Boystown Season Eleven

By: Jake Biondi

Narrated by: Cameron Moyer

Length: 7 hrs and 54 mins

Publisher's summary

In the aftermath of the Season Ten cliff-hangers, Boystown residents come together to the mourn the deaths of three loved ones. As the living cope with lives lost, a killer remains on the loose and continues a sinister plan to bring down the entire Mancini family.

Arriving home in Chicago, Brianna Mancini works to bring together two generations of her splintered family. At the same time, Jesse Morgan makes plans to build a future with Logan Pryce, who may have his eyes on another man, and Theo Baxter’s obsession with Cole O’Brien takes a twisted turn. Powerful and sexy, Senator Scott Jamison has a sordid secret that the Ciancios intend to exploit while Hope Ciancio works to make sure their own family secret remains forever buried. Meanwhile, Marisa Ciancio and Christopher Kramer fear for their lives as they endure captivity in Bulgaria.

Tempers rage, dangers grow, and plans unravel as Brianna’s Christmas gala approaches. It’s sure to be the social event of the year...because someone’s about to die. There’s no place like Boystown!

©2021 Joseph Bucolo (P)2021 Joseph Bucolo

exciting and action filled

Just like always, I never know what to say after finishing a BOYSTOWN novel. Well, actually, I could go on all day talking about what happened; the couples who broke up or got together, the villainous side characters, the treacherous plots and betrayals. The stories are always a roller coaster of surprises. Yes, I could go on, but not without spoilers, so that is when I find myself wondering how to describe the exciting moments and the worrisome moments and who I love or hate, without giving too much away. Nevertheless, I will try my best.

I want to start by saying that I started off reading this book, but life has been very distracting for me lately. When I saw the audiobook had been released I picked it up so I could finish the last three quarters of the book and I am so glad I did. I haven’t listened to this narrator before, but I found his voice pleasant to listen to. He wasn’t great at differentiating voices but I thought it was a solid performance.

If you are new to this series, I can tell you that these books really bring the drama. The author, Jake Biondi, strives to create the same dynamics of a soap opera on page, though with more diverse characters. I used to watch soap operas though, and none of them were this intense. The amount of devious plots, murder attempts and partner switches between the characters over these last 11 books is surely a little unrealistic, but also entertaining as hell. If you have read one or more books of this series, then you know what you are getting, but in this book, the author has upped his game by getting rid of two beloved characters that have been around since book one. I did have a moment where I screamed NOOOOOO in my head, lol, but maybe I shouldn’t be surprised because the villains of these books are always so ruthless.

Several characters from the younger generation surprised me in this book by turning over a new leaf and making amends for their bad deeds in book 10. Some estranged family members began to make peace with each other as well. Another presumed dead character returned as well. I was pretty pleased by some of the changes and my dislike of some other characters was strengthened. Of course in true Jake Biondi fashion, the end of the book is filled with what is supposed to be a fun party that turns horribly tragic and leaves us biting our nails waiting to see who will emerge with their lives in the next book. And hopefully that won’t be too long in coming, because I can’t wait to know.