Searching for Paradise in Parker, Pa, Library Edition [Audio CD]

Kris Radish (Author), B. McCulloh (Narrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: 2008

Complete & Unabridged edition, Case and 10 CDs Set, 11.5 hours, Library Edition packaged in a sturdy binder for repeated use

Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: recorded books (2008)
• ISBN-10: 1428180508
• ISBN-13: 978-1428180505
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,579,809 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Kris Radish grew up dreaming about living a Nancy Drew-like life and always held her own passion for writing very close to her heart. A former journalist, nationally syndicated columnist, magazine writer and university instructor, Radish also loves to tell stories about the times she picked nighcrawlers, served beer to cowboys, worked on a tomato farm and hung out of the side of a fast moving helicoper.

Radish is now the bestselling author of six novels and has captured the hearts of legions of fans with her heartwarming, real, passionate and often hilarious novels. Her stories focus on the important bonds of female friendship and celebrate the common feelings, heartaches, loves, and struggles that all women share. She loves to call her work "true fiction" because she addresses the real emotions that women live and share every day.

She is also the author of two non-fiction books, writes poetry, is the mother of two young and very fiesty adults, is known for her wild laugh and wilder hair, and is working on her seventh novel.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I loved it!, June 28, 2008

By 

Ratmammy "The Ratmammy" (Ratmammy's Town, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Searching for Paradise in Parker, PA (Hardcover)

SEARCHING FOR PARADISE in Parker, Pa by Kris Radish

Rating **** (4/5 Stars)

June 28, 2008

Addy and Lucky Lipton have been married for nearly 30 years. And neither can say they are really happy. Addy is going crazy, angry at all the junk Lucky has collected over the years and has accumulated in the garage. She calls it the "kingdom of krap". She doesn't feel a connection to him at all, and is on the verge of kicking him out.

When Lucky wins a trip to Costa Rica and asks Addy to go with him, they are both secretly hoping that this may revive their sinking marriage. But that morning as they are about to head on out, Lucky hurts his back so badly that he becomes bedridden and needs Addy to help him with the smallest of things. Addy is angry and frustrated, does not want to even deal with him anymore, can't even face him in the mornings, and decides she needs to make a change in her life.

With the help of her best friend and sister Hell (short for Helen) and their friends known as the "Sweat-Hers", a group of gals that all work out together, Addy makes some changes in her life and makes demands upon her husband. But it's not only Addy that produces some changes. It looks like the entire town is in on the act!

While Addy goes on her crusade to create a life that is a little more livable, a paradise in Parker, Lucky becomes closer to next door neighbor Bob. (He's Bob #1; the other neighbor on the other side is Bob #2). Bob has been divorced for some time and has gone through some drastic changes himself. With Bob's help, Lucky makes some of his own drastic revisions to his lifestyle, which will shock the hell out of the ladies of Parker, Pa, if not just Addy Lipton. The two men begin to "talk", unlike any conversations ever held between two men who are not gay. They start cooking lessons, dress a lot nicer, get their hair and nails done and basically, Lucky becomes a new man. And while this is all going on, Addy is busy with her female friends, wanting desperately to start a new life, because she feels that no matter what Lucky says or does to win her back, she is done with him. She's ready to move on.

SEARCHING FOR PARADISE was my introduction to author Kris Radish, and I am hooked! Her writing style reminded me in part of one of my favorite authors, Lorna Landvik. They have the same type of quirky characters living in a small town, with that same feel that I get from Landvik novels. All the characters are fun and unique and likable. The pace of the book is fast; there is a lot of humor despite the downer theme of a marriage on the rocks.

One major subplot includes Addy and Lucky's son's search for his biological mother, which compounds upon Addy's stress while she deals with her failing marriage. It also adds another dimension to the overall story, and demonstrates how far from perfect Addy's life has become. Not only is she dealing with the future meeting of her son's birth mother, but also a bedridden husband and a possible divorce. Frankly, she cannot wait to get rid of him! She can no longer stand to be in the same room with him.

The friendships that Addy shares with her sister Hell and all the other "sweat-hers" leaves a warm and fuzzy feeling. The feeling isn't overly sugary sweet, but I felt it was just the right amount that made me want to be a part of their group, to be one of them.

I can't say enough about SEARCHING FOR PARADISE, a very fun and enjoyable read that I think may be one of my favorite reads in 2008. Addy's search for a paradise leads her to a possible new future, with the whole town routing for her. While I wasn't sure whether sometimes she may have been a little unfair to Lucky, it is hard not to cheer her on, making every page up to the very last worth reading. - Courtesy of LoveRomances And More - M Lofton

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Could barely finish it, September 19, 2008

By 

H. Cross "hcross888" (SC, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Searching for Paradise in Parker, PA (Hardcover)

After 28 year of marriage, Addie has had enough of her sexless marriage with her overweight, junk collecting husband. Of course she never bothers to tell him how she feels, and they separate. She says some really nasty things about her husband's weight despite the fact that he was kind and an excellent father. Addie goes to work out with her friends and they have man-hating frenzies. By the last 50 pages I was hoping that the husband would run away quickly from this superficial witch and that Addie would die. I can't remember disliking a main character this much. I skimmed the last 25 pages; it was horrible.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sweet and Fun, April 13, 2008

By 

A. You (NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Searching for Paradise in Parker, PA (Hardcover)

You know from page five how it's going to end, but that doesn't make Searching for Paradise in Parker, PA any less enjoyable. I'm sure anyone who lives in a small town, where your business is everyone's business, will identify with this story, which shows how the troubles of one married couple transform an entire community. But even I, who consider life in a small town completely unappealing, found this novel enjoyable and fun to read.