You all know that audiobooks are basically my favorite thing ever. I started listening to them about 2 years ago and it has completely changed my reading! If you are an audiobook fan, you definitely know who Julia Whelan is, and well, she’s the best!

And NOW, she’s written us an ode to audiobooks. It felt like a bit of an inside track for super fans. THANK YOU FOR LISTENING is her sophomore book as an author and it is smart, witty, romantic, heartfelt, and full of banter! She even manages to slip in a note about her male voice being so darn good 🥵 I adored the texting/email exchanges. I loved the friends, family, and especially Nick. Oh my. He was a damn dream!

Obviously, you should listen if able, as Whelan is perfection in what I would imagine was a difficult narration of her own making - multiple characters with multiple voices and so many emotions. But, if you aren’t an audiobook fan - you should still read it! Such a great story of acceptance and love of yourself, your family, as well as romantic love 💕

Is Julia thanking us for listening in the very best way?? Maybe! And it’s our pleasure!!

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for the advanced digital copy for my honest review.

First off, bravo! This was such a fun and exciting read and was very eye opening to the world of audio books for me. I have just started listening to them this past year, so it was very interesting to read a book written by an audio book narrator, and to get a little inside peek into how it all comes together. I also love how aware this author is in the use of tropes, and how the characters poke and play out their quips in trope.

Which brings me to the deliciously witty banter between the two main characters, Sewanee and Brock McNight. Their back and forth texts/emails were hilarious, and such a great addition to their story of getting to know one another while still maintaining their anonymity as they narrate the podcast story together (but not together). I also believe Sewanee to be a very relatable character. As we learn more of her back story and her feelings of failure, jealousy, and of never being enough, she is someone we can easily connect with on a much deeper level.

5/5 stars for Thank You for Listening

Julia Whelan has proven herself time and time over again as an extremely talented narrator and powerful storyteller. So it’s truly no surprise that her latest novel is an absolute gem!!

Sewanee is an audiobook narrator who is navigating life with a promising new work project, a famous best friend, an absentee father, a mother who lives abroad, a beloved grandma whose struggling with aging + memory loss, and a traumatic accident 8 years ago that left her forever changed. Throw in a night with a handsome stranger she can’t forget and Sewanee has A LOT going on. Filled with heart and humor, this story simultaneously made me laugh out loud and feel all the feels.

I absolutely loved the sharp, quick and witty banter- the chemistry between the love interests practically sizzled off the page while the banter between the main friend characters was hilarious and heartwarming. I enjoyed the positive body image + disability representation, the analysis of romance tropes, the exploration into audiobook narrating as a profession and the strong family and friendship relationships that grounded the story. There were a few twists as well, some I totally knew were coming and some unexpected, that made this book sparkle.

My only complaint is the story felt a little lengthy at times where I wished it could have wrapped up in a more succinct way.

Thank you so much to Avon and Netgalley for my copy.

Thank You for Listening by Julia Whelan - ARC Review (audio and e-book)

Julia Whelan is hands down my favorite audiobook narrator (sorry everyone else!), so I was thrilled to see that she had an upcoming release of her own. While this is not Whelan's first novel (I plan to listen to My Oxford Year soon), it's the first for me.

Thank You for Listening tells the story of Sewanee Chester, former actress turned audiobook narrator after a tragic accident. While not quite the career path she envisioned, Sewanee finds solace and success in the audiobooth, so much so that she's asked to co-narrate an acclaimed and recently deceased romance novelist's final book. While Sewanee had given up on the romance genre (afterall, she doesn't believe in "Happily Ever After" and will literally shout that during a crowded conference), the money that it will bring can provide the necessary care for her beloved ailing grandmother. And while her book conference is off to a bumpy start (see: shouting about HEA to a sea of unruly romance fans), Sewanee is swept away in an uncharacteristic one night stand that's left her wondering if someone could see past her physical insecurities.

As she begins to work on narrating the romance novel (under a pseudonym, of course), a flirty email and text exchange ensues with co-narrator and mystical, dreamy voice of Brock McNight. As conversations and innuendos escalate, Sewanee wonders if they could actually have something outside the safety of their sound booths and pseudonyms.

Sewanee is relatable and authentic in her flaws of jealousy, skepticism, fear of rejection and a reluctance to accept love.

Whelan's writing is filled with fun, wit, and charm, and of course her narration was fantastic. Her male voice makes me swoon. It was fun to both listen and read, and I wound up reading it entirely through and then listening so I was able to anticipate certain moments and actually hear them play out.

