Thank you Hachette Audio, #partner for the ALC of The Survivor in exchange for my honest review.
Publisher: Hachette Audio
Published: June 6, 2023
Summary:
Eve Duncan and Riley Smith must solve their most exciting puzzle since A Face to Die For when asked to uncover the mysterious secret hidden on a remote island.
When archeologist Riley Smith comes to ask Eve Duncan for help, Eve has to say no. Traveling halfway around the world on a dangerous quest is not her expertise as a forensic sculptor. But Eve is intrigued by the prospect of an isolated island that holds a secret locked in time.
Traveling to Southeast Asia, Riley is aware of the threat from treasure hunters who are already searching and have no qualms about killing to get what they want. When she successfully evades them and finds the perfectly preserved body of a female warrior, it is just what she needs to entice Eve to help unlock the mystery.
As these two strong women seek answers about this extraordinary past life, Riley makes a living, breathing discovery that will change history. If she can escape the island and survive long enough to share it with the world.
My thoughts:
Iris Johansen’s Eve Duncan series is one of my all-time favorite series. This is the 30th book in this series and I love the fact that it is still going strong! While I have definitely loved some more than others, I am so glad I have stuck with it because I just enjoy these books so much! I still remember when I first discovered this series…little did I know what a love affair it would turn out to be!
I was thrilled to see Riley back again for another adventure. We first met her and Cade two books back in this series in A Face to Die For and I can always tell when Iris Johansen loves side characters she enjoys – she tends to either bring them back multiple times or she ends up creating new series for them. I wonder if she’s still testing the waters with these two and possibly a series is in the works for them???
While this particular installment can be read as a stand-alone, I do highly recommend reading this series. Yes, it’s long, but there is so much character development that has come before and quite honestly it really makes for such exciting reading. But if this is your first introduction to the series, perhaps it will only entice you to go back to the beginning.
As usual, this book is full of action and suspense. While Eve is involved in the case, it’s not really her forensic sculpting that is needed, which is a shame because that is always my favorite part of this series. But I still love seeing her and Joe helping their friends in any way possible. Of course, there is a bit of having to suspend disbelief here – after all, they are trying to protect among other things, the mythical unicorns, but with this series, I’ve come to expect that a time or two and just go with it. The archaeology and history aspects were quite fascinating and that kept me quite engaged.
I absolutely love this series and really enjoyed this latest installment. I look forward to reading the new one as soon as I hear about it. I don’t know when or if there will be more, but you can be sure I will be checking the author’s website for updates regularly!
Audio thoughts:
With June being Audiobook Appreciation Month and the fact that Elisabeth Rodgers was once again narrating this book, I just knew I had to listen to it. She has narrated many, if not all, of Iris Johansen’s books and is so consistent with the voices. No matter how long it has been since I’ve last picked up one of Johansen’s books, it’s like no time has passed – that’s how consistent she is with her voices. I don’t know how she does it, but I love it! She truly has become one of my favorite audiobook narrators and I hope that she will continue to narrate this series for as long as it goes on.
