Tag Archives: Sweet Home

Audiobook Review: Sweet Soul by Tillie Cole

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Sweet Soul by Tillie Cole

Sweet Soul by Tillie Cole
Series: Sweet Home #4 (full reading order below)
Audiobook Publication Date: October 4th 2016
Length: 11 hours and 48 minutes
Narrated by: Cassandra Morris & Thomas Fawley
Links: Audible • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
Source: I received an audiobook in exchange for an honest review

From the USA Today best-selling Sweet Home Series comes Sweet Soul, a heart-wrenching story of love in its purest form.

One shy lost soul. One silent lonely heart. One love to save them both.

Life has never been easy for 20-year-old Levi Carillo. The youngest of the Carillo boys, Levi is nothing like his older brothers. He isn’t dark in looks or intimidating to everyone he meets. In fact he’s quite the opposite. Haunted by a crippling shyness and the tragic events of his past, Levi spends his days with his head buried in his books or training hard for his college football team. Too timid to talk to girls, Levi stays as far away as possible and completely on his own…until he saves the life of a troubled pretty blonde – a troubled pretty blonde who might just be the exception to his rule.

Elsie Hall is homeless. Or at least that’s all anyone ever sees. Every day is a fight for survival on the cold streets of Seattle, every day a struggle to find food and keep warm. Alone in life – a life that’s dangerous and cruel – her will to keep going is an ever-losing battle. In her world of silence, Elsie has given up hope that her life will contain anything but constant heartache and pain…until the beautiful boy she has severely wronged comes to her rescue at precisely the right time.

As much as I love Tillie Cole’s Hades Hangmen series and her Scarred Souls series, the Sweet Home series has not been my thing – until now. I adored Levi and Elsie’s story! It is definitely my favorite of the series. It’s sweet, charming, heartbreaking – I really enjoyed listening to Sweet Soul. This is the first audiobook in the series to have dual narration, which is my favorite type of narration. Thomas Fawley’s sweet Southern accent for Levi totally stole my heart, and while Cassandra Morris’ voice is a little too girly, I got used to it in no time. I would highly recommend giving the audiobook of Sweet Soul if you love listening to heart-wrenching, sweet, emotional romances!

Levi is the youngest, the baby of the Carillo brothers, and he’s… different from his brothers Axel and Austin. They’re tatted, badass men while Levi is the shy boy with the kind soul. He’s the one with the pure heart, but the death of his mother and having to deal with a gang when he was young have left him lost and very introverted. Even though he’s twenty and a successful football player in college, he’s never gone out with a girl, let alone touched or kissed one. He’s never wanted to get to know a girl anyway, until he meets a homeless girl who tugs at his heartstrings like no other.

Elsie’s life has not been kind to her. Her mother died when Elsie was young, so she was sent to a foster home where she was severely bullied for the way her voice sounds because she’s partially deaf. Because of the bullying, she never speaks, and she’s been living on the streets since she left the foster home. This is where she meets Levi, a boy with a kindness in his heart she never knew existed in the world. These two complicated, heartbroken souls find each other, form a connection through their tragic pasts, and end up saving each other. I loved the way the romance grew so genuinely – I could feel the intensity of their connection while listening to this. Tillie Cole is an author who expresses love in her books so well, and the love between Elsie and Levi was simply wonderful to hear.

My heart grew so invested in Levi and Elsie’s characters – the things these two went through and continue to go through completely broke my heart, and yet their beautiful romance mended it back together. Sweet Soul is very emotional; it almost made me tear up at some points, and yet by the end of it, it’ll leave with a happy heart and a smile on your face. It is definitely a must read/listen whether you love the series or not. Thomas Fawley and Cassandra Morris’ narrations were spot on, and I’d definitely listen to them again (hopefully as dual narrators, because I looove audiobooks that way). Even though this can be read as a standalone, I highly recommend going through the series in order to get the full effect of Levi’s story.

