Review of ‘A woman loved’ by TB Markinson,
Audiobook narrated by Stephanie Murphy
This is book 5 of the ‘A woman lost’ series by this author which follows the life of Lizzie, a socially awkward historian academic, and her family. I haven’t read any of the previous books in the series but I didn’t find any issues in catching up with the story as the author subtly recounts what happened so far. In this installment, Lizzie’s wife tries to organise the perfect Christmas party while family issues and weird situations threaten to wreck the festivities. Will the Christmas holidays be ruined for the Petrie family?
‘A woman loved’ is an entertaining, quirky, and sometimes hilarious family Christmas story. I love TB Markinson’s writing style, it’s word crafty, funny, and irreverent. She manages to make ridiculous situations sound plausible and laughable, in an endearingly geeky and self-deprecating way. Her stories are the perfect recipe to enlighten anyone’s mood. ‘A woman loved’ isn’t an exception, if it was a movie it would be a mix of ‘Meet the parents’ with ‘Love actually’. It shows the best and worst of extended families.
The audiobook version is read by Stephanie Murphy. I’ve listened to her narrations before and I found that she is the consummate professional. This isn’t the easiest story to narrate because it has a good number of characters, both male and female who interact with each other frequently, but Ms. Murphy makes it sound easy. Her pace and voice quality are ideal for the lightness and humorous tone of the story which, despite dealing with heavy issues such as infidelity, parental absence, and family conflicts, it’s all taken with a pinch of salt. This is a good choice if you are looking for a family Christmas audiobook that will entertain you and fill you with holiday spirit. I couldn’t have chosen a better ending for my 12 Lesbian Audiobooks of Christmas Challenge.
Unfortunately, this audiobook isn’t available in either Audible Escape or Scribd but you are guaranteed more than 6 hours of entertainment for the price you are paying. 4.5 stars.