I’m hooked on Julia Whelan, and I highly recommend Thank You for Listening which comes out on August 2.

Julia Whelan is one of my favorite audio book narrators and when I saw she had a new book coming out I knew I wanted to read it! This book follows Sewanee who once was an actress but after an accident became an audio book narrator instead. Sewanee started out as a romance narrator but has since left that behind and refuses to go back to it but when the author who gave her her first chance passes away and gives her an offer she may not be able to refuse, Sewanee must make a choice she was not ready for. To make things more interesting the male narrator for this new offer is the famous Brock McKnight who has been delighting romance listeners for years! I loved everything about this novel and I could not put it down. Julia narrates this one and it is perfect in my opinion! Sewanee was such a fun character to read and I loved the journey she went on in this book! Thank you Avon and LibroFM for my gifted copies for review! Be sure to pick this one up when it comes out August 2nd 2022.

3.5 stars! Julia Whelan is kind of the queen of audiobooks, so I was interested to read this and get her perspective on the industry. We definitely get a cool peek behind the curtain into the audiobook world and its issues and I enjoyed the premise of this book. I am really interested in the surge of books that are publishing-adjacent and their meta-ness, in romance in particular. This book is very self-aware of its tropes and its setups which is fun to read. There are some fun epistolary bits and tons of tropes, and the writing is quick and funny in lots of parts!

That said, this book has so much happening. There are so many different storylines and side characters-- Adaku and Sewanee's journey through acting, Sewanee and her grandma, Blah Blah (I'm sorry but what are these names), Sewanee and her concern about Mark selling the studio, Sewanee and her father's estranged relationship; it kind of made it hard to focus on the romance aspect. The pacing was kind of all over the place and they shoved most of the romance story in the last third of the book, which made it feel really rushed even though the book was far longer than I think any romance should be. I didn't totally feel the chemistry and things got a little Hallmark=y at the end.

Overall I think this book will really work for a lot of people, I just wish it had been edited down a bit.

“Eventually, don't know when, but eventually? You’re gonna have to stop thinking you’re nothing more than the damaged version of yourself.”

I don’t know where to begin…I was blown away by this one! I love books about books, and even though I don’t listen to audiobooks, I loved the behind the scenes look at how they’re made. I had no idea the author is actually an audiobook narrator and I will definitely be listening to this narration now because how can I not?!

Sewanee Chester always dreamed of being an actress. Right as her career was starting to take off, a terrible accident caused her to lose an eye and she thought her life was over. But she picked herself up and pursued a very successful career narrating audiobooks. When one of her favorite authors' last requests is for her to narrate her newest romance novel, she immediately agrees. She’s paired up with Brock McKnight, another successful but elusive audiobook narrator and the two form an unlikely friendship as they bond over how much they dislike the romance genre.

I binged this in one night because I just could not put it down! The dialogue between Seawanee and Brock is unmatched. Their banter, bickering and humorous exchanges had me all in my feels. The story lovingly pokes fun at romance tropes and HEA and includes a debate about women’s fiction vs. romance, which is amazing because it’s exactly what this book is!

“It feels like we fell out of a romance tree and hit every trope on the way down.”

While this story is definitely a rom com, it’s also way more than that. It deals with loss, second chances and believing in yourself. It’s full of flawed characters with intense backstories and sizzling chemistry, and it tastefully handles intense topics while also being smart, entertaining, seductive, emotional and funny. It’s a story about moving forward after tragedy and realizing that your life can still be beautiful even if it doesn’t turn out exactly how you envisioned it. It’s heartwarming and a little sad but ultimately delivers a HEA.

I fell in love with Sewanee and was rooting for her to get HEA, even as she tried to sabotage her chances for one. She was so jaded about life and love after her accident and Brock was the breath of fresh air she needed. And Brock! My goodness! Just the accent alone could have killed me. He was such an interesting, well developed character and I loved how he saw Sewanee’s beauty, even when she couldn’t. *SWOON*

Thank you so much to Avon and NetGalley for the chance to read and review this one early. Read if you love one night stands, mistaken identity, great disability rep, an epistolary format, and books about books! I think fans of Book Lovers will really like this one. Thank You For Listening hits shelves on August 2nd.

What a good book. Perfect summer read, and a romance with "HEA" (happily ever after), but not typically so. Sewanee and her best friend always wanted to be actresses. A simple, tragic mistake shreds Sewanee's dream, but she manages to piece her life back together with loving support from her traveling mother, Adaku, her best friend and her beloved aging Grandmother, as well as a successful career reading audiobooks. Fate brings her toward her destiny one night with a chance romantic encounter with a stranger. Eventually Sewanee discovers the truth of who he is and the ties that brought them together.