SWEET SOUL is now available on Audible: http://amzn.to/2fPBP8N

4 hearts
lacey

Reading Order: Sweet Home series

Sweet Home by Tillie Cole Sweet Rome by Tillie Cole
Sweet Fall by Tillie Cole Sweet Hope by Tillie Cole Sweet Soul by Tillie Cole

#1 ~ Sweet Home: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#1.5 ~ Sweet Rome: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ Sweet Fall: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3 ~ Sweet Hope: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#4 ~ Sweet Soul: Book Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads

Here’s an audio excerpt from Sweet Soul!

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Audiobook Review: Sweet Hope by Tillie Cole

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Sweet Hope by Tillie Cole

Sweet Hope by Tillie Cole
Series: Sweet Home #3 (full reading order below)
Audiobook Publication Date: October 4th 2016
Length: 11 hours and 3 minutes
Narrated by: Tessa Ellory
Links: Audible • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
Source: I received an audiobook in exchange for an honest review

My name is Ally Prince and I’ve always been unlucky in love. I don’t know why, I just always… have.

When all of my best friends were falling for their soul mates in College, I was left behind. I was Ally, the pretty cousin of superstar quarterback, Romeo Prince. I was Ally, the best friend to the most amazing group of girls I’ve ever known—a title I loved, but one I became tired of ‘just’ being. And I was Ally, the one on which they could all rely.

But to me, I was Ally, the girl with the heart no one had claimed… And I was, Ally, the girl, who underneath it all, was heart-breakingly lonely.

I LOVE love; the thought of it, the nervous excitement of falling for Mr. Right, the desire of someone becoming my entire world… of me becoming theirs. I’ve always wanted passion, heart-stopping, epic, life-changing romance… I’ve always wanted the fairytale… I’ve always wanted it all.

It just never seemed like I would get it.

For the past few years I’ve thrown myself into my career as a museum curator. I’m the best of the best, the person every museum wants to hire, so when an opportunity came up to move to Seattle, I jumped at the chance. My cousin and my best friend lived in Seattle and I needed a change. I needed a new beginning.

I wasn’t expecting to meet anyone in the Emerald City. I wasn’t expecting to work closely with the reclusive new sculptor my all-important gallery design was centered around. And I certainly wasn’t expecting to fall for him… heart-stopping, epic, life-changing love…

My real life fairytale come true.

But, like in every fairytale, there’s a villain, a dark and tortured soul… I just didn’t know that the villain and the hero in my story would end up being one and the same.

Back when I first read Sweet Hope, I didn’t quite love it like I’d hoped, but listening to it as an audiobook made the experience so much better!! This usually happens for me when I reread a book by listening to its audiobook, so I’m not surprised. I mainly have the fantastic narrator, Tessa Ellory, to thank for her wonderful portrayal of Ally. I thought I liked the previous narrator’s voice, but Tessa Ellory was perfect for Sweet Hope!

If you were a fan of the previous books in the Sweet Home series, you’ll definitely want to pick up Sweet Hope. It’s wrought with the intense emotions and romantic thrills that Tillie Cole is great at writing. Sometimes things get a little cheesy, but if you can handle the sweetness, then I’m sure you’ll be able to enjoy Sweet Hope.

Art curator Ally Prince, Rome’s cousin, has just been given the position of a lifetime working with her favorite contemporary sculptor, the mysterious Elpidio. She is passionate about art, most of all his works, so to say she’s excited to take part in showcasing his art is an understatement. But when she meets Elpi, what she doesn’t expect is to fall for the gorgeous, tortured man who pulls at her heart. He has a dark, painful past that keeps his heart walled up, but Ally is determined to bring him the light that he’s been missing in his life.

The cheese is real in this audiobook, but it’s not too cringeworthy so I was able to look past it. Plus, I was totally hooked onto the story thanks to the wonderful narration. Tessa Ellory’s voice is so sweet and perfect for Ally. There’s a handful of angsty emotions between Ally and Elpi, which I enjoyed. Even though each book in the Sweet Home series can be a standalone, if you’re looking to go into Sweet Hope, I’d definitely recommend listening (or reading) Sweet Fall first.

