Great Climax but Not the Best Performance

I had previously read Irene Onorato's Justice for Hattie Mayfair and adored it, so I think I'd try another one by her. Singapore Secrets wasn't nearly as good as Justice for Hattie Mayfair, but maybe only because the latter was exceptional!

One critique I have is that though the main character isn't always this way, sometimes she comes off as overly and rather unrealistically emotional. Crying is okay when it happens once in a while, but Julia cried in nearly every scene that was even only a tiny bit stressful. I also would've liked to have seen her be more proactive when she was in danger (e.g. at the climax!). Ladies, there's not always going to be a handsome guy to come and rescue you, so you gotta rescue yourself sometimes. I just wish this story had portrayed that more instead of sticking to the stereotypes.

However, when I ignored Julia's constant crying, the book felt more normal, and overall the climax was fun to read. I also loved the *plot twist!* I literally gasped, and my mouth dropped open when it was all being unraveled. Here's what happens when you enter a book thinking it will only be a simple romance when it actually has lots more to it. But knowing Justice for Hattie Mayfair, I should've except as much, haha!

With its fast pace, sweet romance, and dashes of action and suspense, Singapore Secrets makes for a great summer read. Both the print/ebook and the audio are great options. I personally listened to the audiobook.

Please note that I received a complimentary copy of this book via StoryOrigin. All thoughts and opinions expressed are completely my own, and I was not required to leave a positive review.

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Sweet Romance!

I like Irene Onorato's writing! Gabriel (Gabe) and Julia's story is sweet and heartwarming, filled with secrets, and a little suspense. Gabe is handsome, patient, and protective. Julia is lovely, but spoiled, immature, and impetuous. They share an instant attraction. Jacob, Julia's father, and his girlfriend Kara, are great supporting characters, caring and protective. Kathleen Li did a great job narrating this story.

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1 person found this helpful

Christian Lit Romance w/intrigue

This was just an okay read for me. I had a hard time liking Julia. Even by her own admission she is a bit of a spoiled brat. I didn't like her petulant behavior. By the end she owns her problem but listening to her whine until she gets there was just not my fav thing. And because I didn't like her, it was hard for me to care about the romance. I found the intrigue part of the book more interesting. I would have liked to have learned what happened to the bad guys in the end. I mean, obviously one of them was more of a decent human than the others. But only to an extent because he did sign on for a kidnapping.

I listened to the audiobook but didn't love the narrator either. It was okay but just not my favorite.

This is pretty heavy on the Christian themes so if you don't care for that, this probably isn't a book for you. Looking at the other ratings I can see that there were many who enjoyed this more than I did. So if you are looking for a romance with intrigue that is a quick read this might be the book for you.

Christian themes
Sex: no
Language: no
Violence: kidnapping, threatening situation, attempted rape

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Romance and Secrets

The chemistry between Julia and Gabe is undeniable as they set about exploring Singapore after Julia runs away from her father's news of his upcoming nuptials. Julia has no idea what has been set into motion concerning her safety. Will Gabe get to her in time? I will not give away any spoilers but this book is a must listen/read because it is well written and intriguing. The characters development grows perfectly as the plot goes on. Kathleen Li does a wonderful job as narrator giving the characters and story life through her voices that are edged with emotion. I highly recommend this book because it has everything romance, humor, intrigue, lies, and tested loyalty.

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Christian Contemporary romance

The premise of this story had promise. Julie is upset with her life with her father the senator and his fiancé. She runs away to Singapore. Have is ex special forces. Her father hires him to go check in her. The develop feelings for each other while there are in Singapore. He has to save her when things go wrong. I found Julia to be extremely whiny. She focuses more on her inner turmoil than her feelings for Gabe. Overall I enjoyed listening to the book.

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KNOW I ENJOYED THIS ONE AND COULDN'T STOP LISTENIN

LITERALLY COULDN'T PUT IT DOWN AND I REALLY ENJOYED THIS STORYLINE BEING WELL WRITTEN AND EASY TO FOLLOW
ACCEPTABLE FOR ALL AGES AND CLEAN
NARRATOR IS GOOD AND EASY TO FOLLOW

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1 person found this helpful

Cute but religious...

