My Favorite Lost Cause

The Favorites, Book 2

By: Elizabeth O'Roark

Narrated by: Samantha Brentmoor, Jason Clarke

My stepbrother’s estate is fading fast. My resistance to him is fading faster.

When my marriage hits rock bottom, I escape to South Carolina to help my charming disaster of a stepbrother, Charlie—aka "the douchiest man in Manhattan"—fix up the decaying Southern mansion he's just inherited.

But the house has other ideas. Doors slam, voices whisper, and something—or someone—wants us to be more than reluctant roommates. An old journal confirms it: Charlie and I seem to be mirroring every step of a love story that took place a century ago.

A doomed one.

With every soft moment and stolen glance, it gets harder to imagine ending up with anyone else. But all I’ve ever wanted is a family, and that won’t be happening with a man who once said he’d rather be murdered than father a child.

Our story was written long before we came to this house. But do we still have time to rewrite the way it ends?

©2025 Elizabeth O'Roark (P)2025 Elizabeth O'Roark

Slow burn

I loved the characters and voices. I want to listen to it again. I can’t wait to check out the rest of the series.

Holy wow. 👀🌶️🚫

@elizabethoroark does it again with this one. This book felt so wrong reading but I couldn’t stop. It had all the tropes I never thought I’d read. 🙈

•Step siblings
•Forced/close proximity
•Forbidden love
•Touch of paranormal

Maren is married to an a$$hole & trying to find herself again after struggling with infertility. She finds herself spending more time with her step brother Charlie and things start heating up. 🔥

The slow burn, that felt anything but slow, kept me turning pages faster and speeding up my audiobook. I was able to read and listen and I absolutely adored the narrators.

🎧 Definitely recommend this one on audio if you want a forbidden spicy romance!

Shocks galore in this thoroughly enjoyable story!

My Favorite Lost Cause, an Audiobook by Elizabeth O’Roark is the heartbreaking story of Charlie and Maren. She heads back home to help her ailing father…only to discover a huge shock!!!! Plus, the man she knew once…is now living in her home! Everything has changed and she’s in total shock.

Neither of them is quite prepared for this change in their lives. She’s trying to get over her own past…and now has to deal with her new present? He is dealing with his own issues. I really enjoyed the back story here and the characters were approachable and appealing.

This Audiobook was narrated by Samantha Brentmoor and Jason Clarke. Loved his interpretations of the characters and their feelings. Didn’t care for her performance of the female characters and POV. Overall good!

*** ❤️ Contented sigh ❤️ ***

Once again, Samantha and Jason were absolute perfection. I loved every single thing about this story.

Saw this coming... Stepbrother romance

Jason Clarke and Samantha Brentmoor narrate and is there anything else to really say beyond that? Jason can do the pessimistic playboy who gets jealous, and flirtatious, and up for a challenge. Samantha was fantastic as Maren, just wanting to find someone who wants her for her-no changing anything. She captured those deep insecurities and deep rooted feelings of doubt and worth. But also, showed Maren taking charge of her life again..

I saw the sparks of this story starting in My Favorite Bad Mistake, and Maren and Charlie stole my heart. I am a slut for the step siblings trope. Charlie is the bad boy playboy that would really only settle down for Maren. Maren is a model married to a douch nozzle and all she wants is a baby...even at the expense of being stuck with Harvey. She feels it's too late in her life to start over with someone new.