Shawn's Law

By: Renae Kaye

Narrated by: Casey Hunter

Length: 6 hrs and 19 mins

Publisher's Summary

Shawn is single, 29, the full-time carer of his Alzheimer's-stricken mother, and a frequent victim of Murphy's Law - although his family calls it Shawn's Law. Other than caring for mom, his day consists of painting nude men and spying on the guy who walks his dogs along the street every day at four o'clock. When Shawn takes a spectacular fall on his front steps, who is there to witness it other than the man of his dreams?

Harley doesn't believe in Shawn's Law - but he soon changes his mind.

The two men make it through a memorable first date and Shawn's sexual insecurities to begin a relationship stumbling toward love. But when Shawn's Law causes Harley to be injured, Shawn is determined to save Harley's life the only way he knows how - by breaking up with him. Not once, but twice. Throw in a serial killer ex-boyfriend, several deadly Australian animals, two dogs called Bennie, a mother who forgets to wear clothes, an unforgiving Town Council, and a strawberry-flavored condom dolly, and Shawn's Law is one for the books.

©2015 Renae Kaye (P)2015 Dreamspinner Press

Bitter sweet

I loved the humorous calamities that are Shawn's life, and the loving relationship Shawn and Harley share. I cried like a baby through the last few chapters. My own father passed away from Alzheimer related issues recently, and it just broke my heart to hear about Estelle's daily trials, and how the disease impacts a person's life. Thumbs up! The narrator did a great job too. Except his pronunciation of 'arse' sucked really bad.

Not that good

I was a bit disapointed in this book. I have read other books from this author that I really enjoyed, but there was something missing in this one. I never connected to the MCs, not even sure if I liked them at all. The characters were looking back on events, and that made the story a bit unpolished and rushed, like when you remember the main events in a dream but not not the details.

I'll be sure to try out some of the other books from this author, but this one wasn't for me.

Cute and funny story

This was a really fun listen. This is a really sweet story of a man (Shawn) who believes that Murphy's Law was solely invented to describe his life. He does seem to have more than his fair share of bad luck. But when he meets his dream man, he thinks things are looking up. Ah, not so much. It is a really fun and sometimes unrealistic journey. The story is told from both characters POV, which gives them a lot depth and really drew me into the story. The double break up kind of stretches the imagination, but, not enough to take away from the overall enjoyment of the story. The narrator does a fantastic job, even though he does not perform in an Australian accent. This is a pet peeve of mine because "arse" "mum" and "bloke" just sounds stupid in an American accent. But, fortunately this narrator is good enough that it doesn't take away from the enjoyment.

Hillarious!

This book is just hilarious. I found myself being frequently gawked at when I was grocery shopping – apparently one is not allowed to snicker or laugh for (to them) no apparent reason. But I didn’t care one bit. I went on listening and laughing at everything this book dished out.

Each and every one of us has at one point or another been plagued by bad luck and mishaps. We know what it’s like to miss a step and take a tumble or have that “hey look at that” moment only to realise that poking that interesting thing might not have been such a good idea after all…

Only for Shawn, all that doesn’t happen once in a while, it’s every day. He really has the worst luck. If something has the remote possibility to go wrong, it does. And it usually ends up with Shawn in the ER. To the point where he knows the nurses and doctors by name and invites them all to his housewarming parties – you know, so they all know where he lives for the next time he needs an ambulance ride to the hospital. Add in an Alzheimer ridden mother with a tendency to shed her clothes and you are in for an insane ride.

Casey Hunter was a great choice of narrator for this book. While he didn't have the aussie accent (easily forgiven in my book), he performed this book with a lot of feeling. He brought it to life. The only thing I wished for was more of a difference in the voices for Shawn and Harley, but you can’t always get everything, and at the end of the day I really did have a great time listening to this book.

This book is over the top and ridiculous at times, but it worked for me. I had a blast from the first to the last word. And it is definitely a book to pick up when you want something fun and happy in your life and I know that I will happily listen to it over and over.


A copy of this book was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review for Love Bytes

Great book, wish it was an Aussie narration

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

I had already read the print version so knew what to expect. I chose this book because I enjoyed it and needed some thing to listen on a long drive. It was better than listening to music and made my trip go fast.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Shawn's Law?

Shawns Law is full of memorable moments, but I guess I would have to say the condom dolly was my favourite.

How could the performance have been better?

