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Audiobook Review

Come Back For Me

By
Heidi Perks
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average rating is 4 out of 5
Performance
average rating is 4 out of 5
Overall
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Excellent, Unforgettable, Best of the nest

Very good, thoroughly enjoyed, 

Good, Solid, Enjoyed many aspects

STAR RATINGS GUIDE

Closets Open, Skeletons Everywhere.

THE BIRDICT

šŸ§” The isolated island of Evergreen is an intriguing setting for this tale of family secrets, lies and murder. With no phone service, streetlights or easy access to the mainland, itā€™s both idyllic and the ideal place for a psychological thriller.

šŸ’œ I was instantly drawn in by the catalyst of a body discovered near the childhood home of main character, Stella Harvey. In fact, Perks is fantastic at immediately creating tension with this along with the islanderā€™s mistrust of outsiders and Stellaā€™s memories of leaving Evergreen.

šŸ–¤ The main mystery is intertwined with secrets uncovered along the way, providing a steady flow of revelations before the final phenomenal twist.

šŸ’š There are times when this story is slow and there is some repetitive use of language (ā€œsnappedā€ is overused). Whatā€™s more, Stella is slightly too rigidly righteous at times. But these are all forgivable in the grand scheme.

šŸ’› Thereā€™s a little bit of gothic in this psychological thriller, bringing to mind Heathcliffā€™s isolated home, Wuthering Heights.

SQUAWKING THE TALK

šŸŽ§ Both Sally Scott and Nathalie Buscombe deliver good performances. Clear and expressive. Stella is wistful and forlorn, while Maria is pragmatic and edgier.

šŸŽ§ Itā€™s great that there were two narrators. It allows the listener to differentiate between Stella and Mariaā€™s perspectives. However, the voices chosen were slightly too similar. In fact, when I tried to use other audiobooks to determine which narrator read each character, I just couldnā€™t tell. And they were not credited according to their roles.

šŸŽ§ The chapter listings didnā€™t specify where there was a prologue and thus the chapter numbers were off by 1. They also didnā€™t separate the credits. Not a massive issue, but worth noting.

BIRDS OF A FEATHER: SIMILAR AUDIOBOOKS

I spent the first two thirds of this audiobook convinced ā€“ absolutely certain - I knew the twist. Stellaā€™s dad had a baby with Iona. Bosh. I also knew somewhere in the back of my mind that this was too simple. But oh boy. I would never have guessed the actual twist. The idea of the island being a haven for families with stolen babies is incredibly inventive, clever and, at least for me, completely unexpected. When I spoke of Stella being overly righteous, it was in respect of this. She treats the matter as straightforward, referring to buying babies, which of course they are. But there are arguments about the babies being well cared for. I think itā€™s a moral quagmire and definitely questionable, but not straightforward.
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Click For Spoilers

Come Back For Me

THE BLURB

A shocking discovery.

An island wrapped in secrets.

A tiny island community is stunned by the discovery of a long-buried body.

For Stella Harvey the news is doubly shocking. The body has been found in the garden of her childhood home - the home her family fled without explanation 25 years ago.

Now, questioning her past and desperate to unearth the truth, Stella returns to the isolated island. But she quickly finds that the community she left isnā€™t as welcoming as she remembers - and that people in it will go to any length to protect their secrets.

One thing rings true...you canā€™t bury the truth forever.
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