The Great Wherever by Shannon Sanders @shannonsanderswrites @shanders.bsky.social @keylorleigh @macmillan.audio @macmillanaudio.bsky.social #BookSky #TheGreatWherever

the setup…
Aubrey Lamb is a bit of a mess. At thirty-two, she has multiple jobs in Washington DC that are leading nowhere, is suffocating with debt, still grieving the recent death of her father and her boyfriend of four years just dumped her. When her Tennessee cousins reach out to her about the potential sale of her stake in family property left to her by her father, it feels like some sort of lifeline. That farm, purchased by her great-grandfather Thomas Lamb back in the 1930s when it was extraordinary for a Black man, is rich in family history…and ghosts who seemed to be moored to a pond on the property.

the heart of the story…
I found Aubrey frustrating and immature, seeming to stumble through life unfocused, so different from her older sister Bellamy. But the trip to Tennessee is life changing as she walks into a legacy she’d never known. The main narrator is one of those ghosts who is “attached” to her and the transitions to each generation’s story was equally grounding and fascinating. The ghosts were indeed gossipy in the way that felt familiar and like my own family.

the narration…
Keylor Leigh had the daunting task of managing multigenerational voices for a host of characters and she delivered. She’s also a wonderful storyteller.

the bottom line…
The themes of family, legacy and heritage are resounding here. There was a direct tie between Aubrey’s lack of a foothold in life and not knowing her powerful roots. The Lamb family patriarch was an unusual man in his time and left an incredible footprint. I loved the lively, colorful ghosts and their stories who, together with the living, gave Aubrey a pathway to light.

Book Info

• Release Date: July 7, 2026
• Narrator: Keylor Leigh
• Audio Length: 13 hours, 7 minutes
• Publisher: Macmillan Audio

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(Thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.)