one for me. I'm halfway through and am going to have to switch to reading the rest. I may even start over since I don't like any of the characters because their voices are so annoying. They all sound old and grouchy.

Okay story, completely wrong narrator

Why on earth would you have a British narrator narrate a book set in the Chicago area? I really enjoy a British accent but only in a book set in Britain. Granted the narrator could pull off a fairly good American accent but then used British pronunciation that was often way off. It got grating to hear anything pronounced en-ah-thin and idea pronounced as eye-dee-er. I think the worst might have been pronouncing Fritos as frih-toss. The other grating thing was the voices; most of them sounded like they came from the Simpsons cartoon with anyone over age 50 sounding wavery and frail or growly. I might’ve been able to overlook the narrator’s performance if the story had been better. It wasn’t really bad but there was too much time spent spent on character development of minor characters in the story when there could have been more with the main characters.

Love the story. Narrator makes strange choices

I really love the characters in the little town of Winsome (especially Janet). Having just finished the previous book in this (series?), I had that narrator in my ears.
This one has a British accent (which I adore, but in Chicago?). The older characters in the book sounded like they were closer to 100 instead of 70-80 years old. Weird. Distracting.

BUT...I do love this story and it moved me.