Collecting the Pieces

By: L. A. Fiore

Narrated by: Tracy Marks, Aaron Shedlock

Length: 11 hrs

Publisher's summary

At fifteen I fell in love. His name was Jake Stephens and he took the abandoned, lonely girl I had been and made me whole. His love was a pure and unconditional love that made every day better than the last; a fairy tale of my very own. But this story isn't about Jake. It's about Abel Madden; the man I meet after the fairy tale goes to hell. A cocky, arrogant man who says what he wants, does as he pleases, and makes no excuses for it. He irritates me--downright pisses me off at times--but he also brings me back to life. My name is Sidney Ellis and this is my story of finding love twice--the first when I needed it most and the second when I never saw it coming.

©2016 Elizabeth Ann Fiore (P)2017 Elizabeth Ann Fiore

One of my new favorites, narration not quite right

I fell in love with this book. It's unbelievably poignant and will move you throughout the story. It's very well developed and the story line follows a more unique path than others. There are essentially 3 stories in here: 1. beginning of Sydney's life, 2. Sydney now facing life after tragedy changes her world, 3. Sydney finding herself and moving forward. What I love most about that is it's true life and you connect to the characters because of it. I like that instead of detailing every little step, the sections are told where the story jumps 3 years. You have an idea of Sydney's growth between those sections.

You will fall in love with all of these characters. Some you will love and some not so much, but they all bring a richness to the story that you don't find often. You will be rooting for Sydney from the very beginning. Jake and Abel are two men that epitomize what a true man should be. They are unique and so different from each other but so totally amazing.

I'm not going to lie, you will have tissues throughout this story but those moments make the ups so much better. I was surprised about a story arc though. This starts as a true romance of a lost girl finding love with the right boy. They have challenges they face but are so solid you'll be jealous of their bond. Without giving too much away, the book shifts in the 2nd act where an underlying murder mystery starts to form. There's something about the flow that gives you pause but it brings the end in one of the sweetest ways. It's almost like this should be two stories but somehow they mesh together.

There are a few written passages that will grind a bit. They are almost too wordy and unnecessary but they are what they are. The narration though is not something that brings life to this book. Tracy is the majority of the narration since the book is told from her point of view. She brings an air to Sydney which doesn't mesh well with how strong her character is written. I find her not well suited for this type of story. She tries to be wispy with her voice to lend credence to the other voices she portrays. It just doesn't work. Aaron is okay but not someone that I would follow future works. Both of them are almost trying to hard and it causes something to be lost in translation.

With all that said, this is one of my new favorites books. I love it so much that I purchased the Kindle version since I reread ones that touch me the most. I ended up switching to the Kindle version for the last half of the book because the narration was something I couldn't get past. It is a much better book read than listened to because of the narration.

Ahh the narration

This book had so much promise but the female narrator is sooooo bad I had to DNF. Who talks like that?

5 EMOTIONAL STARS

This book is great. I loved the characters and the small town of loving friends and family. Sidney was fortunate to find true love twice in her lifetime. This sorry will grab your emotions and have you crying. Narrators did an excellent job.

A book that will stay with you

There are some books that just grab you from the start, and this one did just that. And it will stay with you after, a complete and total book hangover. LA Fiore is a wonderful storyteller, but with this book in particular, I have been enraptured. Sydney's childhood is less than happy, until she is a freshman in high school. Life for her changes when she meets Jake. Who meets their soulmate in high school? This lucky girl has finally found the happiness she has longed for...until tragedy strikes. Now with a new path, and a new life, she sets out to find a new happiness with someone completely the opposite of Jake. Abel, a broody alpha male, is a broken man, so we take the journey with these two to see if they can heal together. With a little suspense thrown in, it's truly a my kind of gem to hear. LA Fiore's depiction of love in this story resonates with such deeply real characters, making every emotion seem to be happening to the reader. You will feel the pain of loneliness and loss, love and excitement.

Listening to this story I think really brings it to life, giving the story real passion and credibility. Tracy Marks has a way of invoking the emotions of Sydney so authentically your heart will feel every one. Aaron Shedlock creates Abel with his gruffness and underlying tenderness so it's so easy to fall in love with him. Perfect narration.

Bitter Sweet

Great book with meaningful life experiences. Loved everything abouy it. I recommend it to everyone.

Collecting the Pieces

This is one of the best audiobooks I have listened to. It kept me coming back to it even when I was busy doing other things.

Great listen

I really enjoyed this book . There were some reviews that did not like female narrator. I had been familiar with Tracy marks in previous listens and she does have a unique voice and style of narration. I happen to really like her. Her voice seems to have been matched to her characters in the books I have listened to with her. My opinion.
The male narrator was great. Although, his narration was limited.
Great story!

Brilliant

I usually don’t take the time to write reviews, but couldn’t resist this one.
This is a must listen... it was an amazing experience to hear this story. I don’t want to give away any spoilers, but I will say, have your tissue box ready. There were a couple times during this story, that I had to take a break, pull myself together, and clean my tears. If you happen to have the romance package, this is a no brainer! Take the time to listen and prepare yourself for the emotions after getting to know these characters. If you don’t, I still think it’s well worth the credit. I couldn’t stop listening and ended up finishing in less than 24 hours

Omg just 😭

Great book it made me cry. But loved it. Her story how she found love twice its was a great story. Moving from Jake to Abel it was just beautiful

A Second Chance at Love and Life

I really enjoyed Sidney's story of love and loss. The first part was very sweet and Jake was the perfect book boyfriend. Him and his family brought stability and love to Sidney's life and helped her truly come into her own. Yes, he was a little too good to be true, but his unconditional support and love for Sidney was truly beautiful. From the blurb we know that their story is not meant to be though and even knowing that, I still cried and mourned right alongside Sidney.

The second part focuses on Sidney restarting her life and making a fresh start. Her connection to Abel is immediate, but I loved the slow burn build up between them. Their playful and silly banter was perfect and only added to the fire. Abel was so different from Jake, but what we learn is that Sidney has changed too. Abel may be all gruff alpha male, but he's also kind, caring, and extremely loyal. Seeing him come into his own the way Sidney did in the first part was wonderful. In their own ways, they healed the other and both came out stronger in the end.

I think the only thing that didn't quite work for me was the suspense element. I felt like it detracted from the story and wasn't fully explained. It really didn't add much and left me with more questions than answers. Also, though I enjoyed meeting the residents of the town and their animals, there were just too many characters/names to keep track of.

The majority of the book is narrated by Tracy Marks and her performance as Sidney was wonderful. It was emotional and heartfelt and my heart truly ached during those difficult scenes. Aaron Shedlock was amazing as always as Abel and portrayed the sexy alpha perfectly. I really enjoyed this one and look forward to more of LA Fiore's books!

Overall 4 stars
Performance 5 stars
Story 3-3.5 stars