Not for Me

The Windy City Chronicles, Book 1

By: Kat de Falla

Narrated by: Sullie Mason

Manda Wolfgram is a struggling literary agent who is looking for the perfect manuscript to land in her lap and the perfect man to land in her bed. When the sixth-floor hottie finally asks her out, she gets more than for which she bargained. How can a girl wrap her brain around a Shakespearean actor who writes erotica?

Harry Sackes leads a double life: making a career as an author by day and dipping into the dark underworld of criminals at night. The moment he sees Manda in his twin brother's arms, his whole life becomes his personal Shakespearean trag-comedy of mistaken identity and unrequited love in this fast-paced chick-lit romance.

©2018 Kathee de Falla (P)2018 Kathee de Falla

A SOLID 4

NOT FOR ME is the first book in The Windy City Chronicles series. These will each stand on their own as individual stories in the lives of couples in the Windy City.

Don’t judge this book by its cover or any of the characters within by who they seem at first introduction.

Harry and Dane are confusing… and for more than just being identical twins. The story would feel that it was leading in one direction and would suddenly veer a sharp left. I’m still not sure where this roller coaster twisted off. I do know that the meet cute in the elevator was perfectly executed and the adventure at the end was well done. The middle still has me scratching my head.

Romance, human-trafficking, and princesses stories come together in a romantic comedy that entertained and had me hoping for happy endings for everyone.

Of the writing style, if I had to guess, I would say that Ms. deFalla is a pantser type of writer, as opposed to a plotter. No judgement, but either type needs to have alpha and beta readers to look for their plot bunnies and chase them back into their holes. Perhaps with a bit more work, this would be a solid five crown/star read. I would definitely choose another look into this series if given a chance.

Narration: Sullie Mason has a nice clear voice that is easy to listen to on a long commute. Though the cadence was a little unusual, it wasn’t monotone – thank God. There were audio quality issues, but I liked her use of sound props for text messages. That was a nice touch.

Note: While I received this book as a gifted audiobook copy via Audiobookworm productions, my opinions are my own and are given freely.



Title: NOT FOR ME
Series: The Windy City Chronicles #1
Category /Genre: Contemporary Romance
Recommended for: 18+ due to sexual content
Listenability: NSFW
Received from: Kat de Falla (as an Audible gifted copy)

Book Would Be The Choice For Me

Let me start with the good news. The good news is that I enjoyed the story. More good news is that I enjoyed the quotes that start each chapter. Then there are the characters. With the audio, I enjoyed how Ms. Mason would change things up so so we would feel as if we were listening through a door. I also liked the fact that she didn't attempt to change her voice for the characters.

Ms. Mason was very hard to listen to in the beginning - took me a while to warm up to her voice. Her voice took my mind away from what she was reading. I couldn't picture her as a literary agent, an erotic writer, or an actor. Once I started thinking of her as a storyteller than it made it a little easier to get through the book. She has the type of voice that I don't think would lend to that and it certainly wouldn't have me trying to picture what the characters would look like. Maybe that's one reason I couldn't think of this story as a romantic comedy. Then, while listening I was getting terrible static and it continued to get worse. It didn't happen if I listened online which made me wonder if it was the app. The only thing with that is that it didn't happen with other books.

I will say that I was a little confused at the beginning. Not sure if it was the story or the narration. In fairness to the author, I think I have to go back and read the book. I've never tried to listen and read at the same time but maybe that's what's I need to try here. I don't want to give up on the author because of this experience plus I want to see what else this series has to offer.

I voluntarily reviewed an Audiobook copy of this book.

Not for Me

If you go through life with your head in books or in the clouds, you may miss the ONE. You know, the ONE that makes life worth living or the ONE that really understands you and all of your quirkiness. Maybe that is just wishful thinking; but for Manda, it comes by way of a ticket to see Romeo and Juliet with the sixth-floor hottie who she has definitely noticed more than once. De Falla has an interesting and humorous romance between two people who seem to be polar opposites, but you know how the old saying goes. Don’t opposites attract?