The characters are flawed and have to come to terms with some pretty tough circumstances, yet they are likeable and fully dimensional. It's not a book with simple solutions or easy choices, and as a reader I found myself invested in the ultimate ending.

This book is the book I didn’t know I needed in my life. Heartwarming, laugh out loud funny, and tears all in one book.
I’ve just recently started enjoying audio books and this made me want to dive into them even more. I’ll be purchasing this on audio as well!
Here’s to hoping for more books from Julia!

"Thank You for Listening" (h/t to NetGalley for the ARC) is one of the best books I've read this year and was swiftly added to my list of comfort reads (and listens).

Narration: masterful. I once saw a review that said, "Julia Whelan could narrate the phone book and I'd listen." This is accurate.

The story itself is everything a great book ought to be: funny, heartwarming, a little sad, a lot of life (and all the bullsh*t that comes with being an adult.), love, friendship, growth.

Frankly, I think you're doing yourself a disservice if you don't listen to the audio but, that said, the book itself is perfectly wonderful.

”I wanted you to throw me a life preserver because I didn’t want to save myself. I didn’t want to learn how to swim.”

Thank You for Listening is a rom-com from the amazing Julia Whelan. You may recognize her voice from some of your favorite audiobooks but she’s now an author as well.

How much of the author’s life made it into the novel? Main character is a former actress who transitioned into audiobooks after an accident that seemingly ended her on stage career. I know Whelan is both an audiobook narrator and a lifelong actor, but I’m thinking that is where the similarities end. In this novel, the characters seemingly run through several different romance tropes, starting with being snowed in.

“She’d protested halfheartedly, but the truth was Adaku’s instincts always bordered on clairvoyance. She knew what Sewanee needed before she did. For reasons she hadn’t quite parsed, Sewanee wanted to be something more tonight, something different, something slightly less . . . her.”

This is a novel about love, second chances, and regrets. I loved all the discussion of the art of book narration, especially finding the character’s motivation. I loved Sewanee directing her bestie’s screen test. And I loved the heart of this story. Even side characters had a backstory and were developed. Some of it was needed for plot development but much of it helped to set the scene in a way I’ve not often read. This is the best example of a screenwriter writing a novel.

I loved My Oxford Year but this one may be even better.

Julia Whelan is one of my favorite audiobook authors so what a delight to read/listen to this book. I loved the “inside baseball” stuff about audiobooks. However, I felt like this couple wasn’t really that well suited for one another. They spent a lot of time upset with one another.

This book was an absolute pleasure!

Actress Sewanee Chester—Swan, for short—was on the fast track to becoming a household name when an accident left her face permanently scarred. Feeling like the accident has destroyed her acting career, Swan pulls herself out of the limelight, losing sight of herself in the process. She turns to audiobook narration, where she garners quite the following. She's offered an incredible contract to narrate a project alongside another very well-known narrator, and they soon begin emailing back and forth about their work. Work turns to friendship turns into maybe something more... but it's all via screen.

This book was warm and touching and such a fun look into Julia Whelan's own world as an audiobook narrator. All the characters were so well thought-out and believable. Would give it 4.5/5. Definitely recommend, especially if you liked her other book, My Oxford Year!

Format - E ARC (Netgalley)

Rating- ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Spice- 🌶

Series- N/A

Troupes- hookup, secret identity, audiobooks, disability

CW-

Oh my God, how is this book one of the most engaging things I’ve read all year?? I’ll be honest I had low expectations of this book going in it had been on my netgalley shelf for a while and I with it’s release coming up I decided to finally read it. And I some how spent an entire day immersed in Whelan’s storytelling and this scared and scarred weirdo of a character Sewanee.

Then I had to go to work and I still could not put this book down reading every chance I could get while running quick changes for this giant musical. When I say this book was un put downable it is literal.

And y’all there is no explicit sex in it. Like at all, some age day dreamy remembering but no on page banging.

So I’ll ask again how did Whelan with this, only her second book make me unable to stop thinking and reading this damn story?

I say it’s witch craft, but but more likely it’s her work smithing, plot pacing, character development and chapter construction. It was the mysteries and secrets, the peek into the world of audiobooks and how they are made, its was the journey we go on with Sewanee as she finally comes to terms with her life and how she’s going to move forward into her future. Along the way we pick up some excellent side characters and we get a Nick.

