The Snowbirds ⭐⭐⭐💫

The Snowbirds by Christina Clancy

Cute Cover. Very Palm Springs.

G👀dreads About Summary
...a couple who flee winter in the Midwest for Palm Springs, where they find their relationship at a crossroads.

Kim and Grant are at a turning point. A couple for thirty years, their "separate but together" partnership is running up against the realities of late middle age: Grant’s mother has died, the college where he taught philosophy was shuttered, and their twin girls are grown and gone. Escaping the bitter cold of a Midwestern winter for the hot desert sun of Palm Springs seems as good a solution as any to the more intractable problems they face.

When they arrive at Le Desert, a quirky condo community where everyone knows everyone’s business, Kim immediately embraces the opportunity to make new friends and explore a more adventurous side of her personality. Meanwhile, Grant struggles to find his footing in this unfamiliar landscape, leaving Kim to wonder if their relationship can survive the snowbird season. But when Grant goes missing on a hike in the Palm Springs mountains, Kim is forced to consider two terrifying outcomes: either Grant is truly lost, or this time he’s really left her.

Is it ever too late to become the person we wanted to be—and is there still time to change into someone better? The exhilarating, but often confusing transitions of midlife are pitched against the promise and glamour of Palm Springs in this tender, honest story of what it takes to commit to someone for a lifetime. With compassion and humor, Clancy explores the redemptive power of finding ourselves, and of being found.

Genre: Fiction, Romance, Mystery, Chick Lit

The How/Why: 🤷 I think it popped up on Libby when I was looking for something else. Possibly suggested because I liked another Palm Springs story That's What Friends are For by Wade Rouse (5 Star). 
On a personal note - my in-laws were snowbirds in Palm Springs so the City and the quirky residents appeal to me. 
Plus still strolling through Paris museums and need a sidekick:
I don't typically listen to two books at a time but I needed something Chick Flick-ish to supplement Mona's Eyes. Apparently I can't only take art history in smaller doses!  

⭐⭐⭐💫

🎉 Overall Storytelling? 🎉 🎉 🎉 

🎣 Did it grab and keep my attention? 🎣🎣🎣

🗣️Would I recommend it to anyone? Maybe 🤷 If you enjoy a colorful cast of characters more so than the main protagonists. 

🕮 Would I want a sequel? No ➖ 

📚 Would I want to read more books by this author?  Yes ➕ Shoulder Season is on my TBR. 

💣💥 📢 Content Warnings? Google says: MiŞŞinᵷ Pɇrs0ns & Disɐppeɐrɐnce, Em0tionąl Ⱥbɐnd0nmɇnt, Ǥriɇf, ℳidℒife ƇriŞiŞ

🌶 Spice? Very low like sprinkle of pepper

🌪 Plot Twist? No

👟 Pace? Uneven

💻 Tidbits ~
I loved the Palm Springs Vibe.
I loved the quirky neighbors.
I wanted to be friends with The Husbands.
I totally related to the  sweet elderly couple next door. She has dementia and they embrace every holiday as if it's their last.
I adored the ex-husband and his mother.
I think I've encountered the downtown clothing store owner encouraging her to try on the dress and laying out shoes to slip into!  
But... Not a big fan of the main characters. Kim and Grant have been together for 30 years and have twin young adult daughters. They have a very toxic relationship so they never officially tied the knot. They have a history of her flying off the handle and him disappearing on a walk-about. Their relationship teeters on the cross streets of unstable and unreliable. But they love each other so they keep trying. I was over it with their drama and reactions to each other's actions fairy quickly. 

It isn't dual timeline, it's more like a lot of flashbacks exploring their relationship. I would have preferred a more linear timeline. 

The entertaining supporting cast carried the story for me. I actually couldn't get enough of the mother-in-law. 
I was also intrigued by the Palm Springs Snowbird lifestyle because my in-laws were Palm Springs Snowbirds and lived in a complex similar to Le Desert, complete with whacky neighbors, except they were patio homes instead of condos. Po-ta-toe, Pa-tat-toe.
Christina Clancy got the vibe spot on. (Do people still say spot on?) 

I listened to the audiobook narrated by Karissa Vacker and Graham Halstead. KV was primary gets two thumbs up for her multiple character voices.

🎧 Narrator: Graham Halstead, Karissa Vacker

🎧10.18 hours (Libby) 🕮 304 pages

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