Manda is a literary agent who has just hit the jackpot with her author’s new best-selling novel; however, when she finds out that her author has met an untimely demise, she goes into a panic and runs into Dane Sackes, the sixth-floor stud. Completely oblivious to anything other than him, he is the only person who can actually make her salivate from his appearance alone which would be the invitation that she needs to make a fool out of herself—and that is something she does not need. He gives her a ticket to go see Romeo and Juliet and starts spouting out lines from Shakespeare, all while wondering if this is the same hunk who seemed to obsess over achieving total body perfection last summer? She begins to feel intrigued by the mysteries of the man who resides on the sixth-floor, but at the same time—she knows that she shouldn’t be getting involved with anyone without worrying about her career that seems to now be in shambles unless she finds a ghostwriter to finish her author’s series. When avoiding Dane becomes difficult, she decides to enjoy the ride while it lasts—but, even the seemingly perfect Dane…or is it Harry… has some secrets that may very well get her into hot water or worse yet, feeling betrayed, confused and hurt.

De Falla has a light romantic comedy, filled with creativity and originality; however, it does lack character development. There are two characters who are the main focus of the story, but both do not have the same emphasis on their story. An introduction into the life of Dane or Harry would have engaged the reader instead of jumping right into the current dilemma without understanding what the character(s) have had to endure to get to that point in their lives. Since this review compliments the audiobook, the narrator did not provide the correct tone or age-appropriateness to the novel with her voice relay. This is the first installment in the Windy City Chronicles; therefore, readers can jump right into the story. If you are interested in romantic comedies, this may be for you.

An audiobook was provided to Turning Another Page by Audiobookworm Promotions and in no way affects the honesty of this review. We provided a three-star rating to Not for Me by Kat de Falla.

It was a lighter read but had just enough emotion

Not for Me is my first book by Kat de Falla, as well as my first audiobook narrated by Sullie Mason. I’m happy to report that I enjoyed this romance. The narrator wasn’t my favorite (a bit over the top at times), but she grew on me voicing Manda.

This story is about a literary agent named Manda who wants it all. She wants the man, the perfect manuscript, the perfect life. When she meets her new neighbor, she thinks she may have just hit the jackpot… but things aren’t always as they seem.

I enjoyed this chick lit romance. It was a lighter read but had just enough emotion to keep me invested.

Cute and Funny

I enjoyed the story and the narrator. She has a storyteller's voice so it was different but not in a bad way. There were some very funny laugh out loud moments. I didn't have any trouble jumping into the story. I thought it was cute.

good all the way around

manda a book agent is asked to take on a new client she never suspects that its her "neighbor" that writes books or that it's even erotica that he writes great story

Meh...

It was alright. The story could have used some editing to not be so chaotic. The narrator read the story so slowly sometimes, that it made me feel like if somebody was talking to me in that spelling it out - manner that people use to talk to someone they assume to be stupid.

got myself a shocker . . . and a disappointment

Now this was a small switch in roles of insecurities. I enjoyed Manda. I found her interesting and a bit funny. I found Harry to be interesting. He found his looks to be a deterrent to others but Manda and his twin did not see the same thing. I enjoyed the story and the characters.

Narration was good but the audio quality was not up to the level of the narration. I found the hollowing of the sound to be detract from wanting to listen all at one time. I had to take this read/listen in sections.

Funny but Definitely for Adults

I too found that there were sound editing issues but I do think the narrator did a pretty good job overall. This is a fun story line with some interesting twists but be warned it is for adult readers with all the sexual: innuendos, talk, sex scenes and bad language. The content is understandable considering the male character is an erotica writer who is also working undercover to bring down some sex traffickers.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Manda is the best!

I loved this book so freaking much ... it was just good! the narrator was great and Manda became my favorite character like ever...
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review