Cold Cold Heart

Willow Falls Murders, Book 1

By: Laura Jordan

Narrated by: Teddy Hamilton

Length: 9 hrs and 57 mins

Publisher's summary

Two things saved Lincoln Bennett after his wife died. The first was a murder Marla had been trying to solve, a murder that hinted at the secret life she'd been leading, and the lies that had formed the bedrock of their entire marriage. The second was Milo Rose, the donor recipient who'd been granted a new chance at life thanks to Marla's own heart. As the two men are drawn deeper into the mystery, Linc finds himself drawn closer to Milo.

Falling for somebody new feels like a betrayal, and yet that's Marla's heart beating in Milo's chest. Can you fall for the same heart twice? Can you solve a murder while you're falling?

Potential trigger warnings for this book: depression, suicide, homophobia, domestic abuse, sexual assault, violence, PTSD, miscarriage, and racism. By listening, you will encounter the topics mentioned above, even if only very briefly. If these are things that you find triggering, please proceed with caution. Please be aware, this book contains scenes of a sexual nature between consenting adults.

©2024 Laura Jordan (P)2024 Laura Jordan

Mystery with a big helping of angst

Laura Jordan is a brand new author to me & TBH... this audio interested me because Teddy Hamilton was narrating it & WOW! Not only is the story itself interesting & hooked me right away, Teddy's performance was sensational! This is most certainly a love story but it's plot heavy on solving a murder, deciphering clues & learning secrets. I love all that when it's added with a romantic twist. It makes for such great story telling. So many wonderful side characters that also added to the story & Teddy voices them all! He is such a fantastic narrator. Chapter 14 had me rolling.😂

The story is told by the two main characters, Milo & Link. Polar opposites as far as personalities, They each brought something unique to the story. I especially loved Milo's character. Both damaged & hurting, they find solace & friendship in one another & decide to work together to solve "a mystery." Link believes that his wife's suicide may have been connected to a missing person & so they begin to investigate it for themselves.

Jordan was terrific at writing the complexities of their relationship & we learn a lot about both characters as the story goes on. There's very tender moments but also so many funny moments that had me chuckling right out loud. This is the first book in a series & honesty, I can't wait for the next one & the mystery that will come from that.

Let's talk narration....Teddy Hamilton is by far, one of the best in the biz! He narrates all the characters in this book & there are A LOT! He was so brilliant at portraying Link, the sad, unhappy & very serious man while also voicing Milo, the carefree, wounded, hip young adult with a great sense of humor. We won't even talk about the many others he voiced. He's soooo good! I was especially impressed with the emotion & heartbreak he was able to evoke in his performance but also had the quick, comedic timing he's always known for while playing Milo.

Lots of twists & turns in the plot which keeps you totally invested in the story & what's going to happen. I did not see the end coming.. Totally surprised! This is a romance book as well & so one might ask....is there an HEA with all the suspense & mystery and the answer is YES! This was a wonderful little side trip to take in the romance genre. If you love romantic suspense, edge of your seat, wondering what's gonna happen next, this is definitely one for you. Having Teddy Hamilton narrate the entire book to me didn't hurt ONE tiny BIT! He's absolutely fantastic as always and I'll praise the man & his talents until I die. Totally worth every minute spent listening!

Really Good Story

I really enjoyed this book! This is a new author to me and I'm now following and will try the other book on Audible.
I thought the story was interesting and a def slow burn. The first slice wasn't until about 3/4 through the book and there's not many of them but they are good.
I liked that there was a mystery, and interesting side characters. Teddy is truly one of the best narrators, in my opinion, for voices.
I occasionally wasn't sure who was talking as the MCs did sound close to the same but mostly it was that their names were both short so the distinction wasn't as easy for me as when the names are very different.
I liked how the guys eased into their relationship, it was pretty close to how it would happen in real life I think.
Overall for as long as this book was, I wasn't bored or zoned out. I love a long book as long as it keeps me interested and this one had lots to keep you tuned in! Well done!

Story had me hooked!

I’m new to this author but got the audiobook for Teddy and I was pleasantly surprised that I enjoyed this murder mystery as much as I did. There were so many twists and turns and maybe a few were a bit OTT but I could not stop listening and finished in 2 days. I look forward to checking out more by this author. Teddy was, as always, perfection. He had me in tears and also laughing (Chapter 14 was comedy gold). One of my new favorites!

Good Muder mystery

The story was strong so many times I'm reading a muder mystery and it just about romance and sex and I hate that , this stayed on point and introduced other characters that I can't wait to read about, and the Narrator we'll Teddy Hamilton so enough said ! We'll worth the purchase