There are numerous popular authors out there whom I just don’t read for one reason or another. In the case of Fern Michaels, I had heard of her before her books popped up on the reviewer copy list. Thinking this was the perfect way to see if I would like her, I dove in. After The Final Storm, which is the second book of hers I listened to recently, I think I’ll be skipping her from now on.

Charlotte Gray is a wildlife photographer who travels the world to get the pictures that grace the pages of various nature magazines. While she’s on location in Costa Rica with Alex, her longtime friend and sometimes assistant, Hurricane Ivan heads for the Florida coast where Charlotte’s estranged mother lives in an assisted living facility. The two move heaven and earth to try to find her and get her evacuated before it’s too late.

The book then goes back to Charlotte’s younger days to explain the estrangement between her and her mother. Elsie. Growing up, Elsie was not a good mother. She kept a roof over Charlotte’s head, but that was about it. There was no nurturing relationship. It seemed like at every turn, Elsie took the opportunity to denigrate her daughter. This is despite the fact that Elsie won money in the lottery and could have done a great deal more for Charlotte. It takes a village for Charlotte to grow up and find her interest in photography. The night of her high school graduation, she leaves home for Savannah, Georgia, and doesn’t look back.

Charlotte becomes an established wildlife photographer after graduation. She’s enjoying her career, although she laments that it doesn’t allow much time for a relationship. While in Las Vegas, she has a chance meeting with Grant. He’s a bit older than Charlotte but is intelligent and easy to talk to. The two hit it off and begin dating.

However, there are warning signs that Charlotte ignores. When she finds out she’s pregnant, the two elope. Grant has kept numerous secrets from Charlotte that he only reveals when he’s forced to. Those secrets happen to include a crazy ex-wife and twins.

I don’t know what the point of The Final Storm was. It wasn’t really a romance novel. At the end, Charlotte is with Alex, who was hardly in the book at all. There was no background on what he was doing while it took her time to come around to the fact that your best friend could also be the person you love. Alex is just there with no depth to his character at all. The bulk of the book is about Charlotte and then Charlotte and Grant. The warning signs were there numerous times that Grant was hiding things from her, and Charlotte just ignores them until she can’t anymore. I got frustrated with Charlotte numerous times.

Add in circumstances that don’t always make sense, and, well, The Final Storm is rather disappointing. I could poke holes in so many of the events in the book that it didn’t give me a sense that it was real. One example is when Charlotte and Grant’s daughter is kidnapped, and the kidnappers head for the Canadian border. They are stopped before crossing, ostensibly by a sharp customs officer. However, when you cross the border, you only encounter a Canadian customs official. It’s coming back into this country that you would have encountered one in the United States. That’s just one of a number of glaring errors that took me out of the story.

The audiobook narration was done by Lizzie Wofford. She does a great job with the material, and I can’t fault her at all for why I didn’t enjoy the book. It just didn’t have a realistic feel to me, and I couldn’t get into the characters at all. Charlotte should have heeded the warning signs early on with Grant, but she doesn’t. It’s not really explained what changes in her that she sees Alex as more than a friend. It just happens, and readers are supposed to accept it.

The Final Storm is billed as a mystery or thriller, but I didn’t see it as either. I gave Fern Michaels two chances, and she hasn’t convinced me. I’ll be bypassing her books from now on.

Note: Thank you to NetGalley, Kensington Publishing, and author Fern Michaels for the advance reader copy of this book. This review will also be posted on NetGalley. What follows is my unbiased review of the book.