Purple Hearts

A Novel

By: Tess Wakefield

Narrated by: Kyle Mason, Shayna Thibodeaux

Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins

Publisher's summary

When a soldier with a troubled past and a struggling songwriter agree to a marriage of convenience for the military benefits, neither expects much after saying "I do". Then tragedy strikes, and the line between what's real and what's pretend begins to blur in this smart and surprising romance perfect for fans of Nicholas Sparks and Jojo Moyes.

Cassie Salazar and Luke Morrow couldn't be more different. Sharp-witted Cassie works nights at a bar in Austin, Texas, to make ends meet while pursuing her dream of becoming a singer/songwriter. Luke is an army trainee, about to ship out for duty, who finds comfort in the unswerving discipline of service. But a chance encounter at Cassie's bar changes the course of both their lives.

Cassie is drowning in medical bills after being diagnosed with diabetes. When she runs into her old friend Frankie, now enlisted in the army, she proposes a deal: She'll marry him in exchange for better medical insurance, and they can split the increased paycheck that comes with having a "family". When Frankie declines, his attractive but frustratingly intense friend Luke volunteers to marry Cassie instead. What she doesn't know is that he has desperate reasons of his own to get married. In this unforgettable love story, Cassie and Luke must set aside their differences to make it look like a real marriage...unless, somewhere along the way, it becomes one....

©2017 Alloy Entertainment, LLC (P)2017 Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Love Luke & Cassie

Love this story, and the Netflix movie that came out based off this book:) Love it!

Lukewarm

I watched the movie on Netflix and absolutely loved it! Netflix did an amazing job with the movie. Thinking that the book would be better (because they usually are... boy was I wrong), and after reading it, I was disappointed with the book. Didn't care for the love triangle in the book. Cassie was too wishy washy. The movie adaptation was actually much better.

Loved it

I struggled with some of narrators parts but moved through it. Still a good story

Loved the movie...book...Not so much.

Disappointed in the book. Movie was SO much better. Female voice was cringy. First Audible that I actually regret buying. I wish the preview would have featured the female voice as well so that I could have made a more informed decision. Male voice was good. Female voice was nasal and sounded like a middle aged woman, not a young musician. I read the reviews and decided to buy it anyway....My mistake. There was a little more of a back story to the characters from the movie...but mostly unhelpful plot lines that took away from the overall "love" story. I did not get any sense of them falling in love...there was not enough substance to their relationship to yearn for them to end up together. The movie cut out the side plot lines and focused on Cassy and Luke falling in love as they got to know each other. The movie was sweet, tender, romantic and left you happy. The book was blah. Maybe it would have felt better with a different voice for Cassy. Please don't waste your money or credit on this if you loved the movie. I tried to keep an open mind...but I just couldn't wait for the book to end so I could go back and watch the movie again.

Good story but

The female voice for Cassie was grating and was not young enough. I could not get past that.

inside their minds

i watched the Netflix movie 8 times before i found out it was based on a book. reading it is like getting to know people better and hearing their thoughts where in the movie you only see their actions. the movie and book are not the same, but that makes sense considering the mediums. the book fleshes out the characters well. definitely worth reading. the characters show growth. it is tangible!

Parts not needed (spoilers)

I was so hoping there would be more build up between the main characters. I did not care for the side romance Cassie had with Toby. All of that could of been cut out and replaced with the true romantic point of the book. Really wanted her and Jake to grow more with each other. Read the book because of the Netflix movie. Netflix’s made this book better. I love the love comes softly romances, but this book did not leave you with the feeling of love, rather the feeling of what just happened.

RATING PURPLE HEARTS BOOK VS PURPLE HEARTS MOVIE

It took me a while to get into the story. I didn't know the movie was based off a book so I ended up wating the movie first and 2nd listening to the book.
I loved the movie and have watched over 4 times.
I liked the ending of this story vs the ending of the book. While watching the movie I didn't understand why they ended it that way.

narration: I felt Luke narration (Kyle Mason) did a great job. His take on Luke was spot on. Rhe narrator that did Cassie (Shanya Thibodeaux) voice sounded like an old lady. Cassie is suppose to be in her twenties and it sounded like a 50 year old was speaking for her. That is the one reason it took so long for me to get through this. Shayna did a great job voicing over for Cassies mother and neighbor.

I disliked the love triangle story line and that story line the movie used with Just Cassie and Luke just drew me in right away.

Predictable

It’s a cute story. There was potential to make it a page turner, but it’s not quite there. Glad I read it. But it is too predictable. .

Purple Hearts-A Heartfelt Love Story

I loved it! Well written and narrated. I wanted story to go on… Luke and Cassie. He fell in love first. She fell later but harder.