Audio: Wild in Rio by Lyssa Kay Adams @LyssaKayAdams #BrillianceAudio #LoveAudiobooks

Posted April 10, 2020 by KC in Book Review / 11 Comments

Review copy was received from Publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.


Audio: Wild in Rio by Lyssa Kay Adams @LyssaKayAdams    #BrillianceAudio #LoveAudiobooksWild in Rio by Lyssa Kay Adams
Narrator: Richard Sawyer, Claire Kilpatrick
Published by Brilliance Audio on May 24, 2020
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Length: 4 hours
Format: Audiobook
Source: Publisher
Goodreads
Libro.fm
three-flames
One StarOne StarOne StarOne StarHalf a Star

A WILD LONGING...
Ever Beckinsale is as competitive as any other athlete in Rio, but the American equestrian has at least one more reason than most for pursuing gold. If she can win, she’ll finally have the leverage she needs to live her life according to her own terms and to escape the stifling expectations of being the daughter of one of America’s richest families.

But she’ll still have one last unfulfilled dream—finding the mysterious stranger who showed her an unexpected kindness two years ago and gave her the courage to fight for what she wanted.

A WILD DESIRE...
Irish boxer Padraig O’Callahan prides himself on being able to size people up in a glance, so it shakes him to the core when he discovers that the mystery woman who stole his heart two years ago in Ireland is not only an athlete in Rio, she’s also a bona fide heiress. That makes her one hundred percent off-limits in his book. The last thing he needs distracting him from winning the gold is a spoiled little rich girl who apparently conned him into believing she needed his help.

But as soon as he pushes Ever away, he realizes his mistake. There’s more to her than meets the eye, and he wants her body and soul.

A WILD LOVE...
When an unexpected encounter turns into an unforgettable night, can Padraig convince the skittish Ever to take a chance on him? Or will winning the gold mean losing a chance at one wild love?

The International Olympic Committee officially postponed the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics last week.  The games are a highly anticipated event in my house, so while I completely understand and agree a postponement is necessary, I couldn’t help but feel a wee bit sad.  I started reading Wild in Rio, a novella by Lyssa Kay Adams,  only to discover it is set during the 2016 Games in Rio.  I really enjoyed the story, and it gave me a little Olympic fix right when I needed it.

Ever and Padraig meet as strangers on a beach in Ireland.  Although it is just for a moment, the experience leaves its mark on each of them.   When they meet again, at the Rio Olympic Games, they have the chance to get to know each other and understand how a small act of kindness and empathy can profoundly impact another person.    Ever and Padraig must overcome their emotional baggage, familial dissent, and general prejudice in order to make a relationship work.  On top of that, there is the pressure to win gold.  Are they up to the challenge?

With this girl, I’m not thinking of how to take it farther.  How to speed up this part so I can get to the good part…With this girl, this IS the good part.

Wild in Rio is a nicely written, well-plotted love story.  That is actually a really difficult thing to do in a novella, where too often it feels as if there is insufficient time for a story to unfold naturally.  The two lead characters are likable and relate-able.  They each had a lot of personal ‘stuff’ to deal with, but I don’t feel like Ms. Adams took the easy way out and glossed over their issues.  I was not very happy with a couple of Ever’s choices, however I think her actions eventually led me to being more deeply affected by the story, so I suppose I can’t fault that!  Although it was a novella, it didn’t have the same rushed feeling, nor did I end up wishing there had been just a little more to the story.  I am very impressed that the author was able to tap into a full spectrum of emotion in such a limited amount of time.

I especially enjoyed the Olympic angle; athletes from two separate countries meeting in the Olympic Village during the games.  I will definitely be exploring more of this genre.  Although the setting is sports related, there is little to no actual ‘sport’ in the book.  The author saves page time by glossing over the details of the sporting events and focusing on the developing relationship between Padraig and Ever.  My only disappointment with this being a novella-length story, was that I wanted to get to know the secondary characters better and there just wasn’t time.  I guess there is always the 2021 Tokyo Games.

Wild in Rio is a novella-sized romance that delivers the satisfaction of a full length novel.  I hope that Ms. Adams returns to this world in the future!

Narration:

The narration was a complete surprise.  After listening to the first sentence of the book, I couldn’t contain my excitement and had to text Anne.  Richard Sawyer has the swooniest Irish brogue that fits Padraig perfectly.  Claire Kilpatrick does a great job as well.  Pacing and enunciation was on point for both narrators.  I know I would have enjoyed reading this novella traditionally, but the narration, specifically, the sexy Irish accent, made it that much more enjoyable to experience on audio.

Listen to a clip:  HERE

About Lyssa Kay Adams

Lyssa Kay Adams is the pen name of an award-winning journalist who gave up the world of telling true stories to pen emotional romances. She’s also a diehard Detroit Tigers fan who will occasionally cheer for the Red Sox because her husband is from Boston.

Lyssa lives in Michigan with her family and an anxiety-ridden Maltese who steals food and buries it around the house and who will undoubtedly be a character in a future book.

Things Lyssa loves: Baseball pants, mashed potatoes, and that little clicking sound that scissors make on the cutting table at fabric stores.

Things she doesn’t love: Mean people, melting ice cream cones, and finding food in her underwear drawer.

Rating Breakdown
Plot
One StarOne StarOne StarOne StarHalf a Star
Writing
One StarOne StarOne StarOne StarOne Star
Characters
One StarOne StarOne StarOne Star
Dialogue
One StarOne StarOne StarOne StarHalf a Star
Narration (Audio)
One StarOne StarOne StarOne StarOne Star
Overall: One StarOne StarOne StarOne StarHalf a Star
KC
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Posted April 10, 2020 by KC in Book Review / 11 Comments


11 responses to “Audio: Wild in Rio by Lyssa Kay Adams