One Plus One

In a small English town, Jess struggles to support Tanzie, her young daughter, and Nicky, the teenage son of her estranged husband. Tanzie, a math genius, gets a partial scholarship to a prestigious private school. In order to afford the remaining tuition, the family sets its hopes on Tanzie winning a math tournament with a hefty first-prize award—but the competition is in Scotland, and the car breaks down before they even get out of town. Their unlikely savior is Ed, a geeky software millionaire. The road trip that follows is full of comic mishaps, poignant moments, and a slowly developing romance between Ed and Jess. The characters, each voiced by a different reader, take turns narrating the chapters. Together the ensemble is pitch-perfect. Elizabeth Bower’s marvelous performance makes Jess a deeply relatable, lovable, flawed character that listeners will root for. Ben Elliot is equally excellent as befuddled Ed, wondering how he got into this crazy situation and gradually realizing his feelings for Jess. Nicola Stanton perfectly captures the innocent young voice of Tanzie: her voice fills with pure joy and enthusiasm as Tanzie does math problems. With memorable characters brought to life by superb narrators, and a well-paced mix of comedy, tragedy, and romance, this is an audiobook that listeners will thoroughly enjoy. A Viking/Pam Dorman hardcover. (July)