A fun read that displays new friends, adventure, exploring other cultures, and has a likable cast!
It was completely predictable but still a super cute, enjoyable read that kept me company while I worked, and had a bit of action mixed in.

One thing I would change is, I felt like the author’s religious beliefs were being pushed on me a bit much. I’d rather be able to just read and escape, since real life does plenty of that. Also minor things were made out to be extremely dramatic at times, causing me to question plausibility a little.

Overall though, a cute read.


3 stars.
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️


Note:
I listened to the audiobook. Perfect production and excellent narrator! Very well done.

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Enjoyable story

Gabe pretending to be a chance met acquaintance when he was hired by Julia's father to be her bodyguard was never going to end well. That said the twist at the end was unexpected and well done, with the HEA one hopes for.

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3.5

Performance 4 stars. Story 3 stars.

Summary:
When her father proposes to his sweet, much younger, beautiful actress girlfriend, a spoiled little rich girl pitches a fit and runs away to Singapore. The father sends an ex-soldier, who happens to be tall, handsome, physically fit, etc after her, just to make sure she’s okay. The usual ensues. Toss in a few Christian references and the kid sort of sees the error of her ways and you pretty much have this story.

Additional Comments:
• Highly predictable. There wasn’t much investigating going on. Julia wasn’t exactly hiding. One check of her cell phone would have had her pinned down. She didn’t strike me as the type to be carefully covering her tracks. Heck, I think she even used her credit card to pay for the hotel and such. Pretty sure daddy could get a hold of that record if he wanted to. If he was that worried, I see no reason he wouldn’t have hopped on a plane to drag her behind back from the other end of the world. But then, Julia wouldn’t have had the chance to fall in love with the devastatingly handsome ex-soldier boy.
• Has a few mammoth plot holes, especially where the danger factor is concerned.
• Performance is fine. The senator, Gabe, Julia, and the famous actress fiancée are all distinguishable. I’ve said it before and stand by the assessment that the narrator has nice reading instincts. Her pauses are natural. Her accents are decent and believable. She doesn’t have a huge range of characters (10+), but you don’t need that for this story anyway.
• The title has very little to do with the story, except that it mentions where most of the scenes take place.
• The cover has zip to do with the story, except that it might get the genre right.
• Story’s okay.
• Characters: Gabe’s a decent love interest, but I have a very hard time liking Julia because she goes from a stupid, super selfish little rich brat to contrite semi-selfish, slightly less dumb little rich girl to damsel in distress to semi-tolerable little rich girl who’s got a hot boyfriend. There is a smidgen of hope for her at the end when she fights back. She’s probably the most realistic character but still annoying.
• Romance angle is fine.
• The Christian angle didn’t bother me, but it wasn’t subtle in any sense. It was also a tad unrealistic. The story wouldn’t have changed one iota if it hadn’t been there at all, just a few lines of dialogue would change. That tells me it wasn’t integrated well.
• Suspense angle fell flat, but it made the last quarter of the book better than the first three quarters.
• Book is clean as far as curse words go and adult scenes. There’s one scene that might trigger some people, but I thought it was fine and I’m picky about such things.

Conclusion:
It’s not a bad story, just highly predictable with little that makes it stand out.

*I received a free copy of the audiobook. I’ve freely chosen to review the story. All thoughts are my own.

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spoiled rotten child

I didn't like Julia, but I felt a tiny bit of empathy for her at the end of the story. Julia was hard headed, immature, spoiled , and dangerously impulsive. She caused much unnecessary worry about danger. I admired how concerned and caring both Jacob and Kara were from the very beginning and the lengths they went to to ensure a thoughtless child's safety!!!!! I also admired Gabe's bravery and integrity and would wish him tons of luck with such a spoiled package as Julia. I voluntarily listened to a free copy of this and am giving an honest review. The narrator did a good job.

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