The Search by Nora Roberts

A Month of Romance Audio Favorites Selection

Narrated by Tanya Eby

I’m not a big rereader. It’s fairly rare. I have so many new-to-me books to read and listen to; it takes a lot for me to choose one I’ve already read. (I’m more likely to listen to a book I’ve already read in print – does that count?)  The Search is one of the few exceptions. I think I’ve read the book twice and listened to it three times now. It’s the book that led me to Tanya Eby, who remains one of my favourite narrators (I’ve been known to request a book on the sole basis that she’s narrating it). The Search features a wonderful romance, dogs (I like dogs), and a creepy serial killer. Two in fact. I think The Witness is a better book (with this one a close second), but The Search is the better audiobook for me – and that’s all down to the narration.

Fiona Bristow trains Search and Rescue dogs as well as everyday dogs. She has a canine training school on Orcas Island in the San Juans off the coast of Washington state. Eight years earlier, she was the only survivor – the only one who, through luck and determination, managed to escape – from the Red Scarf Killer. She’s put it behind her and is moving on with her life, with her dogs – Peck, Bogart, and Newman.

Simon Doyle is a wood artist/furniture maker who moved to the island a few months ago and when his Labrador puppy, Jaws, (given to him by his mother) drives him up the wall, he turns to Fiona to help him train the pup into an obedient dog.

In the meantime, in California and Oregon, college girls are going missing, only to be found dead in a shallow grave with a red scarf tied around their necks. The original Red Scarf Killer is in jail but there’s a copycat on the loose and when it becomes clear he’s targeting Fiona – the one who got away – things get tense.

The book opens not with Fiona at all, but with a young family staying on Orcas Island. Their three-year-old son goes missing and Fiona and her SAR team are called in to locate him. This family is only in the book briefly, but Nora Roberts does that thing where she makes me care about them in only a few short strokes of the pen. The narration which displays the distress and horror the parents suffer when their son is missing, the child who is scared and tired, and then the parental relief, still, even after THREE listens, brings tears to my eyes.

I suppose after those three listens I can pick out some flaws now. Tanya Eby’s characters sometimes lack consistent vocal differentiation; some of the male voices aren’t very deep and sound remarkably similar to some of the female ones. But the emotion and the tone are just right.

In other Eby narrations, I’ve heard her use deeper, more masculine sounding voices – she improved her range after The Search I think. That said, I love her portrayal of Simon and she absolutely nails the character. He’s solitary, messy, and a little grumpy. He’s not looking for a relationship, he doesn’t want to be anyone’s hero, initially he’s not all that keen on even having a dog, and he definitely doesn’t want a girlfriend. Plus, Fiona is not his type.

But Fiona, with her gregarious nature, her strong sense of order, and her ability to laugh at herself, wheedles (his word; not entirely accurate in fact) her way into his heart. Simon doesn’t say what he doesn’t mean. When he says “You matter”, it’s as powerful a declaration as a sonnet (that’s almost a direct quote by the way).

Fiona is a brave, tough, independent woman. She’s used to doing for herself and she struggles somewhat to let anyone in – Simon included. All of this is beautifully portrayed in Eby’s narration.

I happen to find Tanya Eby extremely pleasant to listen to – she has a great voice and I don’t tire of it. Her narrative talent covers various age ranges and both genders and I think her skills continue to improve.

When I was asked to relisten to a book for A Month of Romance Audio Favorites, The Search was the first book I thought of. Frankly, it gave me an excuse to excuse I was already for. There is something so comforting about the story even though it is occasionally graphically violent (although most of it is off page, some nasty things happen and there is some killer POV). After five experiences (one way or the other) with this book, I suppose this time I found parts of it to be overly didactic (in relation to the dogs) but it took that many times for me to feel that way. Because I know the story so well, I could pay a bit of extra attention to such things I suppose.

I find the romance between Simon and Fiona so satisfying; I love the San Juan Islands setting and the canine SAR stuff. It just pushes my buttons all the right ways. And Tanya Eby’s narration is the delicious icing on a very nice cake. The Search is still one of my very favourite audiobooks.

Kaetrin

Narration:  A-

Book Content:  A-

Steam Factor:  Glad I had my earbuds in

Violence:  Graphic

Genre:  Romantic Suspense

Publisher:  Brilliance Audio