Tag: #audiobook

Blog Tour/ Feature Post and Audiobook Review: Trouble on Main Street by Kirsten Fullmer

Hi, everyone!

Today I am sharing my Feature Post and Audiobook Review for TROUBLE ON MAIN STREET (Sugar Mountain Book #1) by Kirsten Fullmer on this Audio Book Empire Audiobook Tour.

Below you will find a book description, my audiobook review, the author’s bio and social media links and the narrator’s bio. Enjoy!

***

Book Description

A cozy mountain town, a sweet romance, and a secret society of sneaky women…

The sleepy hamlet of Sugar Mountain harbors a secret society of women. Don’t misunderstand—the society itself is not secret—it’s the true nature of the group that is hush-hush.

Sugar Mountain is the kind of charming village that tourists adore. If you like small-town charm, quirky shops, and local art, this is the place for you. But when a blood smeared package shows up at the post office and it appears to be linked to a scheme that threatens Heidi Collinsworth’s historic home, the town takes on a sinister vibe. Heidi would lay odds that slimy Mayor Winslow is involved, but even with the enquiring skills of The Sugar Mountain Ladies Historical Society at work, proof is scarce.

The new guy in town, Adam Williams, is determined not to get involved in Sugar Mountain’s business. His last job in a big city planning office ruined his life, but Heidi needs his help. No matter how hard he tries to stay detached, Adam finds himself eyeball deep in Heidi’s problems, as well as the needs of her teenage son and a homeless dog.

With conflicting theories abound and tensions running high, it’s up to the ladies of the society to don disguises and go undercover. If they’re not careful, the town may fall to a wrecking ball, Heidi may fall for Adam, and the secret society will be exposed.

Meet the cast of colorful characters in this charming and zany introduction to a whole new series of romantic, cozy mysteries!

***

My Audiobook Review

RATING: 4 out of 5 Stars

TROUBLE ON MAIN STREET (Sugar Mountain Book #1) by Kirsten Fullmer is an entertaining small town cozy mystery with romance elements. This first book in the series introduces the ladies of the Sugar Mountain Historical Society and features their president, Heidi Collinsworth. This Historical Society is not quite what it seems. I listened to the audiobook.

Heidi Collinsworth is the town’s postmaster, a widow, a single mom, and the current grand master of the Sugar Mountain Historical Society which is also her home. A package with a bloody handprint shows up at the post office and at the same time Heidi learns that the Historical Society is due to be demolished. All the ladies of the society come together to investigate and discover a plan that could not only make Heidi homeless, but also destroy Sugar Mountain’s unique downtown shopping district.

Adam Williams has moved to Sugar Mountain for a complete change in his life. He is intrigued by the postmaster and when she asks for his help, he reluctantly agrees since his old job is just what Heidi needs. For someone who wants to stay to himself, he is completely drawn into Heidi’s problem, spending time with Heidi’s son and adopting a sad homeless dog.

Heidi is hiding a secret that she cannot reveal to Adam even as she begins to fall for him. The entire town may be destroyed, and the society exposed if they are not careful.

I really enjoyed listening to this cozy mystery and its fun cast of ladies in the Historical Society. The idea of the Historical Society and their terrible reenactments being the cover for a group of women who come together to better the town and its inhabitants without interference, since no one really knows what they are doing, is an idea that can lead to many more plots. The characters kept me listening, but the plot that started out interesting and well paced, ended up rushed and was not as satisfying as I believe it could have been. I do enjoy scenic small town locations and Sugar Mountain, NC is set in the high country of the Blue Ridge Mountains and I know that is beautiful country. The narrator was an excellent choice for this story, and I enjoyed listening to her bring life to the characters.

I look forward to listening to more Sugar Mountain series audiobooks.

