The Accidentals

By: Sarina Bowen

Narrated by: Kate Rudd

Length: 9 hrs and 15 mins

Publisher's Summary

Never ask a question unless you’re sure you want the truth.

I’ve been listening to my father sing for my whole life. I carry him in my pocket on my MP3 player. It’s just that we’ve never met face to face.

My mother would never tell me how I came to be, or why my rock star father and I have never met. I thought it was her only secret. I was wrong. 

When she dies, he finally appears. Suddenly I have a first-class ticket into my father’s exclusive world. A world I don’t want any part of - not at this cost. 

Only three things keep me going: my a cappella singing group, a swoony blue-eyed boy named Jake, and the burning questions in my soul. There’s a secret shame that comes from being an unwanted child. It drags me down, and puts distance between me and the boy I love. 

My father is the only one alive who knows my history. I need the truth, even if it scares me.

©2018 Sarina Bowen (P)2018 Sarina Bowen

🌟🌟 5 Stars 🌟🌟

Oh Sarina Bowen knows how to pull on all my heart strings! I loved this book! I really liked Rachel, she is such a realistic character but she is pretty quiet and most of her emotions are locked tight on the inside! She goes with the flow and she doesn't really have great communication skills but hey she is young and her life was completely upended. I felt like she was a character I connected with from almost the first page. While I did enjoy the love story, I have to say the relationship between Rachel and Freddy is the best part of this book for me but that's because it hits home a little and I loved hearing their relationship grow. I especially loved that Freddie didn't just all of a sudden change, he had his set backs which made him real to me. This is a beautiful story about love, loss and a new overdue connection.

The narration was great! Kate Rudd is an awesome narrator and she not only give them all their own voices, does great with the accents but she also brings the characters to life and pulls you into the story completely!

6 of 6 people found this review helpful

Where Everything Wrong Turns Right

This is such an incredibly heartfelt and wonderful YA coming of age story. Even though I read the ebook, listening to the story made the emotions and moments so much more powerful. This is the first title I have listened to narrated by Kate Rudd, but I really enjoyed it. She performed male and female voices very well and was able to switch seamlessly between youthful teenagers and adults. My favorite voice was definitely Rachel's roommate, Aurora. I did find the pacing of her narration a little slow overall, however, so I did end up listening to this title at 1.25x.

What I loved most about The Accidentals, is that it's such a relatable story. The situations and challenges may not be the same, but the emotions and feelings will resonate with readers/listeners. Haven't we all felt lost and confused? Angry and overwhelmed? Wanting all the answers, but scared of the answers we seek? This book is a love story, but not just in a romantic way. It is also a love story between parent and child, between friends - new and old, and to those we call family - by blood or by choice. The beauty of this book is that each character is so wonderfully human. They make mistakes and horrible decisions. They're sometimes selfish and clueless. They hurt others when that's the last thing they want. What makes these characters endearing though is that they get back up and keep trying. They may not get it right the first time (or the 20th), but they don't give up. Add in a wonderful cast of secondary characters (loved Jake, Ernie, and Aurora!) and you've got something pretty darn close to perfect.

The relationship between Frederick and Rachel evolved through the entire book in such an honest and realistic way. Both had their lives flipped upside down and irrevocably altered so quickly. When we first meet them, there is so much baggage from the past and a minefield of questions and secrets they have to wade through. I loved seeing both characters grow, change, and mature. Hard truths had to be faced and yes, there were some heartbreaking moments as the past and present came together. Through it all though, Sarina Bowen weaves a tale of hope. Hope that where everything wrong turns right. Can't recommend this title enough!

*I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.*

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Amazing story

The Accidentals was my first Sarina Bowen story and I absolutely loved it. I was hooked from start to finish and was totally engrossed in the story. This YA novel was told from Rachael's POV as we see her struggle with getting to know her absentee father. It will tug at your heartstrings and give you all the feels.
I loved all the characters in this story. All flawed in some way or the other the all were endearing and fully supported each other.
This book was Narrated by Kate Rudd who did a fabulous job of portraying the different characters, most especially Aurora. I loved it and would highly recommend it.

Five Stars....and more if I could give them!

I love all of Sarina Bowen's books and this was right up there among my favorites. Her characters are wonderful and so real. I loved Rachel and her Dad and how they find their way together. I also loved and appreciated the relationship Rachel had with Jake and how well Sarina handled their more intimate moments. Sarina set a good example for young female readers for how things should go at that age. It was mature, but also realistic, and provided just the right amount of information. I'd feel comfortable letting my 14 year old read it. The characters face problems and situations that seem very organic and not manufactured to up the angst. One of my pet peeves is characters making poor decisions simply to drive the plot, and that never happens in Sarina's books. The story had a very satisfying ending, and yet I still wanted more, more, more! I wasn't ready to let these characters go, which is the highest compliment I can give. Kate Rudd was an excellent narrator.

Very Good

But it would have been nice to hear more about her music and where she went with it.

Great Story!

