
Never Meant to Meet You
A Novel
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $25.00
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Bahni Turpin
About this listen
From the authors of Tiny Imperfections comes a riotously funny, emotionally real look at race and religion, love and heartache, and the realities of parenting through it all.
Self-appointed fixer of other people’s woes Marjette Lewis is uncharacteristically determined to keep to her side of the driveway when it comes to her flawless neighbor Noa Abrams. Professionally, Marjette has her hands full as she prepares for a new class of kindergarteners and her first year of teaching without her best friend, Judy, as campus “Black-up.” And at home, her son’s budding manhood challenges her expectations, and her vexing ex-husband continues to be a thorn in her side.
But when tragedy strikes Marjette’s street, and an unexpected child shows up on the first day of school with an uncle who has all the class moms aflutter, Marjette is forced to contend with both her neighbor and her own heartache over losing the life she once thought was guaranteed. Through laughter, tears, and the gift of found family, Marjette and Noa navigate the rituals of loss together and discover the strength to remake their lives—whether they meant to or not.
©2022 Alli Frank and Asha Youmans (P)2022 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.Listeners also enjoyed...
-
Tiny Imperfections
- By: Alli Frank, Asha Youmans
- Narrated by: Bahni Turpin
- Length: 10 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
At 39, Josie Bordelon's modeling career as the "it" Black beauty of the '90s is far behind her. Now director of admissions at San Francisco's most sought after private school, she's chic, single, and determined to keep her 17-year-old daughter, Etta, from making the same mistakes she did. But Etta has plans of her own - and their beloved matriarch, Aunt Viv, has Etta's back. If only Josie could manage Etta's future as well as she manages the shenanigans of the over-anxious, over-eager parents at school - or her best friend's attempts to coax Josie back onto the dating scene.
-
-
I wanted to like it
- By Juakikka Hood on 07-24-20
By: Alli Frank, and others
-
Dead Letters from Paradise
- By: Ann McMan
- Narrated by: Christine Williams
- Length: 8 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
One sunny Spring morning, EJ's simple life is turned upside down when the town's master gardener unceremoniously hands her a stack of handwritten letters that have all been addressed to a nonexistent person at the garden. This simple act sets in motion a chain of events that will lead EJ on a life-altering quest to uncover the identity of the mysterious letter writer―and into a surprising head-on confrontation with the harsh realities of the racial injustice that is as deeply rooted in the life of her community as the ancient herbs cultivated in the Moravian garden.
-
-
Perfection
- By AGC on 09-08-22
By: Ann McMan
-
The Getaway
- By: Emily March
- Narrated by: Traci Odom
- Length: 10 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Widowed young, Genevieve Prentice dedicated her life to raising her four children. Now, though, they’re all grown and scattered to the wind, and Genevieve is ready for a change. In a flash of inspiration, she puts her home on the market and heads to Lake in the Clouds, Colorado, to renovate a rustic waterfront lodge with her sister. But just as they begin, Genevieve gets the shock of a lifetime: the arrival of her son.
-
-
Finally A Delightful Book Worth Mentioning
- By JB on 09-08-22
By: Emily March
-
A Place to Land
- By: Lauren K. Denton
- Narrated by: Brittany Pressley
- Length: 8 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Violet Figg and her sister Trudy have lived a quiet life in Sugar Bend ever since a night forty years ago stole Trudy’s voice and cemented Violet’s role as Trudy’s fierce and loyal protector. Now, Trudy spends her days making sculptures from found objects and speaking via notes written on scraps of paper, while Violet runs their art shop, monitors the bird activity up and down the water, and tries not to think of her one great love she gave up in order to keep her sister safe.
-
-
Tedious and unimaginative
- By angela r on 10-19-22
By: Lauren K. Denton
-
Found Object
- By: Anne Frasier
- Narrated by: Eileen Stevens, Perry Daniels
- Length: 8 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Culpable in an exposé gone tragically wrong, investigative journalist Jupiter Bellarose takes her boss’s advice: head back to her hometown for a fluff piece and get her world in balance. But in Savannah, the past is waiting. Twenty years ago Jupiter’s mother, actress and celebrated beauty Marie Nova, was murdered, leaving many in her wake: Jupiter’s father, who has erased memories of his wife’s murder with alcohol. The matriarch of the cosmetics company who helped make Marie a star—and who takes every opportunity to reopen old wounds.
