Retreat to Love

By: Melanie Greene

Narrated by: Amy Rubinate

Length: 8 hrs and 38 mins

Publisher's summary

When the seams of her past unravel, a stitch in time saves...love.

Quilter Ashlyn May has her hands full. When she accepts a spot at the FireWind Artist Retreat, she's prepared to defend her craft against the skepticism of her fellow artists, even as she struggles to rediscover her creative drive. She doesn't expect to learn a devastating family secret, or to find comfort in the arms of photographer Caleb Kendall.

As spring blooms in the rolling hills of Central Texas, the pillars of her life crumble, leaving her to choose between breaking her grandmother's heart and honoring the values of honesty and openness her grandparents instilled in her. Meanwhile, the dramas of her new friends and artistic debates range around her, leaving Caleb her only safe harbor. But can their relationship possibly survive once they're outside the insular world of FireWind?

©2015 Melanie Greene (P)2015 Melanie Greene

Sweet New Adult story ...

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

At 8 and 1/2 hours long, this would be tough to listen to all at one time. I would recommend this as a 'long weekend' listen or if you were going on a trip and wanted something to listen to in the car, airplane or train.

Any additional comments?

Retreat to Love is a very well written book. Ms. Greene creates a world where artists can be themselves. I enjoyed the variety of arts represented by the those at the retreat. Some retreats can be focused on just one medium but the diversity in this group made the story more interesting. The relationship between Ashlyn and Caleb is sweet and I like the fact that they didn't just jump into something the first day. I liked that they took the time to realize there was something there.

Ms. Rubinate is a delightful narrator. She is able to give each character their own voice and did a wonderful job with Lizzie's Irish accent. Her pacing, sense of emotion and 'realness' came across and made me want to keep listening to the story. I will be looking out for more of her work.

"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Blast."

Love and Family, what a great listen!

--I was given a copy of this audiobook in return for an honest review.

How wonderful to have a story that has love and some content to the story! I loved this book. 8 people going to an art retreat to find their new project or passion, continue on their project or just try to find their new direction have all come to FireWind. Ashlyn and Caleb are wonderful together. It is amazing how with the information that Ashlyn finds out from her art friend Lizzie can cause an upheaval in her own family. I loved the situation, and loved seeing the relationship between Ashlyn and her Grandmother. This closeness is something I had with my own grandmother and could fully relate to issues that cause family problems. Caleb was a rock throughout, and is an amazing man. I also loved the interactions with Ashlyn and her mom and brother. It made the story feel real, not one where everything is wonderful, but with real conversations and real problems being worked through.

The characters inside the retreat were a bonus for me. Margie proved to be quite the character from Sargent to caring about and taking care of the artists. I especially love Rafael...a man of few words, but always had something meaningful to say.

Amy Rubinate as the narrator provides a flawless performance as she always does. She is able to catch the essence of the story, give us the voices and accents for different people and keeps the story flowing.

good book

"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Blast."

was well writen and performed. i enjoyed reading

Sweet story of love

I really liked this story about love and friendship. It was very well written and kept me wanting to listen. Of course Amy Rubinate did a wonderful job narrating this book as she always does.

Family and Love

Retreat to Love begins with Ashlyn May attending a FireWind Artist Retreat. She knew that by attending the FireWind Artist Retreat, she would be able to develop her skills as a quilter and that she would be taken seriously as an artist.

Ashlyn didn't expect to run into her brother's friend, Caleb Kendall who is photographer. She and Caleb started on a bad foot of invading each other artistic space. Ashlyn wasn't planning on having a romantic tryst during the retreat since her retreat friend was interest in Caleb.

As she and Caleb are paired to prepare meals for the group, they became friends and avoided the dramas that were going on at the retreat. During retreat Ashlyn discovered a family secret that could either rip her family apart. Ashlyn now have to decide whether to share the secret with her family or to keep it to herself.

Ashlyn also have to make a choice about her relationship with Caleb. She has to decide whether she should take a chance on her future with Caleb or to go her separate way.

Retreat to Love is a friends to lovers story. Each character is described so detailed that the readers/listeners would feel that they know the characters themselves. The readers/listeners could identify themselves with Ashlyn's ordeal to reveal her family past and know that secret could tear her family apart especially when Ashlyn's family are so close to each other.

The narrator, Amy Rubinate does a wonderful job with all the voices for the characters in the story. It would have been easier if there were a handful of characters. Her performance to provide a different voice for several characters is quite good.

I was given this audiobook by the author/narrator/publisher via Audiobook Blast in exchange for an honest review. I was not compensated or influenced in any way for writing this review.

Slightly different, but very good book!

I was given this audio book in exchange for an honest review. This was my second book by this duo. This one was a little harder for me to follow, simply due to the number of characters. I wished more than once that I had the actual book in my hands so that I could go back and review (hard to do on your phone while walking two dogs).
Having said that, I absolutely loved the characters and the complexity of their relationships, even though they had just met. They were all artists of some kind (all very different mediums) who have gone to an artist's retreat for various reasons. I thought Ms. Greene had a wonderful grasp on the different art forms, the other artists views on the works, etc. Definitely some research done there. I also enjoyed the quirks of the different artists.
The two main characters are Ashlyn and Caleb. The attraction is there from the start, but they have several obstacles to overcome within the group before they feel comfortable with their relationship. Then there is the obstacle of distance once the retreat is over. That's at the core of the book, but there are many other side issues going on in this book. It definitely kept me going back for more!