Penn

Olive Township, Book 1

By: Jennifer Millikin

Narrated by: Hannah Chiclana, Edward Black

The entirety of Olive Township is looking forward to the fast-approaching day when Daisy St. James will say "I do" to the town golden boy.

There’s just one little catch.

Daisy isn’t in love. Her impending nuptials are transactional in nature, and that suits Daisy just fine. She learned the hard way a long time ago that true love does not exist, so what does it matter if her marriage is a farce?

But then a stranger named Peter sails into town, his forearm bearing a tattooed symbol of the Navy SEAL he used to be. And wound around that symbol, are daisies.

Daisy is ready to write it off as coincidence, but there’s no denying the way the enigmatic man feels familiar to her. His slow smile, his stormy eyes, the shape of his jaw. He makes her laugh, draws out her smiles, and even more dangerous, he challenges her previous thoughts about true love.

And then one day, he says three little words only someone from her past would know…someone named Penn.

Penn Bellamy returned to Olive Township with plans to sell his late mother’s estate, snag a locally famous Sammich, and be on his way. Under no circumstances was he to speak to his childhood best friend, Daisy. Or be her ear when she fled her engagement party. Or become her physical therapy client. Offering to help her with her home remodel? He wasn’t supposed to do that, either.

When Daisy learns Peter and Penn are the same person, and he discovers Daisy’s engagement is a pretense, all bets are off.

Penn will do whatever it takes to make Daisy his, even if it means telling her the truth about why he left once before.

After all, all is fair in the quest for true love.

Penn is the first in a four-book contemporary romance series inspired by the film The Princess Bride. Expect swoon, sass, spice, and happily ever afters.

©2025 Jennifer Millikin (P)2025 Jennifer Millikin

Phenomenal Romance

When I read the author's note about the references to The Princess Bride, I knew it was time. I needed to watch this movie I had heard so much about over the years. I mean how have I not watched it? Inconceivable!
Penn is a phenomenal read! Having just watched the movie made Penn even more enjoyable. Either way, this is a five star book.
Penn is returning to his hometown to settle some affairs. Having not been back since he was earlier teen, most in Olive Township don't recognize him, including Daisy, his childhood sweetheart. Daisy, not. believing in true love is set to marry and the whole town is excited about the pending nuptials. Penn is back and the chemistry between him and Daisy is undeniable.
The audiobook is performed in duet by Hannah Chiclana and Edward Black. They bring a five star performance packed with chemistry and tension. I highly recommend this one and can't wait for Hugo's book!

I love a small town romance!!

These two are everything!! All the little moments between them had my heart! They both are going through some tough challenges and the connection they further make because of it was everything and more!

The audiobook was so amazing! I love when I feel so involved in the characters and the storyline. The narrators truly outdid themselves! They captured Penn and Daisy’s characters so well. I felt as if I really got to know these characters and who they are. Also absolutely LOVEDDD how the narrators created a deeper dynamic between our characters. They already have a history and being back in each other’s lives and you truly get to see that longing and tension even more through this audio!

Loved this fun and emotional intro to this series

Thank you to Jennifer Millikin and Valentine PR for providing me an early copy of this audiobook. All opinions are my own.

This was a fun and emotional little series intro, and I already can’t wait to go back to Olive Township.

Penn has come back to the town he grew up in. He left when he was 13, and that was also the last time he saw his childhood sweetheart, Daisy, whom he has just found out is now engaged to a guy he hates…And nobody recognizes him because he’s changed so much.

I’ll be honest, I did have to suspend some disbelief that no one would recognized him, especially Daisy, even if he had grown up and filled out since he left. But, once I got over that, I had a really fun time with this one.

The banter between these two was really fun, especially when it would get flirty. I also really loved the side characters and the dynamics between all of them definitely has me excited to come back and get all their stories.

Do be aware that there is a plot line having to do with an ill/dying parent that really got the waterworks going for me. Just a heads up if that is something you are sensitive to at the moment. 🙏

Audiobook notes: Duet narration! I don’t think I’d previously listened to either of these narrators before but I was very impressed, especially with Hannah Chiclana’s narration; the emotion really came through in some tough scenes that definitely got the tears flowing. 😢

What this book is giving:
✅ Small Town Romance
✅ Duet Narration
✅ The Princess Bride Retelling
✅ Ex-Military
✅ Physical Therapist
✅ Childhood Best Friends
✅ Hidden Identity

Rating:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 5
🌶️🌶️🌶️ / 5

Penn and Daisy were amazing!