***

About the Author

Kirsten is a writer with a love of art and design. She worked in the engineering field, taught college, and consulted free lance. Due to health problems, she retired in 2012 to travel with her husband. They live and work full time in a 40′ travel trailer with their little dog Bingo. Besides writing romance novels, she enjoys selling art on Etsy and spoiling their four grandchildren.

As a writer, Kirsten’s goal is to create strong female characters who face challenging, painful, and sometimes comical situations. She believes that the best way to deal with struggle is through friendship and women helping women. She knows good stories are based on interesting and relatable characters.

Social Media Links

Website: https://kirstenfullmer.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AuthorKFullmer

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7922460.Kirsten_Fullmer

###

About the Narrator – Barbara Henslee

   Barbara’s journey into voice acting began by volunteering with Learning Ally, a non-profit organization. After her experience helping to transform the lives of struggling readers, she knew that narrating audiobooks was the perfect path toward her life’s second act after working in the corporate world for many years.

      Her mid-tone voice is friendly, warm, smooth, lyrical, clear, and professional. She can also hold her own in suspenseful tones for the scariest of stories. Her natural accent is Texan, and she can adapt to General American, Appalachian or any American southern accent. Her acting coaches are award winning Carol Monda, Joel Froomkin, Johnny Heller and Elise Arsenault.

      Genres she enjoys narrating are suspense, horror, mysteries, cozy mysteries, literary fiction, non-fiction, and memoirs. And anything magical ranging from fun and fantastical all the way to dark sorcery.

Website: https://barbarahenslee.com/

Audiobook Review: Playing With Myself by Randy Rainbow

Audiobook Description

An intimate and light-hearted memoir by viral sensation and three-timeEmmy-nominated musical comedian Randy Rainbow that takes readers through his life—the highs, the lows, the lipstick, the pink glasses, and the show tunes.

Randy Rainbow, the man who conquered the Internet with a stylish pair of pink glasses, an inexhaustible knowledge of Broadway musicals, and the most gimlet-eyed view of American politics this side of Mark Twain finally tells all in Playing with Myself, a memoir sure to cause more than a few readers to begin singing one of his greatest hits like “A Spoonful of Clorox” or “Cover Your Freakin’ Face.”

As Randy has said, “There’s so much fake news out there about me. I can’t wait to set the record straight and finally give people a peek behind the green screen.” And set the record straight he does. Playing with Myself is a first-hand account of the journey that led Randy Rainbow from his childhood as the over-imaginative, often misunderstood little boy who carried a purse in the second grade to his first job on Broadway as the host at Hooters and on to the creation of his trademark comedy character. In chapters titled “Pajama Bottoms” (a look back at the days when he wore pajama bottoms on his head to pretend he was Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz), “Yes, It’s My Real Name, Shut Up!” (no explanation necessary…) and “Pink Glasses” (a rose-colored homage to his favorite accessory), Playing with Myself is a memoir that answers the question “Can an introverted musical theatre nerd with a MacBook and a dream save the world, one show tune at a time?”

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58977365-playing-with-myself?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=ICouJJPw6o&rank=1

***

My Audiobook Review

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

PLAYING WITH MYSELF by Randy Rainbow is an entertaining and heartfelt audiobook memoir with the author himself narrating, because who else could do it justice? If you want to laugh and deal with the occasional tissue worthy tears, then this is the memoir for you.

Like many people, I discovered Randy Rainbow, yes that is his real name, on my social media feed during the previous administration and pandemic and was immediately addicted. He made me laugh and sing along to his videos through the scary and unbelievable. This audiobook is his life story to date narrated by himself. He tells stories of his grandmother always believing in him, his difficulties with his father and his unconventional path in the entertainment industry.

There are many ups and downs that are both humorous and heartbreaking and I felt it was all told from his soul. There is also plenty of name dropping and stories of Randy himself being a crazy fan as he meets his all-time favorite Broadway and entertainment stars. I enjoyed listening to him tell his story to date.

The glitter and glasses did not happen overnight.

