Like It's 1999

The perfect snack of an audio in the Boston Classics universe.

It’s best if you know Kate & Will (What I’m Looking For, Boston Classics book 1) since this story focuses on Kate’s 2 best friends and a lot of the story also kind of functions as a peek into Kate & Will’s life after the HEA. I love how much I get to see of their family life through the years.

It’s a quick story touching on a couple who come in and out of each other’s lives over the course of 10 years after acting together at part of their best friend’s wedding party. The emotional conversations they have with each other and Kate as they recap life between meetings is impactful. So much life is experienced by these two, but the story doesn’t feel heavy or rushed.

Narrators Cindy Kay & Ryan West are amazing at bringing these moments to life. The light & fun as well as the sad. You feel what they are going through and I was choked up several times over the 3 hour run time.

I requested and received a copy of the audiobook. These are my honest opinions.

Review 2: Jan 26, 2021 (audio version)

Having read this book on Kindle a month ago I knew the story, but Karen had a draw for an ALC (advanced listener copy) prior to release on Audible. I’m a major audiophile so I was extremely excited to receive this copy for review (in essence I won this book twice!!).

The narrators that Karen chose are amazing - Alice is Cindy Kay, and Hot Steve is Ryan West. Cindy is a new narrator for me but she did an incredible job! Ryan has been around for years and has narrated a TON of books and is an extremely familiar voice that any audio fanatic like me knows and loves. It’s always so soothing to get those familiar voices you know so well, and combine them with other new ones they fit so perfectly with. This is a pairing that should definitely work together again!

Listening to this story for the second read, a month after the first, was perfection. Thank you so much, Karen, for this opportunity!!! 😘

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Review 1: Dec 31, 2020 (Kindle version)

I won a copy of this book from Karen through a giveaway on her Facebook group, but was going to buy and read it anyway. It sounded amazing, and it did not disappoint for one second!

Alice Kim (a Korean American) and Hot Steve are both bridesmaids for their mutual best friends Kate’s wedding. She secretly hopes and plans to bring them together, even though both Alice and Steve are more into one night stands, not relationships. They first meet on New Year’s Eve 1988, the night Kate and Will get engaged, and start planning their wedding for the following NYE. They do end up spending the night together - an unforgettable night.

A year later, they spend a month closely planning Kate’s wedding. They both want more but Alice’s family expects her to marry a Korean and pop out Korean babies. She doesn’t want any of that! She just wants to have some fun with Hot Steve. The night of the wedding ends with another great night, and the two making a plan that if neither is married in 10 years, by NYE 1999, they would get married.

During the following 10 years, which we only get a little bit of (being a novella), we follow their lives generally. On NYE 1999, Kate gets them both back into the city and reunited. Will they be available and do they even still want each other after 10 years with barely any contact?

Beautiful story, and fantastic writing. I’ve now grabbed the two earlier books and another book that has come up (not sure where it fits into the series yet), and will read Kate and Will’s story, and ?’s story! Take me back to the 80’s, Karen! Love it!