-
-
Rampant with suspects!!!!
- By shelley on 10-21-22
By: Anne Frasier
-
Nowhere Girl
- A Memoir of a Fugitive Childhood
- By: Cheryl Diamond
- Narrated by: Eileen Stevens
- Length: 10 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
By the time she was in her teens, Diamond had lived dozens of lives and lies, but as she grew older, love and trust turned to fear and violence, and her family—the only people she had in the world—began to unravel. She started to realize that her life itself might be a big con, and the people she loved, the most dangerous of all. With no way out and her identity burned so often that she had no proof she even existed, all that was left was a girl from nowhere.
-
-
As Diamond said in an interview, “It is a horrific story at times, but also absolutely magical.”
- By Teela Klekotka on 02-11-23
By: Cheryl Diamond
-
Tiny Imperfections
- By: Alli Frank, Asha Youmans
- Narrated by: Bahni Turpin
- Length: 10 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
At 39, Josie Bordelon's modeling career as the "it" Black beauty of the '90s is far behind her. Now director of admissions at San Francisco's most sought after private school, she's chic, single, and determined to keep her 17-year-old daughter, Etta, from making the same mistakes she did. But Etta has plans of her own - and their beloved matriarch, Aunt Viv, has Etta's back. If only Josie could manage Etta's future as well as she manages the shenanigans of the over-anxious, over-eager parents at school - or her best friend's attempts to coax Josie back onto the dating scene.
-
-
I wanted to like it
- By Juakikka Hood on 07-24-20
By: Alli Frank, and others
-
Dead Letters from Paradise
- By: Ann McMan
- Narrated by: Christine Williams
- Length: 8 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
One sunny Spring morning, EJ's simple life is turned upside down when the town's master gardener unceremoniously hands her a stack of handwritten letters that have all been addressed to a nonexistent person at the garden. This simple act sets in motion a chain of events that will lead EJ on a life-altering quest to uncover the identity of the mysterious letter writer―and into a surprising head-on confrontation with the harsh realities of the racial injustice that is as deeply rooted in the life of her community as the ancient herbs cultivated in the Moravian garden.
-
-
Perfection
- By AGC on 09-08-22
By: Ann McMan
-
The Getaway
- By: Emily March
- Narrated by: Traci Odom
- Length: 10 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Widowed young, Genevieve Prentice dedicated her life to raising her four children. Now, though, they’re all grown and scattered to the wind, and Genevieve is ready for a change. In a flash of inspiration, she puts her home on the market and heads to Lake in the Clouds, Colorado, to renovate a rustic waterfront lodge with her sister. But just as they begin, Genevieve gets the shock of a lifetime: the arrival of her son.
-
-
Finally A Delightful Book Worth Mentioning
- By JB on 09-08-22
By: Emily March
-
A Place to Land
- By: Lauren K. Denton
- Narrated by: Brittany Pressley
- Length: 8 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Violet Figg and her sister Trudy have lived a quiet life in Sugar Bend ever since a night forty years ago stole Trudy’s voice and cemented Violet’s role as Trudy’s fierce and loyal protector. Now, Trudy spends her days making sculptures from found objects and speaking via notes written on scraps of paper, while Violet runs their art shop, monitors the bird activity up and down the water, and tries not to think of her one great love she gave up in order to keep her sister safe.
-
-
Tedious and unimaginative
- By angela r on 10-19-22
By: Lauren K. Denton
-
Found Object
- By: Anne Frasier
- Narrated by: Eileen Stevens, Perry Daniels
- Length: 8 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Culpable in an exposé gone tragically wrong, investigative journalist Jupiter Bellarose takes her boss’s advice: head back to her hometown for a fluff piece and get her world in balance. But in Savannah, the past is waiting. Twenty years ago Jupiter’s mother, actress and celebrated beauty Marie Nova, was murdered, leaving many in her wake: Jupiter’s father, who has erased memories of his wife’s murder with alcohol. The matriarch of the cosmetics company who helped make Marie a star—and who takes every opportunity to reopen old wounds.
