Sunshine

By: Robin McKinley

Narrated by: Laural Merlington

Length: 15 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

There are places in the world where darkness rules, where it's unwise to walk. Sunshine knew that. But there hadn't been any trouble out at the lake for years, and she needed a place to be alone for a while. Unfortunately, she wasn't alone. She never heard them coming. Of course you don't, when they're vampires.

They took her clothes and sneakers. They dressed her in a long red gown. And they shackled her to the wall of an abandoned mansion -within easy reach of a figure stirring in the moonlight.

She knows that he is a vampire. She knows that she's to be his dinner and that when he is finished with her, she will be dead. Yet, as dawn breaks, she finds that he has not attempted to harm her. And now it is he who needs her to help him survive the day.

©2003 Robin McKinley (P)2008 Tantor

Critic reviews

"A gripping, funny, page-turning, pretty much perfect work of magical literature." (Neil Gaiman, New York Times best-selling author of Anansi Boys)
"McKinley knows very well - and makes her [audience] believe - that 'the insides of our own minds are the scariest things there are.'" ( Publishers Weekly Starred Review)

Worth a listen!

Overall this was a great reading of McKinleys rambling story of magic and vampires. This has been a comfort read of mine, so I thought I would give the audio book a try. I’m glad I did! A great listen while cleaning the house or driving to work.

I love Robin McKinley

I love this book and author. Thank you so much. The reader used wonderful expressions.

Performance doesn’t fit

I love this book but it was jarring that a 20-something protagonist was voiced by a woman who sounded over 60. Also, there were a few stumbles that weren’t edited out — needed some quality control.

One of my very favorites!

I’ve been a Robin McKinley fan since adolescence, and many of her books have marked special times in my life - I even have a daughter named Aerin :)
I discovered Sunshine as an adult and it is my favorite fall read. Robin McKinley writes many of her characters with qualities that have shaped who I try to be in my own life; accepting challenges with dignity, courage, humor, and most importantly - remembering not to take myself too seriously.

What a difference a narrator makes

This book came extremely highly recommended by a friend whose taste I trust implicitly. I should note, however, that she didn't recommend the audiobook.

I immediately disliked the main character, Sunshine, but as I listened more, I realized it wasn't the character I disliked so much as the narrator's idea of who the main character is. "Sunshine" is written in first person limited point of view, and Laural Merlington chose to add inflections that made the character Sunshine sound much younger than she is supposed to be. Minor complaints were a little too emphatic, and serious revelations read far too flippantly. If I imagined the words with slightly different inflections, the meaning changed and Sunshine immediately became more reasonable, more relatable, and more likable. Additionally, Merlington has a distinctive voice that sounds very much like an older woman. This is completely acceptable for the character of Sunshine, but way off base for anyone else, most of all Constantine.

The story is solid if you like vampire fiction. Before downloading this book, I highly recommend listening to the sample to see if this is a narrator you can bear to listen to for 15 hours. The narrator will make or break this for you.

Imaginative and Fresh

I am not really a fan of all of the girl meets vampire novels. But I enjoyed this one.

What I particularly liked about this book was was the tension within the heroine Sunshine as she was simultaneously repelled and pulled in her relationship with the vampire. I love the fact that the vampire was not just another Dracula clone and the author had some original ideas.

It is ripe for a sequel but acording to the author it won't happen. I think the story stands on its own. I thought the narrations was fine.

WOW

LOOKING FORWARD TO MORE FROM THIS AUTHOR!

LOVED IT!!

What a terrific story. I do agree about the info-dumps tho - the author needs to work more of her research into the story rather than just dumping it out onto the pages. But having said that I would love to see what happens next. At the end I had soooo many questions and really feel there is so much more left to tell. Please please please Ms McKinley - can you give us more of Sunshine's story???

My Favorite Robin McKinley Book!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, yes, and yes. It is a mesmerizing tale - in an alternate world of vampire and others. It is stark and sensual, sexy yet innocent - an interesting story that makes me wish for more...

What did you like best about this story?

It's one of those stories that stays with you, lingers in the back of your mind, and calls to be reread and enjoyed periodically. The words, the voices, and relationships combine into a wonderfully complex tale. The vampire/human relationship begins due to extreme circumstances, and slowly develops over time. It is not instant love or lust, as in so many vampire books today. In some ways that makes it more haunting.

What does Laural Merlington bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I like the way she read Con's words...think she had the tone just perfect. On the other hand, it often sounds like his name is 'Kahn', not 'Con' (for Constantine).

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

So many choices. When he asks 'Who ARE you?' When he heals her? When she travels to meet him after she calls him? When he asks her to come with him for the evening? When they are in SOF headquarters?

I have listened to this story a 100 times!

I love this story, it seems to just keeps me addicted to it. I am always in love with the deep love of the character and I always want more of this story.