I thought I was a bit too old for a YA book, but I love anything Sarina writes and her audiobooks are always automatic buys for me

This was a deeply emotional and moving story and the narration was spot on. I would definitely recommendation this audiobook

This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review

A tough coming of age story

This was such a challenging (in the best way possible) listen for me. I was so sad for Rachel and all she was faced with, but I loved how she stuck with things and found some pretty spectacular things along the way!

A Pleasant Surprise

I picked up this book because it was one of the recommended books of the summer by a book blogger I follow. What a great find. This is my first book by Sarina Bowen. It’s a story about a teen trying to find her way in life after the death of a parent. This is a YA book that is appropriate for adults as well. I will be adding more of Sarina Bowen’s book to my to read list.

Emotionally Poignant Story

Well told story of love, loss and coming of age. This story grab my heart and lead me down an emotional journey.
I like the multiple story lines; father daughter, old and new friendships and the beginning of a new romance.
I really enjoyed this book and how the stories came together. A must read.

Beautiful Story

I read this book before listening to the audiobook. I'm a big fan of Sarina and The Accidentals is another great example of one of her beautiful stories.

Given the chance to give this one a listen, I still, whole heartedly believe this is a great story. And Kate Rudd is a new narrator to me, and I think she did a fabulous job.

This is a coming of age story - about a teenage girl dealing with both the recent death of her mother and meeting her biological father for the first time. It's a unique story which was one of the reasons I loved it so much.

WOW!!!!

Wow, this was such a great listen. This is a story about a father and daughter navigating a relationship that should and is in certain ways fraught with difficulties, but coming out the other side of it for the better.

For a debut into YA, this is definitely worth spending a credit on and I personally can't wait for Sarina Bowen to write more in this genre.

Kate Rudd did a great job narrating and bringing the story to life.

“I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.”

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Five stars across the board - I loved it

A wonderful young adult read following 17 year old Rachel as she is thrown into a new life with a rockstar father she doesn’t know. As well as dealing with the death of her mother and the lack of a relationship with her father she also has to deal with all the drama that comes with being a teenage girl - school, college, friendships, and of course boys. Told entirely from Rachel’s perspective I was totally inside her mindset, I understood her fears, her desires and her mistakes. Her friendships are strong, which says a lot about her character. The relationship between her and her father is strained to say the least, but I so admired Frederick for finally manning up and trying to become the father she deserved. An emotional read that kept me engrossed from the first chapter. A beautiful coming of age drama with a far from perfect father who it seems is also dealing with becoming an adult, proving that it’s never too late to do the right thing. A perfect five star read with a couple of added twists. The audio version of this book proved to be one of my favourites so far this year. Kate Rudd is a new narrator to me and one I will definitely be looking out for in future audios. Five stars across the board.

5 Accidental Stars

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 Accidental stars

WOW!!!!

I listened to this bad boy all in one sitting, and i loved every single guitar picking second of it!

Rachel has always known that she had a famous father, her mother told her when she was very young, however she never told her any of the important information, like how they met, or stories about him.
The only thing she knew is that her father didn't want her, and her mother didn't like him, or men in general for that matter!

This unfortunately fuels Rachel's fire and she uses this as a weapon against her mother by downloading all of his tracks, and putting posters of her father on her bedroom walls.

Rachel has never met, seen, or spoken to her father, but after her mother dies she has the chance of moving out of the Social Services children's home, and moving in with her father, who turns up to meet, and claim her.

This story takes you on a roller-coaster of emotions, from the sweet grin that you give when she exchanges emails with Jake .......*swoon* to the fist pump in the air when she decides that maybe Freddie isn't a complete douchebag after all!

I love the fact that Freddie didn't turn into "superdad" all of a sudden and he had his fair share of f*ck ups, and i love the relationship between Haze & Rachel (Could be Hayes, not sure of spelling as on audio)

Considering this is the authors first step into YA she did a brilliant job made it seem like it's her normal genre, for anyone that's read any of Sarina Bowen's other books you would know that it isn't 😉

🎧🎧 Narrated by the always awesome and talented Kate Rudd, this book was brilliantly narrated and I would recommend it to anyone.

This one is well worth a credit get ready for those feels.

Vicci

let your song play

Wow a new author to me and I absolutely loved listening to this audio book! When Rachel's mum passes away she finally meets the dad she never knew, well the one she didn't know other than by articles and music videos and cds, but second chances aren't always easy and Freddy has ALOT of making up to do , with 2 new friends aurora and Jake can she finally learn to let her song play
Can't wait to read/listen to more of this authors and narrator's work

The narrator captured the characters and the story perfectly !

Good book

This is very different to Sarina Bowen’s other books. It’s more about a father and daughter developing a relationship after not being in each other’s lives throughout her childhood. There’s a light side romance too which is quite sweet, but nothing like Sarina’s other books. It’s a pretty sad and lonely listen for a lot of the book, and although it comes good in the end I still have a lingering feeling of dissatisfaction and feeling her sense of loss and abandonment. Well written, and I enjoyed it, but don’t listen to it if you’re after a romance book. It’s more of a coming of age and healing relationships story.