In the Likely Event by Rebecca Yarros @RebeccaYarros @robins_carly @TEDDYHAMILTON14 @BrilliancePub

the setup…
It’s 2011 and Izzy Astor is a college freshman returning home to New York after the Thanksgiving holiday. She’s afraid of flying and her seat mate, Nate Phelan is on his way to Fort Benning for basic training and though it’s his first flight, makes it his mission to ease her anxiety. That is until the plane goes down in the Missouri River 90 seconds after takeoff. This begins a friendship that literally began after a life changing event.

the heart of the story…
Izzy and Nate’s relationship develops over the next ten years but is told in shifting timelines, beginning in 2021 Kabul, Afghanistan where it’s clear something separated them, and looking backward. Of course, I was beyond curious as to what tore them apart because the heart of their relationship was a very strong friendship with equally strong romantic feelings they mostly held in check. She’s a lawyer, he’s in Special Forces and it’s clear ten years later they’re still hung up on each other.

the narration…
Dual narrators were used for Izzy and Nate’s points of view and I enjoyed both. They were effective at capturing the essences of their characters and I liked their storytelling styles.

the bottom line…
Izzy was an interesting character who wore her heart on her sleeve and made so many life choices for other people, including Nate who kept choosing his career over a commitment to Izzy. Being in Special Forces kept him away and out of communication at a moment’s notice all the time. It took almost the length of the book to learn why they went their separate ways and the answer didn’t live up to the building tension. I liked the story but wasn’t as engaged as I could have been if the reveal had been sooner. However, there was a surprising twist at the end that had my jaw drop. And, this story brilliantly illustrated what’s it’s like for the men who serve in military units like this and their friends and loved ones they leave behind.

Book Info

• Release Date: August 1, 20023
• Narrators: Carly Robins & Teddy Hamilton
• Audio Length: 10 hours, 30 minutes
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio

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(Thanks to Brilliance Audio for my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.)