-
-
Rampant with suspects!!!!
- By shelley on 10-21-22
By: Anne Frasier
-
Nowhere Girl
- A Memoir of a Fugitive Childhood
- By: Cheryl Diamond
- Narrated by: Eileen Stevens
- Length: 10 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
By the time she was in her teens, Diamond had lived dozens of lives and lies, but as she grew older, love and trust turned to fear and violence, and her family—the only people she had in the world—began to unravel. She started to realize that her life itself might be a big con, and the people she loved, the most dangerous of all. With no way out and her identity burned so often that she had no proof she even existed, all that was left was a girl from nowhere.
-
-
As Diamond said in an interview, “It is a horrific story at times, but also absolutely magical.”
- By Teela Klekotka on 02-11-23
By: Cheryl Diamond
-
Impossible To Forget
- By: Imogen Clark
- Narrated by: Bronwen Price
- Length: 11 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Just turned eighteen, Romany is on the cusp of taking her first steps into adulthood when tragedy strikes, and she finds herself suddenly alone without her mother, Angie, the only parent she has ever known. In her final letter, Angie has charged her four closest friends with guiding Romany through her last year of school—but is there an ulterior motive to her unusual dying wish? Each of the four guardians possesses an outlook on life that Angie wants to give her daughter as a legacy.
-
-
Rather Boring...
- By M. Hutton on 08-05-22
By: Imogen Clark
-
The Codebreaker's Secret
- By: Sara Ackerman
- Narrated by: Jennifer Robideau
- Length: 9 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A brilliant female codebreaker. An “unbreakable” Japanese naval code. A pilot on a top-secret mission that could change the course of WWII. The Codebreaker's Secret is a dazzling story of love and intrigue set during America’s darkest hour.
-
-
false advertising
- By Bird Miller on 09-14-22
By: Sara Ackerman
-
Well Behaved Wives
- A Novel
- By: Amy Sue Nathan
- Narrated by: Tavia Gilbert, Gail Shalan
- Length: 9 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Law school graduate and newlywed Ruth Appelbaum is acclimating to life and marriage in a posh Philadelphia neighborhood. She’ll do almost anything to endear herself to her mother-in-law, who’s already signed up Ruth for etiquette lessons conducted by the impeccably accessorized tutor Lillian Diamond. But Ruth brings something fresh to the small circle of housewives—sharp wit, honesty, and an independent streak that won’t be compromised.
-
-
Excellent
- By nancy M on 12-02-22
By: Amy Sue Nathan
-
Forsaken Country
- By: Allen Eskens
- Narrated by: Brian Troxell
- Length: 11 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Max Rupert has left his position as a Minneapolis homicide detective to live in solitude. Mourning the tragic death of his wife, he's also racked by guilt—he alone knows what happened to her killer. But then the former local sheriff, Lyle Voight, arrives with a desperate plea: Lyle’s daughter Sandy and his six-year-old grandson Pip have disappeared. Lyle’s certain Sandy's ex-husband Reed is behind it, but the new sheriff is refusing to investigate. When Max reluctantly looks into their disappearance, he too becomes convinced something has gone very wrong.