I highly recommend this audiobook memoir.

***

Author Social Media

Website: https://www.randyrainbow.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RandyRainbowOfficial

Twitter: https://twitter.com/RandyRainbow

Feature Post and Audiobook Review: Mixed Plate: Chronicles of an All-American Combo by Jo Koy

Audiobook Description

A stunning, hilarious memoir displaying Koy’s “wide-ranging comedic talent and abundant wells of perseverance” (Kirkus Reviews, starred). Mixed Plate illuminates the burning drive and unique humor that make Jo Koy one of today’s most successful comedians.

Well guys, here it is – my story. A funny, sad, at times pathetic but also kick-ass tale of how a half-Filipino, half-white kid whose mom thought (and still thinks) his career goal was to become a clown became a success. Not an overnight success, because that would have made for a really short listen, but an All-American success who could give my immigrant mom the kind of life she hoped for when she came to this country, and my son the kind of life I wished I’d had as a kid. With all the details of what it felt like to get the doors closed in my face, to grind it out on the road with my arsenal of dick jokes, and how my career finally took off once I embraced the craziness of my family, which I always thought was uniquely Filipino but turns out, is as universal as it gets.

In this book, I’ll take you behind the mic, behind the curtain – okay, way behind it. From growing up with a mom who made me dance like Michael Jackson at the Knights of Columbus, to some real dark stuff, the stuff we don’t talk about often enough as immigrants. Mental health, poverty, drinking. And show you the path to my American Dream. Which was paved with a lot of failure, department store raffle tickets to win free color televisions, bad jokes, old VHS tapes, a motorcycle my mom probably still hates, the only college final I aced (wasn’t math), and getting my first laugh on stage. 

In this book, I get serious about my funny. And I want to make you laugh a little while I do it. I’m like Hawaii’s favorite lunch – the mixed plate. Little bit of this, a little bit of that. My book Mixed Plate is, too. 

Jo Koy (Author, Narrator), HarperAudio (Publisher)

***

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

MIXED PLATE: Chronicles of an All-American Combo by Jo Koy is the comedian’s autobiography and is written and narrated by himself. I knew the minute this came out, I had to listen to it on Audible.  I normally prefer to read rather than listen to a book, but Jo Koy is such a fantastic storyteller so I really believe this is the best way to get all the nuances of the autobiography. (And besides, I love hearing him imitate his mother!)

I knew the basics of his life from watching his stand-up, but in this autobiography he shares deeper and more intimate memories and stories. His stories are emotionally raw and starkly give you the picture of his family’s early disfunction and poverty. His willingness to hustle and work hard to make his dream of being a stand-up comedian come true was inspiring, especially with all the racism in the system as he was trying to break in.

If you are not familiar with this “mixed plate”, half Filipino/half white comedian, you need to read this book, listen to this Audible and/or watch his Netflix specials. His is truly a story of the immigrant dream of “making it” in America and not only making it himself but also sharing and raising his whole family up with him.

I am so glad I listened to this great autobiography on Audible and I highly recommend it!

***

About the Author

Jo Koy is a comedian, actor, writer, and podcast host who sells out arenas around the world by telling real stories about his life, his family, and finding his way in the entertainment industry. He has multiple hit comedy specials on Netflix, and his unique brand of humor has been featured on Comedy Central, The Tonight Show, and Chelsea Lately. In 2018, Jo received the “Stand-Up Comedian of the Year” award at the legendary Just for Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal, and the previous year he reached number-one on the Billboard Charts for his standup album, “Live from Seattle.” In 2019 in Honolulu, Jo broke the record for the most tickets sold by a single artist at 23,000 with his eleven sold-out shows at the Neal S. Blaisdell Concert Hall, inspiring the mayor to proclaim November 24 “Jo Koy Day.” Jo currently lives in Los Angeles with his son, Joe Jr., who inspires him to be a better performer, father, and man every single day.