Either using an Australia to narrate or learning how to pronounce Australian words correctly would have made a huge difference. Galah is pronounced galarrh not gala, emu is pronounced eemyou not eemoo, quokka is pronounced kwocka not kwoke-a. I know it sounds picky but when listening to it, the mispronounciations made me cringe.

Any additional comments?

This is a favourite of mine, choosing the audible version for listening to in the car was a no brainer

Another Great Book from Renae Kaye

If you could sum up Shawn's Law in three words, what would they be?

Funny (The whole story is very funny)
Dangerous (characters are constantly getting injured)
Patient (Shawn's patience for his mom and Harley's patience for Shawn)

Who was your favorite character and why?

Shawn, because of his ridiculous antics.

Did Casey Hunter do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?

I was not a fan of the narration for this book. All of the characters have the same voice, and the story takes place in Australia, yet the narrator has an American accent.

It Grew On Me

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

Yes, I guess it was time well spent. I am really not into romance books but this one wasn't too sappy... although it did follow the usual routine for gay romance... hopeless boy meets hot boy, hot boy falls in love with hopeless boy.... Hopeless boy (for some shallow reason) pushes hot boy away because he doesn't feel like he's worthy... Hot boy refuses to give up and they fall in love.. .blah blah blah (like I said, I really don't like romance) BUT with all that said, there are some cute moments in this story that made it tolerable.

Wish the narrator used an Australian accent but...

Shawn is a HOT MESS. If you can think of someone who’s a clutz, that’s Shawn times a thousand. He’s so accident prone the ER staff knows him by name. He’s got the auto club on speed dial and the Ambulance driver’s are his friends.

But he’s also super adorable with a giant heart. He loves his mother and cares for her as she suffers the last stages of Alzheimer’s. He helps his sister with her budding family and he thinks nobody could want to (or should want to) be involved with him in a boyfriend-type-way.

Harley, aka “Hippy Hotpants” is Shawn’s new “neighbor”. He’s actually going out of his way when he takes his daily walks to be seen by and to see Shawn working in the garden and when yet another accident throws Shawn literally at Harley’s feet, it’s the start of a wonderful, if rocky, relationship.

Between Shawn’s own insecurities, his numerous accidents, his family and his need to “protect” Harley from Shawn’s law they don’t exactly have smooth sailing … but when they do connect it’s mind blowing.

Finally, after what seems like the true and final last straw, they do manage to come together at last for a very, very HEA – well a well-bandaged HEA.

**

As you know I’m a huge Renae Kaye fan. Her writing keeps improving with each book she puts out. This story is definitely a bit different from her others in that it relies far more heavily on humor than her other books, but is no less full of tenderness and a loving relationship as we have come to expect.

As usual, she also gives us a host of amazing secondary characters, fully developed who are rich additions to the story – Shawn’s mother with the Alzheimer’s, his sister- with no verbal filter, Harely’s dad- a true ex-hippy, and Shawn’s best friend- who talks to Shawn in verbal short hand as though they share a brian. To name a few.

I devoured this in one afternoon, I couldn’t put it down. The humor was contagious and Shawn and Harley just had me wrapped around their proverbial fingers.

If you are looking for a book with almost no angst, but still plenty of substance, this is the book for you. It’ll brighten your day and lighten your heart.


Audio

Casey Hunter is a new narrator for me, he does not have an Australian accent – so that was disappointing… but he was still quite good! He did a really nice job with the emotion, and especially the humor. He didn’t do a lot to change the voices, but it was always clear which character was speaking. I really enjoyed this and it absolutely added to the overall enjoyment of the story.

Best one yet

Would you listen to Shawn's Law again? Why?

Yes, it's hilarious and the narrator suits the book.

What other book might you compare Shawn's Law to, and why?

I like this almost as much as 'Tell Me It's Real' by TJ Klune

Which character – as performed by Casey Hunter – was your favourite?

You have to love both Shawn and Harley, although in this case the secondary characters, including the bloodthirsty nurse, are just as good.

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It definitely makes you laugh, Shawn deals with each disaster so stoically, and I share a little of his luck! But Shawn's caring nature and his love for his mum also touches you and it does bring the reality of ageing parents home.

Any additional comments?

Renae Kaye is a wonderful writer, and to be honest I don't think audio has done her justice, I am pleased to say that 'Shawn's Law' breaks the streak.