A Desirable Residence
A Novel of Love, Family, Adultery, and Real Estate
Madeleine Wickham
Read by Katherine Kellgren

Macmillan Audio
June 22, 2010/ ISBN 1427210063
British Fiction / Audiobook: Unabridged - Approx 8 hrs
Amazon

Reviewed by Brenda Weeaks

In listening to A Desirable Residence you meet some genuine, yet eccentric characters and play spectator in their lives. In doing so, you can't help but wish some a happy ending and others the hand of judgment.

Liz Chambers' young realtor wants her to drop the sale price of her home by 50,000 pounds and add a shower. Liz and husband Jonathan mortgaged a young tutorial college on the basis of selling their home. Unfortunately they owe more than it's worth. Liz goes over his head to top dog Marcus Witherston. He recommends they rent it out to another couple. A business relationship between the two turns into an affair. Sometimes you can't help but pity Liz's self-absorbed personality and delusional thoughts during this affair. Her husband Jonathan is the nice guy, but you want him to grow a backbone. Liz and Jonathan have a daughter with the traditional adolescent behavior. She takes up with the new residents in her parents' home - Piers and Ginny - and of course, drinking, celebrities, etc are involved. Marcus Witherston, cad that he is, has a wife and two sons. He has no interest in leaving them or changing his ways. It's a soap opera sort of life in contemporary suburban London and an amusing listen.

This is my first Wickham audiobook. I thoroughly enjoyed the characters, the storyline and British narrator Katherine Kellgren. The conclusion was a pleasant surprise. A Desirable Residence is a light, entertaining listen with memorable characters (Liz and daughter Alice, stood out for me). Be sure to share it with your friends.

Madeleine Wickham is also Sophie Kinsella, author of the Shopaholic series.

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