Ghosted

By: J. M. Darhower

Narrated by: Joe Arden, Maxine Mitchell

Length: 13 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's Summary

He's a troubled young actor, Hollywood's newest heartthrob, struggling with fame as the star of the latest superhero franchise. Through scandal after scandal, addiction on top of addiction, a flurry of paparazzi hunt him as he fights to conquer his demons.

She's a single mother, assistant manager at a grocery store, existing in monotony with her five-year-old daughter. Every day when she goes to work, lurid tabloids surround her, the face of a notorious bad boy haunting her from their covers.

A man and a woman, living vastly different lives, but that wasn't always the case. Once, they were just a boy and a girl who bonded over comic books and fell in love unexpectedly.

When Kennedy Garfield met Jonathan Cunningham back in high school, she knew he had all the makings of a tragic hero. With stars in his eyes, and her heart on her sleeve, the pair ran away together to follow their dreams. But dreams, sometimes, turn into nightmares.

Now, years later, the only thing they share is a daughter - one who has no idea her father plays her favorite superhero. But Jonathan is desperate to make amends, and at the top of his list is the woman who gave up everything for him and the little girl he hasn't yet met.

Contains mature themes.

©2017 Jessica Mae Darhower (P)2017 Tantor

WOW!! Full of solid storytelling & emotions

This audiobook was such a beautiful experience... I laughed, cried, ached and feel like I have gone through a journey with these people that I don't want to get out of. This is my first time listening to an audiobook by this author and know it won't be the last. the plotting felt very driven, but the interludes between past & present gave me so much perspective that you could not help but keep rooting for Johnathan & Kennedy. The narration was just spectacular!! I think this is my new favorite performance by Maxine Mitchell. She really went all out on this audio, not only with all the characters she had to bring to life, but the level of emotion, struggle, introspection and overall truth to how she delivered her performance seemed to me like it was effortless and magnificent. Kudos to her on brining to life this story and these characters. Joe, as always, is fantastic and he can do no wrong in my book. I love it when the male character finds new purpose and redemption through his journey and Joe Arden really brings to life those nuances. 5 Stars is not enough!!!

45 of 46 people found this review helpful

Just Wonderful

I have been a fan of JM Darhower's books ever since I read Sempre and this book certainly didn't disappoint. JM Darhower writes about complicated and difficult characters yet you find them relatable.

You don't just end up loving the destination but also the journey.

Definitely a wonderful book.

39 of 42 people found this review helpful

A BEAUTIFUL EMOTIONAL JOURNEY OF SECOND CHANCES

The Publisher’s synopsis outlines the book but what really brings this touching story to life is the three-dimensional characters themselves and the skill of the narrators who portray them. Because you feel the dilemma, the distrust, the guilt, the shame and the heartache of a young love that’s gone terribly and tragically wrong. It’s mainly set in the present telling of an uphill struggle to make things right, to seek forgiveness, to reclaim a lost love and to put a family back together again, but there are chapters set in the past that slowly reveal what went wrong.

Jonathan and Kennedy ran away as teens to follow Jonathan’s dream of becoming an actor. Everything starts off great but slowly their lives start to unravel - the more success Jonathan has the more he gets lost to parties, drugs and drink. Out of hope, a very despondent, dejected and now pregnant Kennedy makes the heartbreaking decision to return home.. praying that one day Jonathan will find himself again.. and, if the timing’s right, then maybe he’ll find them too. But it was going to take six years.. six years that eventually turned an absentee hero into a true hero (and not just the one he plays on screen).. because now he’s clean, he’s sober, he’s full of regrets, he’s determined to get his family back.. and he’s never stopped loving his Queen. Fate gives him a helping hand so he stays, he seeks forgiveness, he fights, he proves himself worthy, he battles the paparazzi, he resists the lure of drugs and drink, he gets to know his sweet little daughter.. and he finally wins back the love he lost.

This well-developed beautiful love story was told from dual POVs and, as the storyline deliciously plays out with one of them reaching for the moon while the other one’s got their feet firmly on the ground, the magic of second chances happen. A wonderful unfurling of facts and, as their relationship flourishes once more, there’s a wealth of feels too. Their sweet six yr old daughter plays a major part in the story (nearly stealing the show) and there’s great chemistry between all three characters.. as well as a couple of secondary family members too. There’s a slow-burn to get to compassion, understanding, forgiveness, passion and sex.. and Jonathan may have lost his way early on, but throughout it all, his deep love for Kennedy never wavered (he didn’t cheat while they were together). Kennedy was strong, loyal and loving throughout and these three characters really deserved their HEA .

Worth a credit? Absolutely YES. Two of my favorite narrators brought the feels, the characters and J.M.Darhower’s beautiful second-chance love story to life and I’m very grateful.

27 of 30 people found this review helpful

Great Book..... a must read... worth the credit

I really enjoyed this book. This is the first time I’ve read a story by this author but I will be on the hunt for more of her work if this book is anything to go by.

I was kinda confused by the way the author told the past in third person. After the first few times I got the hang of it.

In the end the book was a wonderful story that I will listen to again.

11 of 12 people found this review helpful

LOVED IT!!

