Author: Kate McMurray
Narrator: Michael Ferraiuolo
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Run Time: 7 Hours
At a glance: I really enjoyed this book, but the narrator didn’t make much of an impression.
Reviewed By: Amy
Blurb: Sandy Sullivan has gotten so good at covering up his emotions, he’s waiting for someone to hand him an Oscar. On the outside, he’s a cheerful, funny guy, but his good humor is the only thing keeping awful memories from his army tours in Afghanistan at bay. Worse, Sandy is now adrift after breaking up with the only man who ever understood him, but who also wanted to fix him the way Sandy’s been fixing up his new house in Brooklyn.
Everett Blake seems to have everything: good looks, money, and talent to spare. He parlayed a successful career as a violinist into a teaching job at Manhattan’s elite Olcott School and until four months ago, he even had the perfect boyfriend. Now he’s on his own, trying to give his new apartment some personality, even if it is unkempt compared to the perfect home he shared with his ex. When hiring a contractor to renovate his kitchen sends Sandy barreling into his life, Everett is only too happy to accept the chaos… until he realizes he’s in over his head.
Review: I really enjoyed this book. It seemed real to me to have men of two completely different backgrounds get together and not have everything simply fall into place. Their lives are messy, and it takes some time to get things figured out.
Everett is from a more upper-class background with all that comes with that. Sandy has his own demons that haunt him. This story definitely worked, but at times it kind of got a bit predictable. I love that Sandy starts going to a therapist for his issues, but I felt that Everett’s inner monologue regarding whether he could be with someone like Sandy got a bit old. It never honestly seemed to come to a head between the two of them, but it was a bit repetitive.
I am born and raised in New York and love that Kate set this is NY. I really enjoyed that the city was somewhat of a character in the book. Overall a well written novel. I would definitely visit this world again.
Narration: Another first time narrator for me in Michael Ferraiuolo, it is weird that I didn’t have much of a reaction to his performance. I didn’t love him, I didn’t hate him. He was a means to an end. I guess that in itself isn’t good. I feel he did an adequate job but didn’t leave much of an impression.
You can buy The Silence of the Stars here:
