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ashesbooksandbobs 's review for:

The Identicals by Elin Hilderbrand
4.0

Reviewed on: Ashes Books & Bobs.

I decided it was time to jump on the Elin Hilderbrand train when the audiobook for The Identicals became available through my Overdrive app through my library. Her books are super popular all the time, but I especially start seeing the covers frequently during the summer and winter. She’s captivated the beach read crowd and cornered the cozy winter market with her beautiful covers and great branding. I decided to see what the fuss was all about with one of her latest releases. I’m happy to report, I really enjoyed listening to this on audio. It was narrated incredibly well, the story flowed and kept my interest, and it wasn’t heavy enough to make me feel lost while I was listening or if my mind happened to drift.

I really loved the concept of the story featuring the twin islands of Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard, with the identical twin sisters living on their own respective islands. I didn’t know much about either island prior to listening to this story, so this book ended up not only being entertaining, but enlightening as well. The idea of estranged identical sisters was a unique storyline and lots of fun to listen to. In some ways, this story reminded me of an adult version of The Parent Trap, which has forever been one of my favorite movies.

I normally don’t enjoy storylines with incredibly affluent characters, and at first, I was concerned this book would be another that fell flat for me for that reason. Luckily, it was Harper’s character that saved the day. Though she grew up with plenty, she wasn’t snobbish in the least, unlike her mother and sister on the other island. It was nice to see the differences she brought to the story with her unique personality and carefree attitude.

Though there was the occasional cheesy moment, such as the epilogue being narrated by Harper’s dog, I thought this book definitely fit the bill for a great beach read. It was quite transportive and was great to listen to while out on my afternoon jogs. Needless to say, I will not hesitate in picking up another Elin Hilderbrand book…or audiobook in the future.