Ava Callaghan
A woman working in a male-dominated field.
Organized, strong, and tenacious.
That’s how she has to be to succeed.
Hunter Owens
A loner.
He needs no one, has no ties, and his future is an unanswered question mark.
It’s all he knows.
Until the day their lives intersect.
He sees the woman she hides from the world.
She nurtures the part of him he lost long ago.
But they both agree—their connection is temporary.
They are only for now.
Can their stubborn natures allow them to bend and accept that maybe, just maybe, there is more to life than they believed?
That love can heal.
That happiness can exist.
That for now can be forever.
| Title: | Age of Ava |
| Author: | Melanie Moreland |
| Narrator(s): | John Lane Maxine Mitchell |
| Series: | Vested Interest: ABC Corp Series (Book 4) |
| Pages / Length: | 333 / 8 hours 59 minutes |
| Genre(s): | Contemporary |
| Trope(s): | Opposites Attract Temporary Relationship |
| Point of View: | First Person, Past Tense, Dual Viewpoint (H & h) |
| Narration Type: | Dual |
| Location: | Near Toronto, Canada |
| HEA: | ✔ |
| Release Date: | 26th August, 2021 |
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A delightfully good story
I’ve found I really enjoy listening to the audiobook of recent reads as you always pick up on little nuances that you hadn’t noticed – or the way a narrator reads a line can give you a different perspective to the way you originally read the line. I very much enjoyed this book and I’m very happy that the audiobook lived up to my expectations and then some.
Age of Ava is the fourth book in the Vested Interest: ABC Corp series, which is a spinoff from the original Vested Interest series. But don’t worry if you haven’t read any of the earlier books, this one stands alone and comes complete with its own couple and their own HEA.
When we first meet Ava she’s kicking some business ass – but Maxine Mitchell’s voice smooths out any feelings of harshness that I initially felt on reading. Her voice is emotive and engaging and really made me like and relate to Ava.
John Lane does a fantastic Hunter and plays him exactly as I imagined – that delightful mixture of grumpy and funny is on point. And when he calls Ava ‘little dragon’ it definitely does funny things to my inside. On occasion I wanted him to go a little slower with his speaking. Not that I couldn’t understand him – far from it – but I wanted to savour the words a little more. Still a great performance though.
“…very happy that the audiobook lived up to my expectations and then some.”
As to the actual story, Ava and Hunter meet right at the start of our story and have almost instant chemistry. Hunter is slightly older than Ava – probably about 10 years or so, I would guess – and is just in town to complete a project before moving on. In some ways, he’s Ava’s complete opposite. While she’s always stayed close to her family and revels in her strong roots, Hunter is a nomad and has no-one save his dog, Cash.
As I mentioned, the chemistry between our characters is instant and that’s a theme that continues throughout the book. The sex is a wicked delight but it’s also in the quieter times that I felt that deep connection. And in the banter. I adore some teasing and banter and Ava and Hunter do that especially well. Extra points for the bromantic banter between Ronan, Liam and Hunter, too.
Melanie Moreland always manages to make me want to live in the worlds that she creates and either know or be these characters. With this story, her writing, as always, is top-notch and I fell into the story and fell in love oh so quickly. Although you know it’s going to turn out in the end, I found myself a little teary eyed (okay, fine, I was openly weeping!) as we reach the climax and then ending of the story. The ending was believable and oh so satisfying. The couple of epilogues thereafter were the cherry on the top of the perfect sundae.
If you love Ms Moreland’s work, are looking for a romantic story of love conquering all, or just have ever felt that perhaps there isn’t that person out there that’s perfect for you – you’ll love and feel uplifted by this story. I loved it, the narration, and I hope you will, too. 5 stars from me
* I received this audiobook in exchange for my honest review *
New York Times/USA Today bestselling author Melanie Moreland, lives a happy and content life in a quiet area of Ontario with her beloved husband of twenty-seven-plus years and their rescue cat, Amber. Nothing means more to her than her friends and family, and she cherishes every moment spent with them.
While seriously addicted to coffee, and highly challenged with all things computer-related and technical, she relishes baking, cooking, and trying new recipes for people to sample. She loves to throw dinner parties, and also enjoys traveling, here and abroad, but finds coming home is always the best part of any trip.
Melanie loves stories, especially paired with a good wine, and enjoys skydiving (free falling over a fleck of dust) extreme snowboarding (falling down stairs) and piloting her own helicopter (tripping over her own feet.) She’s learned happily ever afters, even bumpy ones, are all in how you tell the story.
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Vested Interest: ABC Corp Series:
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