Erryn reviews ‘Made Marian Mixtape: A Made Marian Collection’ by Lucy Lennox. The ebook was published December 10, 2019. The ebook is 280 pages and was released December 10, 2019. The audiobook was narrated by Michael Dean. It was released January 9, 2020 and is 7hrs and 43mins. A copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.
Why I read this book: I love the Marians.
The best mixtape always has a mix of favorites on it— songs playing in the background at Jude and Derek’s wedding or when Simone finally falls in love. Loud beats pounding the dance floor when Blue tries to seduce Tristan in public, or sleepy notes written late at night while Jude is on tour. Strains of familiar music bring heart-gripping memories rushing back in—memories of the first time Tilly meets Senator Cannon, the weekend a mysterious new family member arrives at a snowy cabin expecting solitude but finding a sexy lumberjack instead, or the winter Teddy “accidentally” strands Jamie in Tibet.
Made Marian Mixtape is a collection of everything from a short 1k word vignette to a longer 30k novella. Catch glimpses into the lives of favorite existing Marian characters and meet new ones as well. With everything from hot nookie in a broken elevator to double-doses of pre-wedding panic, Mixtape presents over ten new stories set in the Made Marian world that will make you sniffle, swoon, and laugh out loud.
Made Marian Mixtape is 72k words in length and best enjoyed by readers familiar with the Marian world.
Book Links: Audible | Amazon | Add to Goodreads
See my review of the book here.
My Review:
I’m always game to revisit old friends and to make some new ones. Listening to Made Marian Mixtape was like coming home. I read the book a short while ago so the stories were still fresh in my mind, but having Michael Dean (formerly Michael Pauley) narrate them brought a whole new level of enjoyment for me. He’s narrated the entire series and I can’t say enough good things about him. From his Aunt Tilly voice to Ammon’s light and bright essence, he nailed it. As well as the more than a dozen male voices. Oh, and Simone, Rebecca Marian, Granny and Irene…I could go on. He manages to provide a voice for each character in a way that works. I did envision Senator Cannon’s voice a bit, well, older, but that’s a minor quibble. So, yeah, overall I loved the narration.
I also loved that there were new love stories. For instance, there was Mark, a bodyguard from On Your Six and a former member of the armed forces.
“Imagine have a crush on someone who literally had fifteen brothers and brothers-in-law watching out for him, not to mention a feisty sister who took shit from no one…there was no way I’d even be able to ask him out without facing the third degree. Hell, two of his brothers-in-law were bodyguards for god’s sake. One of them had even been Ammon’s rescuer several years before when he’d been smuggled out of a religious cult in Utah. I happened to know AJ was extremely protective of Ammon, and neither he nor my boss would take kindly to my interest in the kid.
So I pretended he didn’t exist.
You can guess how well that went over. Ammon had a rough start in life but after three years under the care of Rebecca and Thomas Marian (almost two dozen other Marians – biological and adopted and by marriage), he’s finally coming out of his shell. Having Mark by his side through this new trauma was powerful and it was kind of inevitable that they got together. I loved it. The story also introduced a new character who reappeared later. Lucy makes all these connections, including bringing in new people at just the right time.
Aside from those two stories, the rest were revisits of previously established couples. And I truly enjoyed those moments. Jude’s Lullaby is the only story that was previously released, so there are plenty of new tales to revel in. New babies, new families, new adventures – everything I wanted but didn’t know how to ask for. And Tilly. Dear Aunt Tilly. Getting her backstory was wonderful and having her happy even better.
I loved this mixed tape. I’m pretty sure there are more Wilde stories to come, but hopefully down the line there might be a mixed tape for that crew as well because I truly love revisiting old friends as well as making new ones.
My Rating:
10/10 Pots of Gold (100% Recommended) – Compares to 5/5 Stars
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