Lost and Found Sisters

By: Jill Shalvis

Narrated by: Karen White

Length: 11 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's Summary

From New York Times best-selling author Jill Shalvis comes her first women's fiction novel - an unforgettable story of friendship, love, family, and sisterhood - perfect for fans of Colleen Hoover, Susan Mallery, and Kristan Higgins.

They say life can change in an instant.

After losing her sister in a devastating car accident, chef Quinn Weller is finally getting her life back on track. She appears to have it all: a loving family, a dream job in one of LA's hottest eateries, and a gorgeous boyfriend dying to slip an engagement ring on her finger. So why does she feel so empty, like she's looking for a missing piece she can't find?

The answer comes when a lawyer tracks down Quinn and reveals a bombshell secret and a mysterious inheritance that only she can claim. This shocking revelation washes over Quinn like a tidal wave. Her whole life has been a lie.

On impulse, Quinn gives up her job, home, and boyfriend. She heads up the coast to the small hometown of Wildstone, California, which is just a few hours north but feels worlds apart from Los Angeles. Though she doesn't quite fit in right away, she can't help but be drawn to the town's simple pleasures - and the handsome, dark-haired stranger who offers friendship with no questions asked.

As Quinn settles into Wildstone, she discovers there's another surprise in store for her. The inheritance isn't a house or money but rather something earth shattering, something that will make her question everything she thought she knew about herself, about her family. Now, with a world of possibilities opening up to Quinn, she must decide if this new life is the one she was always meant to have - and the one that could finally give her the fulfillment she's searched so long for.

©2017 Jill Shalvis (P)2017 HarperCollins Publishers

Outstanding!

I'm a huge Jill Shalvis fan. This book is a bit of a departure for her---more chick lit than straight up romance. I thought it was done very well. Thank goodness she kept her humor in the book! The main female character, Quinn, has her entire life turned upside down when it comes to light that everyone that mattered to her has been lying to her and she now has some hard decisions to make. Quinn is a very strong character, even if she doesn't believe in her own strength. The main male character, Mick, is such a guy. He's a good guy, but he's such a guy. He knows he'll never understand women and just kind of goes for it. He's a real sweetheart and I really liked him.
This is a small town setting, which I just love. The characters all interact with each of the others and it's continual circles of advice and comebacks . Shalvis' secondary characters are as rich and full of life as can be. There are some of those in everyone's life. The people you can't imagine not in your life, but the one's that really tempt you to give it a try.
I'm so glad I listened to the audio book version of this book. The narration of Karen White is spot on as usual. She had some great accents in this book and they really made the characters come to life. Awesome book and incredible narration--you can't get much better.
Just a note to the guy that gave a 1 star rating. They call it Women's Literature for a reason--it's written to appeal to women. There's a reason I don't read books about war. I don't like them. It would't be fair to give them 1 star just because I hate the topic and everything related to it.. Stick to what you like.

Mixed review

While I enjoyed the story line the language and sexual “scenes” are not my cup of tea.

It fit my current tastes

I'm not always a fan of sappy chick-lit. I think this one was ok, because it also had a strong female lead. Actually it had several strong female characters. I didn't grow as a person from reading this book. It didn't leave my life unchanged. But it certainly was an entertaining read/listen. I also really enjoyed the narrator's voice.

A lot of nothing but whiny

The main character is soooo whiney. I mean I get that she lost her sister and she's still dealing with that but her character is too much. She's never happy. She always wants to be some place else. The book goes on for way too long considering that nothing really happens. The other sister is bratty and only thinks about herself. The author makes it really difficult to relate to her, despite her tragedies. Essentially the book is a whole lot of whiney and complaining. Save yourself the trouble.

Good story, Terrible narration

This is the first book I've listen to by this author, also this reader. The story was good although a bit simplistic. Unfortunately the reader was distractingly bad. She has a halting style of reading the story that is hard to listen to. At times she didn't keep the voices of the two main character distinct so it was hard to figure out who was speaking. Her voice for a teenage boy, who was supposed to be a bit of a hero in the story, sounded like Beavis and Butthead. I would consider reading another title by this author but I will never buy another title with this reader.

Enjoyable Story with Great Characters!

Lost and Found Sisters was a most enjoyable page-turner with one exception: unnecessary explicit sex scenes. Characterization is excellent! The story moves so quickly, I didn’t want to miss a word. And the ending? A happily ever after....

Very soppy

If you are into a soppy love story with many sex scenes then this is for you. Wasn’t what I was hoping for.

Cute light hearted listen.

I enjoyed this story. Blend of old and new life and love. Good summer listen.

Love the humor in her stories!

Great storyline and the humor added in made me outright laugh! I'm going to start the next one...it's always nice to have additional reasons to smile.

Too much sex

I did not even finish the book. There was way too much sex and not enough story.

Jill Shalvis at her best.

Shalvis is a prolific writer and it would be easy for her to get lazy and stick to a tested formula. But this book is good from so many perspectives, and it’s great to see that her writing just gets better and better.

Firstly, she has written the best depiction of a 15 year old girl I have ever read: Rude, challenging, defiant, incomprehensible, unpredictable and lovable. This book also features two pets – a dog and a cat - with such brilliant characterisation that I was laughing out loud (which can be embarrassing when commuting on the bus). Many side characters in this story were well-rounded individuals who fitted no norms or stereotypes, particularly in the case of the ex partners of the H and h who were neither predictable nor typical in this genre.

Shalvis skilfully let us understand the emotions and beliefs driving the central characters, so we are able to understand what motivates them, even when their behaviour was difficult to agree with. We understood their decision making processes and therefore understood why they messed up and made mistakes. I particularly loved the H and h who had a few rocky moments but never failed to then work to make things right, nor did they hold grudges for mistakes made by each other. Their relationship was up front and honest, and they worked through issues instead of letting them fester and destroy them.

This book does not feature any great drama or mystery, rather it is the story of the death of loved ones, and the lives of those who loved them and were left behind to cope with the aftermath, when there are no easy solutions, no simple way to make things work and no clear path to follow. Highly recommended.