My Favorite Mistake by Chelsea M. Cameron

Narrated by Kate Rudd

According to Goodreads, Kate Rudd has narrated 112 distinct works, but My Favorite Mistake was the first time my listening path crossed with hers. It won’t be the last. There are times when a narrator’s performance enhances a book beyond what would have been experienced if reading in print. This was one of those times.

Taylor Caldwell is starting her sophomore year of college at the University of Maine. The college apartment she shares with friends, Renee and Dara, is a co-ed living facility and when Hunter Zaccadelli arrives to be the fourth roommate, she is dismayed – especially because it’s her room he’s going to share.

Hunter is good looking and charismatic but a bit of a jerk. He’s constantly making suggestive comments and he does nothing to hide his attraction to Taylor. He skirts the line between being funny and charming and being a cocky douche – and sometimes he crosses over. The narration kept me more in sympathy with him than I might otherwise have been. His voice isn’t super deep but it’s a bit on the husky side and it was easy to tell when he was speaking. From the first words Taylor says to him (“there must be a mistake”), Hunter gives Taylor the nickname “Missy” which becomes a name of deep affection and connection even though it was born of mockery.

Taylor and Hunter end up spending time together not just at the apartment, but also in class and other campus locales and Hunter is nothing if not persistent. He agrees to leave only if Taylor can convince him she either loves him or hates him. In the absence of that, he’s staying. That bet always seemed a bit odd to me but I was prepared to go with it for the sake of the story. As they interact, squabbling and sniping at one another, occasionally enjoying each other’s company, the sexual tension builds. It also becomes clear that both Taylor and Hunter have secrets that they don’t talk about and that have shaped who they are.

It does take a lot of book time for the big reveal and it was a bit frustrating. I felt a little like I was being constantly teased with it – more so from Taylor (from whose POV the story is told). I was sufficiently entertained by the narration that I was able to put it aside but even so, I was getting to the end of my tether a little by the time I found out what was going on.

When you finally get to the big reveal, it is often anticlimactic and a disappointment. Not so here. As much as I experienced frustration with wanting to know, I think it also deepened the impact when I found out. By then, I was very invested in Taylor and Hunter and more than merely incredibly curious.

The slow development of friendship, trust, and love that builds between Hunter and Taylor is truly delightful. Their close proximity fosters intimacy and Hunter’s cocky charm eventually breaks through Taylor’s walls and it helps that Hunter has his own vulnerabilities. The story doesn’t have the traditional romance arc, but don’t worry. It does have a HEA – it’s just that I was expecting the story to go one way and it went in another direction completely. I was both pleased and surprised with this discovery and it ended up giving the story a more mature feel for me.

Music plays a strong role in the book and there is reference to a broad and eclectic range of songs which Hunter uses to seduce Taylor in G-rated ways.

Both main characters had close friends and family and those relationships were integrated well into the book. As much as Taylor and Hunter were together, they didn’t live in a world of their own and, again, that gave me confidence in their maturity and therefore, in their HEA.

Hunter is confident, unashamed, unembarrassed to go after what he wants (and what he wants is Taylor) and funny. He is also loyal, trustworthy, and generous and completely on Taylor’s side. I joined with Taylor in rolling her eyes at some of Hunter’s more outrageous statements and actions (remember: not shy) but I was also totally charmed by him.

I put much of this down to the narration. There were times during the listen when Ms. Rudd said a line in a particular way which was just exactly right but which I think I would have missed (just a little) had I read it in print. I would still have enjoyed the print book, but the audio version is absolutely a winner.

Taylor can defend herself (and not just with words either) and the banter between the couple was snappy and fast-paced, with the tones and inflections so perfect. I could almost see the action played out on a screen in my mind.

Parts of the story brought me to tears as Ms. Rudd delivered the emotion of the scenes in such a way that conveyed the grief or fear or torment of the moment without becoming overwrought and melodramatic.

To my ears, Kate Rudd had a kind of Tanya Eby sound to her (or perhaps that is vice versa). They are not the same person, but I think if you like Ms. Eby’s narration (as I do), then Ms. Rudd will work for you too. I’m really glad I listened to My Favorite Mistake. I enjoyed the book very much and I’ve found a new-to-me narrator to stalk watch.

Kaetrin

Narration:  A-

Book Content:  B+

Steam Factor:  Glad I had my earbuds in

Violence:  Some description of domestic/sexual violence

Genre:  New Adult

Publisher:  Brilliance Audio

My Favorite Mistake was provided to AudioGals for review by Brilliance Audio.