The Great Escape Audiobook

By: Susan Elizabeth Phillips

Narrated by: Shannon Cochran

Published by: Harper Audio 07/2012

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Instead of saying “I do” to Mr. Irresistible, Lucy Jorik hitches a ride on the back of a beat-up motorcycle with a rough looking, bad-tempered stranger who couldn’t be more foreign to her privileged existence. While the world searches for her, Lucy must search for herself, and she quickly realizes that her customary good manners are no defense against a man who’s raised rudeness to an art form. Lucy needs to toughen up – and fast.

Her great escape takes her to his rambling beach house on a Great Lakes island. Here, she hopes to find a new direction…and to unlock the secrets of this man who knows so much about herbut reveals nothing about himself. As the hot summer days unfold amid scented breezes and sudden storms, she’ll encounter a passion that could change her life forever.

 You always expect greatness from an author that you know most certainly can achieve it, but when you feel their latest wasn’t amazing, you can’t help but to feel a little bit disappointed. Having said that, and trying not to compare this novel to some of Ms. Phillips’  previous books,  which are among my favorite contemporary romances.  I  have to say;  this really wasn’t as bad as I expected. After reading a few unfavorable reviews, I had no plans to listen to Ms. Phillips latest release, and  seventh entry to her  Wynette, Texas series, but when I  remembered  how much I have enjoyed just about every single novel she has written,  I thought  that perhaps the audio version would elevate this entry and turn it into a better experience.

Here, we get to follow Lucy and the events that transpired after she decided to leave the most eligible bachelor and the perfect man at the altar. Her escape takes her right into the hands of Panda (Patrick) a  biker that happens to be a bodyguard hired by her parents for her protection. Panda is everything Ted, her ex-fiance is not, and this is just what Lucy needs to help her to discover herself, and become the person she has always wanted to be;  care free, impulsive and sometimes careless.  She’s tired of being the perfect girl, and this man, Panda, might just be the ticket.

But Panda is a damaged man, and  he’s not ready for love – this is usually right up my alley, however; the resistance  he puts against admitting his feeling for Lucy it’s a bit too long, which is fine, but I never felt any sexual tension, therefore, I didn’t really feel a great chemistry between them,I didn’t feel the fire and the connection. Despite all that, I still enjoyed her writing, and she still has the ability to pull me into the drama and the setting.

I really enjoyed the sub- plots and  secondary characters, the dialogue still the same as it has always been; sharp, humorous, realistic, and downright entertaining. By no means is this one of my favorite contemporary romances, I can say that I didn’t have my share of  “rolling eyes”  moments; nevertheless, I found it better than some of my latest contemporary romance listens. So, maybe if you don’t go into the story with high expectations as I did, you might also find yourself really enjoying it, after all, if you are a fan of Ms. Phillips you know that her average could be better than some others best.

If you never had the pleasure to experience one of S.E.P’s novels, this is definitely not the place to start, I would highly recommend The Chicago Stars series, where just about every book is a gem.

3.82  ·  rating details  ·  616 ratings  ·  158 reviews on Goodreas

The Author

Narration   

All in all, this was an OK performance, it didn’t take away from my enjoyment, but it didn’t enhance it either. Do I still recommend it? Yes, if you are a die-hard fan of Susan Elizabeth Phillips like yours truly.

Voices behind the books

Shannon Cochran