Come Sundown by Nora Roberts

Narrated by Elisabeth Rodgers

Lovers of romantic suspense and western-styled romances are the perfect audience for Come Sundown. Nora Roberts has been such a prolific writer for such a long time, and as Come Sundown proves, her ability to captivate an audience is still as strong as ever. Further enhancing the entertainment value of this audiobook is the talented narration by Elisabeth Rodgers which really helped bring the story to life.

Spanning numerous decades, Come Sundown is truly a family saga that tells the story of several people spanning three generations in the lives of a family that owns a ranch in western Montana. Over the years, the Bodine ranch was expanded to also include a resort. Although there are many characters in the book, the two primary female characters are Alice and Bodine. Alice is Bodine’s Aunt, though they have never met. You see, Alice disappeared in the early 1990s shortly after Bodine’s mother and father were wed. As Alice had been a lively and strong-willed teenager, the family assumes she ran away and chose never to return. If only the truth were that simple for Alice’s sake.

Meanwhile a second storyline takes place in the present with Bodine being the boss in charge of the ranch’s resort. Bodine is also strong-willed but she has channeled that energy into furthering the economic well-being of her family. As a consequence, though, Bodine has little time for romantic endeavors. Well at least she did, until Callen Skinner, her brother’s friend and her former crush returns home after sowing his oats and trying his fortunes in Hollywood as a trainer of horses that appeared in movies. Only problem is that Callen is now an employee of Bodine ranch. Is it ever a smart idea for an employer and employee to date?

Further complicating matters is the fact that Callen’s return coincides with two unexplained murders of young women. Could Callen possibly be involved? As secrets of the past are slowly revealed, you will soon find that the past is intricately connected to the present.

The narration by Elisabeth Rodgers was divine. This was my first experience with Ms. Rodgers and it will definitely not be my last.

Ms. Rodgers nailed the small Montana town accent which really gave a sense of authenticity to the story. Moreover, with a story with so many characters, I was impressed that she was able to give each character their own distinguishable and personality-appropriate sound. From the “crazier” characters who truly sounded the part to Bodine’s strong leader-sounding voice, Ms. Rodgers was able to really capture and appropriately animate the story that Ms. Robert’s penned for the listening pleasure of the audiobook audience.

I also enjoyed how Ms. Rodgers communicated the emotion of the scene. You could feel the spine-tingling effect of the more suspense filled moments as well as the heartwarming effect of the more romantic ones.

All in all, Come Sundown fulfilled my expectations and more.

BJ