Audiobook Review: Catch of the Day by Kristan Higgins, Narrated by Xe Sands

Kristan Higgins is a phenomenal writer. I absolutely love her. Anytime I see anything by her I jump at the chance to read it or hear it. I’m often confused by why she is characterized as a romance author because her writing, although some parts romantic, is usually more broadly focused on female characters and their surroundings.

I wish I can say I have read all her work but I’m slowly getting there. One of my favorite books by her is “The Best Man” which is part of her Blue Heron series. One book of hers that I laughed so hard I couldn’t breathe was “Just One of The Guys.” I was listening to another audiobook that was a little darker and it was affecting my mood. I knew instantly when I started “Catch of the Day” that it would be a pleasant experience and that I would love the characters. Higgins is known for her wit and well-developed characters.

One of my best friends and I argue all the time about Higgins because she thinks all her heroines are the same type. I have to agree there. They tend to be single women, who are goody-goody two shoes and can’t find a man. You won’t find heroines that are tough as nails say like Julie James’ heroines (who is another one of my faves). But really I can’t help love Higgins and her heroines. Although her writing is not filled with very detailed intimate moments (really any) she knows how to build conflict with her heroine and hero. She knows how to make them at odds with each other and interesting. In this story Maggie Beaumont is a twin. She is single and owns a diner. She lives in Gideons Cove in Maine. Maggie has a wonderful family that has family issues, really like any other family. Maggie is also single and a little bit of a doormat. She loves to take care of everyone around her. She is also very well-known for having a very serious crush on Father Shay a Catholic priest. Although Maggie has known Malone for most of her life (a local lobster man) she is not the least bit interested in him and finds him unattractive. They are also complete opposites. While she is outgoing and bubbly he is reserved and extremely quiet. By coincidence one night she runs into him and she sees him in a whole new light.

So, first. The story is mainly focused on Maggie and the people that surround her and the conflicts she has with them. Maggie really has a coming into herself moment. I wish there was more insight into Malone because Higgins stayed true to his character and it was really hard to get to know him. He says very little throughout the book and is not very expressive which is a point of contention in his relationship with Maggie. I would have liked them to share more moments together but the important part was that Malone really knew when to show up when it mattered and it was fun to watch Maggie realize this. I thought Xe Sands did a great job of portraying the voices of the characters and she really added to the charm of an already charming story.

Higgins really is a master at creating interwoven plots and there are many other stories that take place while Maggie and Malone fall in love. One of them is focused on her brother and her friend Chantel and another is her pet dog. When I was hearing about these two sub-stories I thought that I knew in what direction one was going but I was very wrong. The other story, I should have known in what direction she was going to take the story, but I didn’t. This is part of Higgins genius. I loved reading about Maggie and Malone and they were an awesome couple. The narrator really had her work cut out for her because she had so many different voices to do since the book is filled with fun and colorful characters. If it’s not obvious by my review, this was another Higgins hit for me!

**Audiobook provided by Tantor**

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