A Madness of Sunshine

By: Nalini Singh

Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld

Length: 10 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's summary

New York Times best-selling author Nalini Singh welcomes you to a remote town on the edge of the world where even the blinding brightness of the sun can’t mask the darkness that lies deep within a killer....

On the rugged West Coast of New Zealand, Golden Cove is more than just a town where people live. The adults are more than neighbors; the children, more than schoolmates.

That is until one fateful summer - and several vanished bodies - shatters the trust holding Golden Cove together. All that’s left are whispers behind closed doors, broken friendships, and a silent agreement to not look back. But they can’t run from the past forever.

Eight years later, a beautiful young woman disappears without a trace, and the residents of Golden Cove wonder if their home shelters something far more dangerous than an unforgiving landscape.

It’s not long before the dark past collides with the haunting present and deadly secrets come to light.

©2019 Nalini Singh (P)2019 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"Dark and addictive. I couldn’t stop reading! Singh’s twisty new thriller will sweep you along until the last shocking revelation." (Laura Griffin, New York Times best-selling author)

"Nalini Singh’s latest novel, A Madness of Sunshine, has more twists and turns than the rugged New Zealand coastline on which it’s set. Behind every closed door of Golden Cove is a secret, behind every truth, a lie. As one girl goes missing, Anahera Rawiri, the heroine begins to unravel a twisted web of sex, betrayal, greed and murder where no one is safe and no one can be trusted. Chocked full of unique characters and red herrings, this book is just my kind of pulse-pounding mystery. I loved it! Though A Madness of Sunshine is the first novel of Ms. Singh’s I’ve read, it won’t be the last." (Lisa Jackson, New York Times best-selling author)

"Lush, atmospheric, and addictive, A Madness of Sunshine seduces with its beautiful sense of place and layered, compelling characters, then hooks you right in with a riveting noir mystery. When a beautiful girl goes missing and a dark past collides with the brutal present, the truth is as harsh and unforgiving as the landscape in which Nalini Singh's twisting tale is set." (Lisa Unger, New York Times best-selling author of The Stranger Inside)

Perfection!

To go from Silver Silence to this... I'm left speechless! Utter perfection; laid out perfectly.

very entertaining story

I really liked this book! I loved the characters and the stories behind them all. I especially loved the author's way of so thoroughly describing the landscape and people's facial expressions.

Pretty good story but it has some flaws

I can't speak to the narrator's accent, but her voices are good and she has a nice, even voice with a lower timbre. You can listen for yourself. My one critique of her narration is giving the main male character a scratchy, low voice that was a bit too low for Maarleveld's own range. As a result she sounded hoarse.

The story is overdone. At first, it's a really great mystery. But once things start getting fleshed out, they really lose their logic and flow. I don't want to give anything away, but finding out who is at fault will make you roll your eyes. Again and again. Information is revealed to the reader in too many jagged jumps. For instance, a budding friendship jumps into an intensely emotional reveal; while the main-stay best friend is basically ignored the entire book. Meh.

The prose is my main issue. There were far too many sentences that made me cringe: one of them was like "his eyes were the color of the ocean before a storm" or some crap. I'm not reading a romance novel here! Sure, there is romance in the book, and Singh does provide some heat, but the main descriptions used to many overused metaphors.

Entrancing Listen

Couldn't stop listening, really enjoyed the flow and feel of the town and culture. Was a little annoyed by part of twist ending but no one could say it was boring in the least.

Perfect Narrator; Perfect Mystery

The story kept me hooked and guessing from beginning to end. I was also glad to hear a Kiwi narrator for the story set in New Zealand, unlike some of Singh's other audio books.

Good Premise but Predictable

There was so much I liked about this book;. The characters, setting, title, cover but it let me down. When a young woman is so admirable why have her become less than that? It made her just another character duped by love.

Not my usual, but liked it a lot

Great modern day story with mystery and whodunit style set in New Zealand. lovely accents to listen to and good character development without being too easy to figure out.

Good mystery - good character development

This is a mystery story about a young woman who goes missing and the people who search, track, investigate and finally find her. Won’t spoil it, but will say the story is clever. The narrator was clear and did a good job switching between character voices. There were a couple good twists and the not-so-happy ending was fitting and unpredictable. Not a thriller, but overall a well-told mystery. You can’t help cheering for the protagonist all the way through, and appreciate that she is also a bit of a mess, herself (and a good fit with the guy she ends up with, who is also not so perfect).

just ok

The names were confusing and similar. The story was easy to figure out before the end. Not a horrible book but one I could have gone without reading.

Disappointing!

Is this a nook written before she got popular? I would never have identified it as one of N.S’s.