Something To Talk About by Meryl Wilsner is a sweet, diverse Contemporary Romance that isn’t only worth a listen during Pride Month!
I devoured this audiobook! It completely captivated me: These two fantastic women who are so different yet so perfect for each other, the unexpected and important storyline, and the wonderful narration.
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Something To Talk About
written by Meryl Wilsner
narrated by Jorjeana Marie and Xe Sands
A showrunner and her assistant give the world something to talk about when they accidentally fuel a ridiculous rumor in this debut romance.
Hollywood powerhouse Jo is photographed making her assistant Emma laugh on the red carpet, and just like that, the tabloids declare them a couple. The so-called scandal couldn’t come at a worse time – threatening Emma’s promotion and Jo’s new movie.
As the gossip spreads, it starts to affect all areas of their lives. Paparazzi are following them outside the office, coworkers are treating them differently, and a “source” is feeding information to the media. But their only comment is “no comment”.
With the launch of Jo’s film project fast approaching, the two women begin to spend even more time together, getting along famously. Emma seems to have a sixth sense for knowing what Jo needs. And Jo, known for being aloof and outwardly cold, opens up to Emma in a way neither of them expects. They begin to realize the rumor might not be so off base after all…but is acting on the spark between them worth fanning the gossip flames?
I admit, this book had two specific aspects that made me pretty biased towards loving it 😀 Firstly, it’s a Women Loving Women Romance with a bisexual woman and a Woman of Color. That’s what made me very curious about it right away. And secondly, there’s chronic illness representation, something I wish was way more common in Romance, considering how many of us experience it.
But Something To Talk About doesn’t just tick the boxes. That would be very unfair to this really well-written, entertaining novel!
It’s a beautiful slow burn Romance with a whole lot of “will they or won’t they”. I loved the light “there’s something there but we can’t talk about it and it hurts me when you treat me like your boss”-angst. How neither of the women wanted to give their thoughts and feelings away, but tried to stay purely professional.
I’m usually not much of a fan of Slow Burn Romance (and this one is extremely slow and Fade to Black – so no explicit scenes). But there’s so much going on! There were all these many moments between Jo and Emma that lead them from a good working relationship to becoming friends to becoming more. And then there were the difficult topics surrounding Hollywood and its racism and sexism.
Jo and Emma
The characters worked so well! Jo is this straight-forward “older” career woman. But not macho at all. We learn a lot about her personal history and struggles. I liked how she always treated Emma respectfully and truly cared about her.
Emma sometimes came off as a little ditzy, specifically during dialogue. But she is a very sensitive and smart woman. Both Jo and Emma skirt past these stereotypes that – to me – made them intriguing Romance heroines while having enough depth and complexity to keep me completely hooked.
“Something To Talk About” Audiobook Narration
Xe Sands is a very experienced and fantastic audiobook narrator I listen to often. Jorjeana Marie was new to me, for some crazy, unexplainable reason. She is also an experienced narrator in Romance and other genres. Both voices fit the characters perfectly! And I loved that this book had two different female-sounding narrators for Emma’s and Jo’s chapters, respectively.
Recommendation
If you’re curious about FF Romance, this book is a great first choice! And if you’re an avid FF reader, then I’d say… go get to it already!
Get it on Libro.fm** (The first audiobook is free!)
Something To Talk About is also on the list of my all-time favorite WlW and Lesbian audiobooks and one of my favorite Office Romance books!
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