SWEET HOPE is now available on Audible: http://amzn.to/2eJ1zAQ

4 hearts
lacey

Reading Order: Sweet Home series

Sweet Home by Tillie Cole Sweet Rome by Tillie Cole
Sweet Fall by Tillie Cole Sweet Hope by Tillie Cole Sweet Soul by Tillie Cole

#1 ~ Sweet Home: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#1.5 ~ Sweet Rome: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ Sweet Fall: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3 ~ Sweet Hope: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#4 ~ Sweet Soul: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads

Here’s an audio excerpt from Sweet Hope!

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Audiobook Review: Sweet Fall by Tillie Cole

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Sweet Fall by Tillie Cole

Sweet Fall by Tillie Cole
Series: Sweet Home #2 (full reading order below)
Audiobook Publication Date: October 4th 2016
Length: 10 hours and 40 minutes
Narrated by: Stephanie Bentley
Links: Audible • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
Source: I received an audiobook in exchange for an honest review

From the USA Today best-selling Sweet Home series, comes Sweet Fall; a tale of heartache, beating the odds, and finding strength in the most unlikeliest of places.

We all have secrets.

Secrets well buried.

Until we find the one soul who makes the burden of such secrets just that little bit easier to bear.

Lexington “Lexi” Hart is a senior at the University of Alabama. Surrounded by her best friends, her loving family, and having fulfilled her life-long dream of making the Crimson Tide cheer squad, everything is going exactly as she always dreamed it would. But beneath her happy exterior, demons lurk, threatening to jeopardize everything Lexi has worked to achieve.

When events in her life become too much to cope with, Lexi finds herself spiraling down into the realm of her biggest fear. Lexi falls hard, victim once again to the only thing that can destroy her and, on the way, finds herself falling straight into the dangerous tattooed arms of a guy from the wrong side of the tracks.

Austin Carillo, starting Wide Receiver for the Alabama Crimson Tide, must get picked in this year’s NFL draft. He needs it. His brothers need it. Most importantly, his mother desperately needs it. Brought up in a world where the poor are forgotten, the sick are left to fend for themselves, and no hero miraculously appears to pull you out of hell, Austin had no other choice but to make a living on the wrong side of the law – until football offered Austin the break to get his life back on track.

But when a family tragedy drags him back into the clutches of the gang he believed he had left far behind, Austin finds himself falling. Falling back into criminal ways and falling deep into a suffocating darkness. Until a troubled yet kindred spirit stumbles across his path, where Austin quickly finds he is falling for a young woman – a young woman who might just have the power to save him from his worst enemy: himself.

Can two troubled souls find a lasting peace together? Or will they finally succumb to the demons threatening to destroy them?

Tillie Cole knows how to write intense, emotional romances with broken characters. While I didn’t love Sweet Fall, it was an experience listening to this audiobook. If you were a fan of the previous books in the Sweet Home series, you’ll definitely want to pick up Sweet Fall. The story has a similar vibe to Molly and Rome’s, if a little darker, and it’s got that unique NA college feel that Tillie Cole writes. Plus, the narrator, Stephanie Bentley, is my favorite so far of the series!

Lexi Hart and Austin Carillo appear to have the perfect college lives, but beneath the surface is something much more dark and painful. Lexi has been battling her eating disorder, which nearly cost her her life, for years, and just when she thought she’d made it, the voice in her head telling her she’s pathetic and worthless rises up again. Austin is the wide receiver for the Crimson Tide, but he’s mainly doing football for his family. His mother is on her deathbed and his brothers have been picked up by a dangerous gang, and he needs to be picked up by the NFL to save them. Lexi and Austin are hanging on by a thread, but by some miracle, they manage to find and lean on each other. They find solace in each other but can they have a lasting relationship when both are fighting demons in their heads?

This was not the easiest book to listen to, but I was definitely hooked onto Austin and Lexi’s story. I felt for their pain and the struggles that they go through. While I couldn’t connect that well, my heart went out to these characters. It gets a little depressing at times, which is not my thing, and Austin’s story involving the gang got frustrating at times, which is why I can’t give this a higher rating. I will say that the narration was perfect – it was my first time listening to Stephanie Bentley but it definitely won’t be my last! She did a fantastic job at narrating and I had no problems with her Southern accent.

