Any Trope but You by Victoria Lavine @victorialavinewrites @jsvilinsky @thevoiceoftimpaige @simon.audio @simonaudio.bsky.social @librofm @libro.fm #AnyTropeButYou

the setup…
Margot Bradley is a successful romance novelist with a host of bestselling books. But deep down, she feels a bit disingenuous about writing happily ever afters since she doesn’t believe in them. Her own experiences have left her broken-hearted and jaded about romance. Margot has a secret Happily Never After document she uses to bury her true feelings. It’s when she’s in the middle of a show with a high profile romance podcaster that a hacker releases the document during the broadcast and just like that…she’s canceled and Margot’s career seems over. Sister Savannah, who suffers from chronic pain and lives with Margot, arranges a six-week trip to a remote Alaska lodge where she can reinvent herself, writing in a new genre. The lodge manager, Forrest Whitaker, throws a serious kink in that plan.

the heart of the story…
Margot and Forrest’s first encounter qualifies as a true meet cute but from that moment on, it’s more like an enemies to maybe friends experience. I must admit she drove me nuts initially with her many TSTL (too stupid to live) moments where her stubbornness put lives at risk, ignoring wilderness preparations just to defy Forrest. But as the story progressed, her devotion to Savannah as her caretaker and the life punches she suffered defined a more substantive woman.

the narration…
Jesse Vilinsky’s performance shaped my evolving opinion of Margot from annoying to endearing. I found that masterful. Tim Paige’s voice for Forrest perfectly suited the character. I enjoyed their storytelling.

the bottom line…
The beginning of the story didn’t enthuse me but around the halfway point things shifted into something very special. Savannah did more than just book the trip for Margot, designing it to be more lifesaving for her sister. Forrest’s commitment to his ailing father meant sacrificing a brilliant medical career. These two were made for each other and I loved the journey the two had in finding in each other, discovering they too deserved their own happily ever after. Hoorah for the romance genre!

Book Info

• Release Date: April 1, 2025
• Narrators: Tim Paige & Jesse Vilinsky
• Audio Length: 11 hours, 17 minutes
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

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(Thanks to Simon & Schuster Audio and Libro.fm for my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.)