From their first encounter until the very end, I loved them so much! The playful banter was fun and I loved how Penn (Peter 🤣) always encouraged Daisy to keep her fire! I really loved that Daisy was trying to make her moms wishes come true of seeing her in her wedding dress, and I happy she was able to see her get married- even if wasn’t the person they assumed it would be! Mama knew all along though and I think it was just the sweetest! I enjoyed the side characters- even Duke turned out being a favorite- but i really can’t wait for Hugo’s story! I enjoyed the audio for this one! I think the narrators worked great together to bring these characters to life 💖

it was a good start to the series

The narration was okay, but at the beginning, there was a noticeable volume discrepancy between the two narrators.

I enjoyed the story and the characters, but while listening, I found myself questioning the thin line between what counts as cheating and what doesn’t. I think that's what stuck to me the most. Other than that Im definitely looking forward to Hugo's story. His personality and past is a tease all on their own.

The pining is REAL!!

Penn and Daisy’s story is so sweet, but filled with so much pining and longing.

☀️Small town romance
☀️Hidden identity
☀️Childhood friends
☀️Mutual pining

Penn and Daisy were inseparable when they were in their early teens, until an accident tears the apart and forces Penn to move away.

Now here we are over a decade later and life has completely changed for them both. Penn is recovering from getting injured as a Navy Seal and losing his mother and Daisy is actively losing her mother, while engaged to another man. Penn doesn’t want to up and ruin Daisy’s HEA, so he pretends to be someone else and the two of them learn to fall in love without pretense of the past. But what will happen when she finds out he’s been hiding who he was?

I really enjoyed this book! The longing and the pining was so fantastically done. I loved how they were able to fall in love even before she found out Penn was Penn.

There are so many great side characters that I’m hoping we get stories from in the future!

Hannah Chiclana and Edward Black are both new to me narrators and I definitely want to listen to more of their work! I felt they told this story just so beautifully.

drawn in from the jump

Penn hasn't been to his hometown of Olive Township since he and his mother abruptly left town when he was 13 and never looked back. But when he needs to go back to handle the abandoned property that was left behind in their hasty escape, the good, bad and ugly of his youth come crashing back in. To keep himself off the radar, he rolls into town under an alias and has two goals in mind; handle the sale of the property and keep away from Daisy St James.
Daisy is the princess of Olive Township, with her family being one of the founding families for their town, she and her family are known and loved by the entire town. As a child, Penn was her best friend and when he left and never looked back, it broke her heart and she never forgot him. Losing Penn made her lose hope in the idea of true love, so choosing to enter a marriage of convenience made sense to her, but was a secret to only her and the groom.
When Penn aka Peter, rolls into town who does he find first... Daisy - and she is not at her best. He approaches her to help her and they instantly feel this strange pull for each other. Penn knows exactly why but Daisy thinks he is a complete stranger. After that first encounter, they keep running into each other and when they are together, Daisy somehow feels the most like herself. She is intrigued as to why she feels so comfortable around a stranger while Penn struggles with his feelings for Daisy knowing she is engaged to someone else. As their chemistry continues to rise and their walls start to crumble, truths are revealed and all the details of the past start to come to light, making the decision for Daisy even more difficult. Their connection is undeniable and the way the Penn loves Daisy so fervently was the stuff dreams are made of.
I loved this story and the depth of these characters. I loved the writing and the way the rest of this series is set up for future stories that I cannot wait to dive into.
Edward Black and Hannah Chiclana were phenomenal on this title. Hannah is new to me and she was impressive, delivering an emotional and powerful performance. Edward is not new to me and still blew me away. I'm never disappointed in his animated, charismatic performances that bring the character to life in such a unique and magnetic way.

Introduction to small town

I always love Jennifer’s audios. This one was no exception. I loved the reconnection and secrets hidden within this story, and truly didn’t expect the twists and turns this gave I can’t wait for Hugo’s story!

Loved so much

Fantastic characters and mesmerizing writing. I loved the little Princess Bride nuggets and how the whole story is cleverly inspired by the story. Such a fun listen with beautifully clever writing. It also gets a bit on the emotional side. There is a family member suffering from cancer so be aware of that if this is something you’ve gone through. Other than that I would highly recommend this beautiful clever story. Loved every minute of listening. I sped it up to 2.0 speed because I hated waiting for what happens next. Loved it!

So good!!!

Duet Narration - Edward Black & Hannah Chiclana
Fabulous narration! Love these two together

I loved this book so much.
Fantastic narration and great plot.
I really enjoy Jennifer Millikin writing style.

I loved the development of the story. Penn is back in his old home town to deal with his mother’s house but he doesn’t want anyone to know it’s him. He tells everyone his name is Peter. His plan is to get in and get out but fate and the universe have other plans.

Daisy is a newly engaged physical therapist who’s dealing with her mom being sick. She’s in a marriage of convenience type situation.

I loved getting to know Penn and Daisy. They have history together as kids/teenagers until things got complicated. Perhaps the universe is pushing them back together for a reason?

This was an amazing story. I really enjoyed it. Can’t wait for book 2!