Close Enough to Touch

November 28, 2016
Heart wrenching and humorous, Oakley (Before I Go) delivers an out-of-the-ordinary love story with steady quips and endearing characters. Jubilee Jenkins has a rare malady—she’s allergic to human touch. After a kiss leaves her near death in anaphylaxis, Jubilee retreats to her home and doesn’t leave for nine years. When her mother dies, Jubilee’s only source of income dies with her, and she is forced to face her fears head-on. In her new position at the library, she meets handsome Eric and his troubled young son, Aja. Immediately taken with Jubilee, Eric longs to get closer to her, emotionally and physically, but Jubilee keeps him at arm’s length. She’s attracted to him, but she also knows her condition would make a romantic relationship impossible. Jubilee struggles with new opportunities, possibilities, and chances for an ordinary, allergy-controlled existence, and her journey from recluse to recovery is fascinating, aided by supportive and supporting characters.

Imagine a world in which you can't be touched. How do you show affection? How do you navigate the day-to-day world around you? This extraordinary audiobook introduces Jubilee Jenkins, a young woman with a rare allergy to other humans. After being reclusive for nearly a decade, Jubilee is forced back into the world to find a job. Following a series of obstacles, she begins work at the local library, and her world changes in unexpected ways. Narrated in alternating chapters by Candace Thaxton as Jubilee and Kirby Heyborne as Eric Keegan, the audiobook explores what it means to express love, how to hope even when it seems impossible, and when to stop hiding and open ourselves to the world around us. K.S.M. � AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine