Clara’s Verdict
Lily Seabrooke has built a genuine and loyal following in sapphic romance, and If It’s Meant to Be — the opening instalment of The Bayview Romances series — shows exactly why. It is warm, character-driven, and populated by a supporting cast that feels like a real community rather than narrative wallpaper. Ellie Gossage’s narration brings out the emotional texture of the central relationship with real skill, and at eight hours the pacing is exactly right: enough time to become genuinely invested in Emberlynn and Aria without overstaying its welcome. This is a book that opens a series you will want to follow, which is precisely what a series opener should do.
What distinguishes Seabrooke from a crowded field is her emotional intelligence. She is genuinely interested in why her characters behave as they do, and that interest produces nuance rather than the broad romantic strokes that can flatten the genre. The obstacles here are real obstacles, not misunderstandings that a five-minute conversation would resolve.
About the Audiobook
Freelance producer Emberlynn is comfortably settled into small-town Bayview life when her best friend Paisley’s older sister Aria arrives, needing somewhere to stay after a break-up and the implosion of her New York life. Aria is sleek, guarded, professionally purposeful, and distractingly attractive — and she is, technically, off-limits. Emberlynn’s best friend’s older sister is not someone you develop feelings for if you value the friendship. The two women end up as next-door neighbours on adjacent balconies, reluctant co-workers on their respective freelance projects, and gradually something rather more than either of them intended.
Seabrooke’s skill is in the emotional realism she brings to the obstacles. Aria’s reasons for caution are not manufactured drama or convenient misunderstanding but genuinely understandable: she is starting over, she does not want to complicate Paisley’s relationship with Emberlynn, and she has learned from experience to protect herself. Emberlynn’s situation is more complicated beneath her warm surface than it initially appears. The pacing is generous with the slow build — readers who value genuine romantic tension will be rewarded — and the large supporting cast of friends, each with their own personality and their own story to tell in future books, gives the whole series premise a pleasantly addictive quality. Contains mature themes, which on the Audible listing means explicit content; worth noting if you plan to listen in public.
The Narration
Ellie Gossage is well cast here, capturing Emberlynn’s surface warmth and the anxiety underneath it with equal conviction. She handles the sapphic chemistry with naturalness rather than performance, which matters enormously in a book whose emotional core depends on the listener buying the slow-burn attraction over many hours. The sibling dynamic between Aria and Paisley — described by one reviewer as spot-on sibling rivalry — has a screwball energy that Gossage enjoys audibly. Multiple supporting characters are clearly differentiated without caricature. The Tantor Media production is professional throughout the eight-hour runtime.
What Readers Say
JB called it « the scene-setting for a friendship group you’d love to be part of » and highlighted the sibling rivalry as a particular standout. Handy Andy appreciated Seabrooke’s insight into each character’s emotional landscape, finding the way « issues develop » organic rather than contrived. Looby Lou enjoyed the repeated hello-and-goodbye rhythm of Emberlynn and Aria’s cautious circling — « a totally charming book as always from Lily. » One more measured reviewer (Book Reader 78) enjoyed the characters but found the plot took too long to deliver on its central promise — worth knowing if you prefer a faster pace. Rated 4.5 out of 5 from 783 Audible UK reviews — a substantial and genuinely telling number.
Who Should Listen?
Listeners who enjoy contemporary sapphic romance with emotional depth and a genuine slow burn rather than a rushed emotional arc. If you have read Lily Seabrooke’s other work, this is characteristic of her strengths: the community of friends feels lived-in, and the central relationship earns its resolution. For those new to her writing, this is a natural entry point — warm, occasionally funny, and emotionally satisfying. The series structure means you will likely want to continue into the subsequent Bayview Romances after finishing, which should probably be factored into your listening plans.
Listen on Audible UK: Get If It’s Meant to Be on Audible UK