Angsty, romantic, and intense, Sweet Fall isn’t for the light-hearted listeners, but if you’ve enjoyed Tillie Cole’s other books, then you’ll probably enjoy Sweet Fall too.

SWEET FALL is now available on Audible: http://amzn.to/2eAHrhe

3 hearts
lacey

Reading Order: Sweet Home series

Sweet Home by Tillie Cole Sweet Rome by Tillie Cole
Sweet Fall by Tillie Cole Sweet Hope by Tillie Cole Sweet Soul by Tillie Cole

#1 ~ Sweet Home: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#1.5 ~ Sweet Rome: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ Sweet Fall: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3 ~ Sweet Hope: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#4 ~ Sweet Soul: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads

Here’s an audio excerpt from Sweet Fall!

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Audiobook Review: Sweet Rome by Tillie Cole

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Sweet Rome by Tillie Cole

Sweet Rome by Tillie Cole
Series: Sweet Home #1.5 (full reading order below)
Audiobook Publication Date: October 4th 2016
Length: 12 hours
Narrated by: David Radford
Links: Audible • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
Source: I received an audiobook in exchange for an honest review

You met Romeo Prince in the Amazon and USA Today best-selling novel Sweet Home. Now hear the story from his lips: unbarred, uncensored, and raw to the bone.

It makes me laugh when I hear folks think Molly and I rushed into things too fast, spouting that we couldn’t possibly have felt what we did for each other in such a short space of time. I say, how the hell would they know? We made it, didn’t we? She became my whole life, didn’t she? And as for my folks not being real, being true? Tell that to me aged 10, 11, 12 – damn, all my bastard life – when I was never enough, when I was beaten until I bled for being too good at football and not being everything they’d dreamed: the perfectly dutiful son. Tell that to thousands of kids around the world getting wailed on by asshole parents for whatever stupid reason; tell them evil doesn’t exist in their eyes.

F–k Romeo and Juliet. This is the story of me and my girl, from my lips. No mushy sentiment, no cheese, just the plain, hard truth, and, because I’m feeling generous, I’m going to let you in on more of our story, too.

Sweet Rome is a new adult companion novel to Sweet Home. It contains adult content, sexual situations, and mature topics. Suited for ages 18 and up.

If you were a fan of Sweet Home and ever wondered what Rome was thinking throughout the novel, then Sweet Rome is perfect for you! I do enjoy getting the male POV in my romances, so Sweet Rome was a must listen for me. I love getting inside the hero’s head and experiencing how he falls in love with the heroine, and Tillie Cole gave me exactly that in this audiobook.

As you know from Sweet Home, the heroine, Molly Shakespeare moves from England to the University of Alabama to complete her Master’s. She’s incredibly smart, but her social skills aren’t exactly the best. She keeps to herself, until one day she can’t – Romeo Prince storms into her life and turns it upside down and for the better. The quarterback and heir to an oil fortune, Rome sweeps Molly off her feet in a whirlwind romance. He’s intense, sexy, alpha – and there is no one but Molly for him.

I really enjoyed getting to know Rome’s side of things, and I appreciated that his book wasn’t a full recap of what happened in Sweet Home. There are new scenes that we never saw in the first book, which made listening to Sweet Rome all the more enjoyable. David Radford is a new-to-me narrator, but he did a fantastic job with the Southern accents in this audiobook. I’ve listened to accents that sound cringeworthy, and thankfully his wasn’t. I would definitely listen to more of his narrations!

If you like opposites-attract romances, especially those where the popular quarterback falls for the quiet nerd, then you’ll probably enjoy Sweet Home and Sweet Rome. The two go hand-in-hand, and I’d say it’s worth it to get both stories for the different perspectives of the main characters if you enjoyed the first book. Right now, I’m excited to listen to the rest of the series in audio!

SWEET ROME is now available on Audible: http://amzn.to/2fBhJu2

3 hearts
lacey

Reading Order: Sweet Home series

Sweet Home by Tillie Cole Sweet Rome by Tillie Cole
Sweet Fall by Tillie Cole Sweet Hope by Tillie Cole Sweet Soul by Tillie Cole

#1 ~ Sweet Home: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#1.5 ~ Sweet Rome: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ Sweet Fall: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3 ~ Sweet Hope: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#4 ~ Sweet Soul: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads

Here’s an audio excerpt from Sweet Rome!

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Audiobook Review: Sweet Home by Tillie Cole

Posted in 3 hearts, Reviews by

Sweet Home by Tillie Cole

Sweet Home by Tillie Cole
Series: Sweet Home #1 (full reading order below)
Audiobook Publication Date: October 4th 2016
Length: 10 hours and 9 minutes
Narrated by: Anna Parker-Naples
Links: Audible • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
Source: I received an audiobook in exchange for an honest review

At age twenty, Molly Shakespeare knows a lot. She knows Descartes and Kant. She knows academia and Oxford. She knows that the people who love you leave you. She knows how to be alone.

But when Molly leaves England’s grey skies behind to start a new life at the University of Alabama, she finds that she has a lot to learn—she didn’t know a summer could be so hot, she didn’t know students could be so intimidating, and she certainly didn’t know just how much the folks of Alabama love their football.

When a chance encounter with notorious star quarterback, Romeo Prince, leaves her unable to think of anything but his chocolate-brown eyes, dirty-blond hair and perfect physique, Molly soon realises that her quiet, solitary life is about to dramatically change forever…

If you love new adult sports romances and audiobooks, you definitely need to pick up Sweet Home! I’ll admit, the first time I read this book, I wasn’t the biggest fan, but listening to it as an audiobook has made me enjoy it a little more (which is what usually happens with a good narrator). If you like opposites-attract romances, especially those where the popular quarterback falls for the quiet nerd, then you’ll probably enjoy Sweet Home.

Molly Shakespeare moved from England to the University of Alabama to complete her Master’s. She’s incredibly smart, but her social skills aren’t exactly the best. She keeps to herself, until one day she can’t – Romeo Prince storms into her life and turns it upside down and for the better. The quarterback and heir to an oil fortune, Rome sweeps Molly off her feet in a whirlwind romance. He’s intense, sexy, alpha – and there is no one but Molly for him. But family pressures have him locked in a cage, and they definitely don’t want to him end up with someone who isn’t of the same wealth and status. Can Molly and Rome find a way to be together, or will Rome’s family find a way to tear them apart?

I love romances where the main characters are IT for each other, and I felt this was very much the case in Sweet Home. Rome goes a little over-the-top with his alpha tendencies and Molly caves too easily, but if you don’t mind that, then you’ll most likely enjoy this audiobook. It’s very romantic (Rome can be seriously sweet sometimes) with a good dose of steam. Anna Parker-Naples was a great narrator, given that there were different accents for her to voice. The Southern accent wasn’t too cringeworthy, which I consider a plus. Even though it wasn’t a complete win for me, Sweet Home was a great listen that fans of the author and audiobook lovers should still give a try. I’m looking forward to listening to the rest of the series in audio!

SWEET HOME is now available on Audible: http://amzn.to/2eAFoJT

3 hearts
lacey

Reading Order: Sweet Home series

Sweet Home by Tillie Cole Sweet Rome by Tillie Cole
Sweet Fall by Tillie Cole Sweet Hope by Tillie Cole Sweet Soul by Tillie Cole

#1 ~ Sweet Home: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#1.5 ~ Sweet Rome: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ Sweet Fall: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3 ~ Sweet Hope: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#4 ~ Sweet Soul: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads

Here’s an audio excerpt from Sweet Home!

FOLLOW BOOKLOVERS FOR LIFE ON:
✦ FACEBOOK • TWITTER • INSTAGRAM • GOODREADS • PINTEREST • BLOGLOVIN’ ✦

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