-
-
Solid crime drama
- By Volleyball Gal on 11-11-22
By: Allen Eskens
-
Two Parts Sugar, One Part Murder
- Baker Mysteries, Book 1
- By: Valerie Burns
- Narrated by: Jasmin Walker
- Length: 6 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Maddy Montgomery’s groom is a no-show to their livestream wedding, it’s a disaster that no amount of filtering can fix. But a surprise inheritance offers a chance to regroup and rebrand—as long as Maddy is willing to live in her late, great-aunt Octavia’s house in New Bison, Michigan, for a year, running her bakery and caring for a 250-pound English mastiff named Baby. Maddy feels ready to tackle any challenge, including Octavia’s award-winning cake recipes. That is, until New Bison’s mayor is fatally stabbed, and Maddy’s fingerprints are found on the knife.…
-
-
Too much hash tag
- By Readaholic on 09-07-22
By: Valerie Burns
-
Take It from Me
- A Novel
- By: Jamie Beck
- Narrated by: Ann Richardson, Angela Dawe
- Length: 10 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Wendy Moore hides her collection of pilfered bric-a-brac from everyone, including her husband. He thinks she licked her kleptomania in therapy more than a decade ago. Therapy did help, as did focusing her attention on motherhood. But now Wendy’s gardening and furniture-refinishing hobbies fill up only so much of the day, leaving the recent empty nester lonely and anxious—a combination likely to trigger her little problem. She needs a project, fast. Luckily, Harper Ross—a single, childless younger woman in desperate need of highlights—just moved in next door.
-
-
Friendship & exposed secrets
- By LydiaJ on 09-23-22
By: Jamie Beck
-
The Invincible Miss Cust
- A Novel
- By: Penny Haw
- Narrated by: Lucy Rayner
- Length: 11 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Aleen Cust has big dreams. And no one―not her family, society, or the law―will stop her. Born in Ireland in 1868 to an aristocratic English family, Aleen knows she is destined to work with animals, even if her family is appalled by the idea of a woman pursuing a veterinary career. Going against their wishes but with the encouragement of the guardian assigned to her upon her father’s death, Aleen attends the New Veterinary College in Edinburgh, enrolling as A. I. Custance to spare her family the humiliation they fear.
-
-
Unassuming
- By Candace Bank on 04-19-23
By: Penny Haw
-
Remember the Time
- By: Tay Mo'nae
- Narrated by: Ja'Air Bush, Tony Isabella
- Length: 6 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Imagine one day you're happily preparing for the birth of your first child with your fiancée, then BOOM, in a blink of an eye, everything changes. That is Zachary's reality. For almost two years, his fiancée has disappeared after a terrible accident. Without knowing where she is or if she survived, Zachary is left in a mental terminal within his mind until one day, his fiancée returns. But there's only one problem: she doesn't remember him or the life they once shared. Find out if Zachary can rekindle the love and memories he and his fiancée once shared.
-
-
I’m a fan!
- By Relly-Rell Reads on 10-05-22
By: Tay Mo'nae
-
Where Wild Peaches Grow
- A Novel
- By: Cade Bentley
- Narrated by: Bahni Turpin
- Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Nona “Peaches” Davenport, abandoned by the man she loved and betrayed by family, left her Natchez, Mississippi, home fifteen years ago and never looked back. She’s forged a promising future in Chicago as a professor of African American Studies. Nona even finds her once-closed heart persuaded by a new love. But that’s all shaken when her father’s death forces her to return to everything she’s tried to forget.
-
-
Not an interesting plot
- By Danyett S. Armstrong on 12-29-22
By: Cade Bentley
-
The Second Time We Met
- By: Frances Mensah Williams
- Narrated by: Remmie Milner
- Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Recovering from heartbreak, unlucky-in-love events manager Cara has vowed to avoid relationships. That is until fate throws her into the path of handsome and kind Henry, who is worlds apart from the men she’s dated before. Unfortunately, this encounter is short-lived when Cara misses her coach home—and with it, any chance of seeing him again. But fate is not finished with the mismatched couple.
-
-
Reflecting my culture
- By KC on 08-31-22
-
Remarkably Bright Creatures
- A Novel
- By: Shelby Van Pelt
- Narrated by: Marin Ireland, Michael Urie
- Length: 11 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
After Tova Sullivan’s husband died, she began working the night shift at the Sowell Bay Aquarium, mopping floors and tidying up. Keeping busy has always helped her cope, which she’s been doing since her eighteen-year-old son, Erik, mysteriously vanished on a boat in Puget Sound over thirty years ago. Tova becomes acquainted with curmudgeonly Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus living at the aquarium. Marcellus knows more than anyone can imagine but wouldn’t dream of lifting one of his eight arms for his human captors—until he forms a remarkable friendship with Tova.
-
-
Hidden gem, incredible narration!
- By Christine T on 05-17-22
By: Shelby Van Pelt
-
A Man Called Ove
- A Novel
- By: Fredrik Backman
- Narrated by: J. K. Simmons
- Length: 9 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Meet Ove. He’s a curmudgeon—the kind of man who points at people he dislikes as if they were burglars caught outside his bedroom window. He has staunch principles, strict routines, and a short fuse. But behind the cranky exterior there is a story and a sadness. So when one November morning a chatty young couple with two chatty young daughters move in next door and accidentally flatten Ove’s mailbox, it is the lead-in to a comical and heartwarming tale of unkempt cats, unexpected friendship, and the ancient art of backing up a U-Haul.
-
-
By Far the Best Narrator of a Book I've Had
- By WanderLaw on 04-05-20
By: Fredrik Backman
Critic reviews
“Narrator Bahni Turpin depicts Noa and Marjette’s deepening friendship, employing her chameleon-like facility for accents and voices to portray a wide range of characters, from Max, Noa’s handsome brother, to five-year-old Esty. Turpin’s sensitive narration immerses listeners in Marjette’s world, empathetically revealing her ongoing struggles to recover from her divorce and reclaim her life.”—Library Journal
“As these neighboring families blend, the authors do a good job exploring the common ground between African American and Jewish experiences: the characters feel like real people with racial and religious identities that inform their worldviews, but don’t define them…It’s an impressive feat sure to move romance fans and women’s fiction readers alike.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Friendship and romance go hand in hand in this warm, engaging story that should appeal to readers who enjoy novels by Susan Wiggs and Debbie Macomber.”—Library Journal
“[A] sparkling story of unlikely friendship.”—Booklist
What listeners say about Never Meant to Meet You
Highly rated for:
Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Darlin
- 01-31-23
A good story of friendship
Not my normal cup of tea and I will not be searching for books like this in the future. I honestly would have put it down after the 1st hour or so if not for the magic that is Bahni Turpin, my absolute favorite narrator who can bring characters to life in a way so few can. it you enjoy sappy friendship/love stories this should be your next read.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
16 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Tamara Rorie
- 10-18-22
Fabulously fun
This book was totally unrealistic, but it was such a fabulously fun read that it earned five stars anyway.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Kindle Customer
- 06-07-23
Delightful
And warm. Characters were authentic and human and fun. Just enough sadness and gladness. Ended well. Perfect narrator.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Rebecca Martens
- 12-05-23
The raw, honest truth
Reading this book made me look at some of my own life behaviors and change them. The story and the characters were laugh out loud funny and also very sincere and insightful. Thank you.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Leslie H.
- 01-11-23
Gem of a read
This is one of the best books I could have read to start my new year. We may not always understand why things happen, but just because one chapter of our life has ended does not mean our story is over, in fact, the best part of our story could be something even better than imagined!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
5 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Kirsten Zaremba
- 02-14-23
What a joy!
I’m a huge fan of Bonnie Turpin and picked this book because of her. So glad I did. It was a lovely story about the family you choose and how important they are in life!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- topcitydiva
- 06-06-23
Funny & engaging
Bahni Turpin is an exceptional narrator. she brings audio books to life!
This is a funny yet drama filled novel. I enjoyed it.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Hyacinth L. Hewan
- 12-14-23
Great Story
I truly enjoyed listening to this book.
It will make you LOL in one minute and next you find yourself tearing up. Great reminder that we more than the color of our skin.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- impressed
- 01-13-24
Every day people
Pretty predictable but enjoyable too! I enjoyed the everyday life of the book. No stress at all.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 07-04-23
I love Bonnie Turpin’s awesome narration!!
I love Bonnie Turpin’s awesome narration!! She really knows how to bring characters alive! This was a delightful sweet story.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!