Bright music and an ode to love stories from author Katherine Center set the tone for the audiobook of The Shippers (11 hours), a delightful romance narrated by Patti Murin.
Life is anything but smooth sailing for JoJo Burton, who has found her plans repeatedly thrown into chaos by Cooper, her childhood best friend. Cooper frequently makes waves by showing up unexpectedly. First, he startles JoJo at her own wedding and talks her out of going through with it. Then, he shows up again at her sister’s cruise ship wedding, where JoJo ropes him into a scheme to attract a past crush, Finn. JoJo believes that her first kiss, which was with Finn, and her emotionally absent father are the sources of her romantic problems, and is oblivious to whatever else may exist between her and Cooper.
Murin gives a lively, winning performance, capturing JoJo’s self-effacing, hapless and affable nature. The emotionally charged encounters between JoJo and Cooper are handled with precision and nuance, revealing their familiarity and underlying connection. Murin’s velvety voice, excellent timing and expressive pitch deliver both emotional weight and comedy. Funny and feel-good, this audiobook will charm fans of forced-proximity and friends-to-lovers romance.