Wanderlust

by Skye Warren

[Melanie]

My review and an extended sample of the audiobook are posted at Hotlistens.com.

This book is a really intriguing, dark and psychological story. It is a shorter audio than most of the books I listen to at just under six hours. But, it is still full of story. I had read this book before it was available on audio. I was really excited to revisit the Hunter and Evie’s story on audio, though this was a new-to-me narrator.

This story is a very dark story in that there is kidnapping and some dubious consent. I love the psychological aspects of this book. This is an author that will push your boundaries. While I really enjoyed this book, I don’t condone the actions that the hero/villain takes. The story seems very real in that I could really see something like this happening to someone in real life, which makes it even more scary.

This is a story about Evie, who was the daughter of a shut-in, who became a shut in by proxy when her mother guilted her everytime she left her house. She finally decides that she couldn’t live in such a small space any more and she had to see the world. She has dreams to go to Niagara Falls from a book she stole from the library (one of the few places here mother allowed her to visit outside the house). On her travels from Texas towards Niagara, she runs into Hunter at a small town truck stop. He is a truck driver and a nomad who is a bit on the scary side. Hunter is used to getting what he wants and doesn’t take “no” for an answer. People who know him have decided that it is easier to just give him his way.

Hunter decides that he likes Evie and that he wants to take her with him on the road, so he takes her. Things start off really bad for her. She is very naive, because most of her life at home with just her mother, so she has little to no life experience. Every move that she makes, just makes her bad situation worse. Then as the story builds between these two, more of their pasts comes out. We learn that both individuals have a pretty horrific past.

I really loved how this author really makes you rethink everything you think you know. Hunter is not a good person, there is no mistaking that. What he does in this book is wrong, no matter how you slice it. I don’t care what happened in his past. That doesn’t mean that you don’t start to feel sorry for the man by the end.

I really love this quote from the book. I think it shows the beautiful way that Ms. Warren writes how Evie grows throughout Wanderlust.
I was a caterpillar, my many limbs held tight to my body, wrapped up in a cocoon. He paved the way, eased me from a small and ugly life to a beautiful one. The transition had been painful at times, but never more than it would be to leave him. But that was the path of a butterfly-to fly away from the one who had made her.

The story is told in first person from Evie’s point of view. It is interesting to see how Hunter changes in her perception in the story. Not only from actions that he takes, but also from the people that she meets that are Hunter’s friends. It is also interesting to see that Hunter, while not a good person, isn’t the worse thing in the world.

If you are looking for a book that will really push your boundaries, this could be the book for you. I do want to remind you that there is kidnapping and rape involved, and I know that is not for everyone. Wanderlust is beautifully written story about a dysfunctional pairing of two damaged people.

Narration
This is the first book that I’ve listened to narrator Lucy James. I think she did a pretty good job. She made Evie sound very innocent, which was how she sounded in my head. Hunter’s voice was very menacing. I thought it fit him very well. There are also several side characters who don’t have lengthy parts. I did think she spoke very slow, but increasing the speed at which I listened solved that issue.

I like to thank Skye Warren for providing me with a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.