Narrated by Joe Arden and Maxine Mitchell
If you ever wondered how Carrie Bradshaw from Sex in the City would have fared in Alaska, then look no further, Sex in the Sticks will definitely fulfill this itch. This romantic comedy had me smiling throughout many of its scenes and the heat level was beyond a doubt more amped up than what I had anticipated. No super complicated plot lines here, really just a fun, sexy romance that is a perfect vacation listen, and the narration duo of Maxine Mitchell and Joe Arden do a good job of bringing this story to life which is always a bonus for audiobook fans!
Valentine French, an independently wealthy Manhattan socialite who writes a dating and sex advice blog for fun, is tired of all the metrosexuals that seem to be the only men she can find in New York City. What’s more, she’s convinced that her blog is suffering because of her lack of enthusiasm with the dating market, as she frequently writes about her own dating adventures on her blog. So, with the help of her cousin, she comes up with the plan to take a sabbatical in Alaska to see what dating Alaskan men is like.
Thus begins Valentine’s adventure to a small town in Alaska where the number of men way outnumbers the number of women. Needless to say, she has no issue getting (and scheduling) multiple dates. However, Logan Burke, the one man (the sheriff and mayor of the town – it’s that small of a town!) that has come to her rescue numerous times (as her ill-adapted wardrobe for Alaskan temperatures gets her in trouble, plus he saves her when she gets lost in the woods looking for her tiny dog) is the main prospect that she would love to check-out and date. Too bad he’s not interested, or is he? Moreover, what will happen when the truth comes out that she’s been publicly writing about her escapades in this very private town?
The narration by duo narrators Joe Arden and Maxine Mitchell is done in the typical contemporary romance fashion with Mr. Arden performing the chapters from Logan’s perspective and Ms. Mitchell the ones from Valentine’s. This style works well and both narrators generally have styles that work well together.
The only observation that I did note which caused me to give Ms. Mitchell a slightly lower rating is that her dialogues for Logan and Valentine’s male cousin sounded virtually alike. There were a couple of points in the narration where this caught me by surprise and I had to rewind to make sure I knew who was speaking. Nonetheless, this only affected a couple of scenes as the two characters rarely had parts close to one another, so it’s a minor detraction. I enjoyed everything else of the narration. From the pacing, emotion, and differentiation of the other characters, the narrators adeptly brought the story to life for me.
All in all, this was a cute and fun story. While the heroine may seem a bit over the top at first (and certainly has a propensity for getting herself into trouble in Alaska that she, as an adult, should know better not to get herself into), I instantly saw the connection with the Sex in the City vibe that Ms. Sawyer was playing off. It was this liveliness of Valentine’s character that made a number of the scenes humorous, so like a sitcom, if you’re looking for an easy to listen to and funny romance, then Sex in the Sticks may just be the next listen you were looking for.
[section label=’Audiobook Information’ anchor=’Audiobook Information’]
BJ
AUDIOBOOK INFORMATION
TITLE: Sex in the Sticks
AUTHOR: Sawyer Bennett
NARRATED BY: Maxine Mitchell and Joe Arden
GENRE: Contemporary Romance
STEAM FACTOR: Glad I had my earbuds in
REVIEWER: BJ [button type=’link’ link=’http://www.amazon.com/dp/B072BT4LBG/?tag=audiogalsnet-20′ size=’btn-lg’ variation=’btn-default’ target=’blank’]Buy Sex in the Sticks by Sawyer Bennett on Amazon[/button]
Sounds fun! I’ve put it on my wishlist.
I hope you enjoy it as much as I did Kaetrin!