I typically do not enjoy past and present stories but this was just perfect! It was just enough past sprinkled in to make it all make sense without it taking over. Beautifully written and the performance of the narrators was sublime! Also, Kudos to the perfecting of a five year olds conversations, thought patterns, and reactions! Often times the voice of children are written pretty generically, not the case here! I laughed out loud, awwwed whiled listening in the grocery store, and cried while listening at work. Well done to the author and narrators!!

8 of 9 people found this review helpful

Wronged single mom wins back guy of dreams

AND he's tall, dark, handsome, and very rich! Predictable and a bit overacted. Not my thing.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Loved it!!!

I absolutely loved this book, one I stumbled on and was extremely happy with. It wasn't an automatic girl and boy reconnect but something that can and does happen in everyday life. I love listening to Joe Ardens voice, he and Maxine Mitchell do a fabulous job together.

7 of 8 people found this review helpful

LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG!

This could have been abridged - I skipped the middle 12? 15? chapters out of frustration and an inability to keep focused on the story. The author used many more words than necessary to tell the story. Jumping from the present to the past repeatedly was distracting after the author laid the groundwork for the main character's association with each other. Very predicable.
The female narrator has a very annoying delivery but I like the idea of a male and a female to narrate; just find someone with a better cadence to their voice.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Over all disappointed

I bought this book at a sale price (I think around 5$ on audible daily deals).
The worst part for me was the story. It is told by both his/hers point of view. The female lead was very weak and honestly annoying, both as a character and the way she was written.
Her male counterpart was better, but still very shallow and not enough to hold the story.
Even though the story jumps back and forth between the past and present and tries to give you a “happy ending” and “second chance” for a love list, I felt no chemistry at all between the main characters and couldn’t care less if they got together.
Ps- Maxine Mitchell narrates the female lead, and also the young daughter (6 years old). For the female lead she was ok, but for the child-unbearable.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Good Book

This book was good. I wouldn’t say it’s my favorite but I really enjoyed it! I did think it was a little slow and it could have been a little more exciting but it was good and I recommend it.

The narration was fantastic!!!

7 of 9 people found this review helpful

Best listen of 2018, so far!!

I'm a massive fan of J.M. Darhower and she didn't disappoint with this second chance romance.
This about Kennedy and Jonathan (Johnny) reconnecting after 5 years and be able to see past faults and lies to fall for each other again.

Joe Arden & Maxine Mitchell did a great job (as usual) narrating, I can't imagine anyone else being able to bring the story to life like they did and they both did a great job narrating little Maddie as well, who is just as much one of the main characters as Kennedy and Jonathan is.

This has to be my best listen of 2018 by far.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

fantastic!!

wonderful story,beautifully written.
this is a must read for 2018 !!
lots of angst , you get all the squishy feels from this story and some laughs along the way too ,
cant recommend it enough.

So, so good!!

Not just a wonderful romance, but immaculately narrated by Maxine Mitchell and Joe Arden. The story chronicles the love between Kennedy and Johnny, weaving in the past beautifully via Kennedy's writing. I loved this aspect of the book and it translates perfectly into this audio. Both Maxine and Joe bring the characters to breathing life, able to adapt to the different characters convincingly and sympathetically. There are mo.ents if tenderness, of humour and of sadness. All are handled brilliantly..and I love Maddy.
This will be one of my favourites and goes straight onto my relisten list!

5 Second Chance Stars

Oh my goodness I LOVED this story!

I just love a second chance love story, and this one has it all in spades.

Single mother Kennedy works as an assistant manager in a grocery store, her and Jonathan Cunningham were High School sweethearts.

Jonathan was an aspiring actor and tried his best to go to auditions and break into the industry, unfortunately it didn’t go so well for him, until Kennedy steps in to help.

She manages to get him an audition with a big director/producer after an accidental coffee spill in a cafe, and after that…….enter Jonny Cunning!

Only after that, Jonny AKA Jonathan becomes a bit of a douche and starts drinking and taking drugs, this obviously doesn’t go down too well in the home that him and Kennedy have created, and she puts up with it as long as she can, but it eventually becomes too much for her, and she leaves him, even though she is pregnant!

Kennedy goes back home to live with her dad, and Jonathan? Well Jonny becomes the next big thing, starring in a Super Hero franchise (think Batman/Spiderman big)

Kennedy sees him in all of the fancy magazines living it up and flaunting his new girlfriend, and EVERYONE loves him!

She manages to block most of it out, until they come to film his new movie in her home town, thats when the brown stuff hits the fan!

Jonny obviously knows he has a kid, but apart from sending a cheque every month, has never had anything to do with it, when i say it, i mean her, his daughter Maddie, who is ADORABLE.

The thing is, Maddie doesn’t know who her dad is, and who is her favourite super hero of all time……yep you guessed it ……

🎧🎧Narrated by the always awesome, sexy voiced #AndCock Joe Arden and the brilliant Maxine Mitchell, this book would have been a one click for me just because of the narrators, but the story was brought to life by these 2 perfect story tellers, i am awed (and a little bit in love) with both of them 😍😍

Enjoy,

Vicci