Audiobook Review: Above and Beyond by Sandra Brown

Above and Beyond
A Classic Love Story
Author: Sandra Brown
Narrator: Jack Garrett
Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Review Source: Simon & Schuster Audio
Available: Amazon

Summary: (from goodreads) LETTERS OF LOVE The letters Kyla sent to her husband, Sergeant Richard Stroud, stationed a world away, spoke of a love that stretched across the ocean and held the young couple together. But when tragedy ended their marriage too soon, Kyla was left a widow with a newborn son. And Richard left behind only a metal box filled with his wife's declarations of love.

Trevor Rule had been Richard's best friend. Returning home from military duty, he carried with him the letters Kyla had sent. And with each one he read, he fell more in love with the gentle, passionate woman who had penned them. Now he needs to convince Kyla of his feelings, and that they both have the right to be happy, to move past the tragedy of Richard's death.

But Trevor is harboring a secret, one with the power to destroy the love he is trying so hard to protect.

Being a huge supporter of military families and the life of sacrifice that they live, I was hooked by this story from the first line. I always fear for my guys when they get deployed and leave behind their families, especially those with pregnant wives. I pray for a safe return and for them to be blessed with the chance to hold their unborn babies upon their return.

In Above and Beyond, Sandra Brown writes about the reality of life when that loved one does not return from deployment because the worst has happened, he’s lost his life.

Kyla Stroud is the pregnant wife of Army Sergeant Richard Stroud. While she is in the hospital giving birth to their son, Richard is involved in an explosion at the US Embassy in the Middle East that takes his life and mortally injures his best friend, Trevor Rule aka “smooch”. When Trevor comes to, he is given all of Richard’s letters from Kyla by mistake. So what does he do? He reads them, and finds himself falling in love with the woman who wrote them.

Every line in this book sucked me in more and more. At times I wanted to jump through the story and tell Kyla to stop being such a butt and let Trevor in. At other times I wanted to sit down with Trevor and tell him get his head out of butt and be honest with Kyla if really wants a life with her.

All in all I thoroughly enjoyed this book. My only issue was that after all of the build up with the relationship and Trevor’s fear of Kyla finding out the secret of his connection to her dead husband, when it finally hits the fan, the outcome just seemed a bit rushed.

Narration:

Jack Garrett narrates this story and it was kind of funny because sometimes he sounded like Casey Kasem from America Top 40 and then he would get all manly and seductive and I just wanted to take him home. Being a man narrating a romance novel I was a little worried that he would not be able to carry the female voices well, but he nailed it.