Nick with his accent and his flaws and his absolute adoration of Sewanee even when she was spiraling and pushing him away.

I loved this book, I will be getting myself a paperback copy of this book and I will be marking and tabbing it all up! I’m so excited for this book to be released into the wild on August 1!

Oh man, y’all. I wanted to love this. I was rooting so hard for Julia Whalen. And for the first half I thought it might be my new favorite romance. It was on the fast track to 5⭐️. Then, it fizzled, and completely fell apart for me. Womp. Womp.

What I DID love:
- All the characters. Every single one of them
- The premise and the obvious similarities to the author
- The banter and wit
- The fact it made fun of romances but also embraced them fully and loved them for what they are.
- A lot of the side plots like her relationship with her grandmother and her BFF were sweet and fun
- Swan’s ultimate journey career-wise

This plot just lost me guys. I didn’t get it. And this one went from a page turner to one I just wasn’t that excited about.

I think some of you will love this. I’m not, NOT recommending it. But it didn’t work for me.

Thank You For Listening is as close to perfect as a romance gets for me. I'm a romance curmudgeon, so picking up this book was a gamble. But it paid off. The story, set in the world of audiobook recording, is intellectually satisfying and original. Readers who enjoy listening to books will enjoy learning the ins and outs of their production.

Thank You For Listening's characters are engaging and multidimensional, each with enough baggage to carry a good novel. At the same time, the female lead is not a swooning damsel in distress trope (something I detest about some romance novels). Because both lead characters work in the romance novel industry, plenty of self-reflection also adds interest. I especially appreciated the ongoing discussion about HEA endings (happily ever after).

So, even if romance is not your typical genre, if you are looking for a fun, rewarding novel with a healthy dose of humanity, this book is well worth the investment.

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you for Listening by Julia Whelan is the story of Sewanee Chester, a woman who wanted to act, but lost an eye in a horrific accident and now narrates books for a living. She's never quite accepted the changes to her life and dreams, but continues on, doing what she has to do to make it. When she's offered a job to do a romance novel, but has to do it with Brock McKnight, the secretive narrator of all things romance, she hesitates as she hates doing romance titles, but eventually gives in. Her journey of self discovery is the best part of this novel!

Thank you to the author,Avon and Harper Voyager, and Netgalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

Julia Whelan is one of my favorite narrators so it came as no surprise that she wrote a rom com about two narrators and audiobooks. With a wide range of characters and only Julia herself narrating 𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗞 𝗬𝗢𝗨 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗟𝗜𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗡𝗜𝗡𝗚, I can only imagine how amazing the audiobook is.

This book is part quirky rom com about happily ever endings and part women's fiction tackling loss, second chances, and accepting yourself as you are. The inside glimpse of the world of narration is a nice bonus, especially the narrating tips!

Overall, I enjoyed the book with the fun banter, great chemistry, and an unique premise. The timeline and pace jumped around a bit, but my biggest pet peeve were the character name choices. The main character is named Sewanee (pronounced Swan-knee, not what I expected) with a nickname of Swan. The worst was the Blah Blah nickname for her grandma. I get she was unable to say Barbara when younger; yet, everytime I read Blah Blah, I cringed. I had no doubt in my mind that Sewanee loved her grandma, but the nickname was not cute.

Thank you to @randomhouse and @netgalley for this gifted copy. All opinions are mine. 3.5 rounded to 4.

I have been a huge fan of Julia Whelan's narration for years. She has an uncanny ability to make a story feel so deeply present like its warmth is enveloping you. Thank You for Listening felt like this: cozy, kind, a little sharp in the best way, and totally present. I loved the way this story was sad and real and hopelessly romantic. I adored the way this was a love story in so many ways, between friends, family, art, and of course, between two like-minded but completely different people with chemistry off the charts. I loved loved loved this book.

This book just might be perfection. Julia Whelan is so amazingly talented that her skills as an audiobook narrator and her writing combine in this book to create a listener's happy place. The story set in a world of audiobook narration combines what we all know and love about romance with depth of characters, real life inner struggles as well as personal issues that affect the choices we make and how we view ourselves.

A one night stand sets the course of Sewanee's personal live over the span of months. As we watch/listen to her interact with her friends, her co workers and her family, we fall deeply in love with this world and these people. I have listened to Julia read for many books, but this is my first experience with her writing. It definitely won't be the last.

If I have forced you to read Katherine Center in the past year, you need this one, too.