
The Exception to the Rule
The Improbable Meet-Cute Collection
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Narrated by:
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Marli Watson
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Andrew Gibson
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By:
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Christina Lauren
About this listen
On February 14, an accidental email to a stranger opens the door to an unexpected relationship in a captivating short story by the New York Times bestselling authors of The Unhoneymooners.
One typo, and a boy and girl connect by chance. Wishing each other a happy Valentine’s Day isn’t the end. In fact, it becomes a friendly annual tradition—with rules: no pics, no real names, nothing too personal. As years pass, the rules for their email “dates” are breaking, and they’re sharing more than they imagined—including the urge to ask…what if we actually met?
Christina Lauren’s The Exception to the Rule is part of The Improbable Meet-Cute, irresistibly romantic stories about finding love when and where you least expect it. They can be read or listened to in one sitting. Let’s make a date of it.
©2024 Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings. (P)2023 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.Listeners also enjoyed...
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Evidence of the Affair
- By: Taylor Jenkins Reid
- Narrated by: Julia Whelan, George Newbern, James Daniels, and others
- Length: 1 hr and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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The correspondence between Carrie Allsop and David Mayer reveals, piece by piece, the painful details of a devastating affair between their spouses. With each commiserating scratch of the pen, they confess their fears and bare their souls. They share the bewilderment over how things went so wrong and come to wonder where to go from here. Told entirely through the letters of two comforting strangers and those of two illicit lovers, Evidence of the Affair explores the complex nature of the heart. And ultimately, for one woman, how liberating it can be when it’s broken.
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AN INCREDIBLE EMOTIONAL EXPERIENCE!
- By Kindle Customer on 01-16-19
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The Fall Risk
- A Short Story
- By: Abby Jimenez
- Narrated by: Julia Whelan, Connor Crais
- Length: 1 hr and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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It’s Valentine’s Day weekend, and Charlotte and Seth are not looking for romance. Armed with emotional-support bear spray, Charlotte is in self-imposed isolation and on guard from men. Having a stalker can do that to a person’s nerves. Just across the hall and giving off woodsy vibes is Seth, a recently divorced arborist. As in today recently. Heights, he’s fine with. Trust? Not so much.
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More of a dramedy
- By 🔥 Phx17 🔥 on 03-03-25
By: Abby Jimenez
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Roomies
- By: Christina Lauren
- Narrated by: K. C. Sheridan
- Length: 9 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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Rescued by Calvin McLoughlin from a would-be subway attacker, Holland Bakker pays the brilliant musician back by pulling some of her errand-girl strings and getting him an audition with a big-time musical director. When the tryout goes better than even Holland could have imagined, Calvin is set for a great entry into Broadway - until he admits his student visa has expired and he's in the country illegally. Holland impulsively offers to wed the Irishman to keep him in New York, her growing infatuation a secret only to him.
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I need an Encore
- By Albertina Green on 12-08-17
By: Christina Lauren
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The Bookstore Sisters
- The Once Upon a Time Bookshop Stories
- By: Alice Hoffman
- Narrated by: Jennifer Jill Araya
- Length: 1 hr and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Isabel Gibson has all but perfected the art of forgetting. She’s a New Yorker now, with nothing left to tie her to Brinkley’s Island, Maine. Her parents are gone, the family bookstore is all but bankrupt, and her sister, Sophie, will probably never speak to her again. But when a mysterious letter arrives in her mailbox, Isabel feels herself drawn to the past. After years of fighting for her independence, she dreads the thought of going back to the island.
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The Bookstore Sisters
- By GSmith on 11-21-22
By: Alice Hoffman
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Josh and Hazel's Guide to Not Dating
- By: Christina Lauren
- Narrated by: Todd Haberkorn, Jayme Mattler
- Length: 7 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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Foul-mouthed, quirky, sharp-as-a-whip Hazel never thought she would win the heart of her gorgeous college TA, Josh. And, in fact, she didn’t. But what a difference 10 years can make. Well...10 years, and a lot of legwork.
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The male narrator was just terrible
- By MMP on 02-12-19
By: Christina Lauren
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The Soulmate Equation
- By: Christina Lauren
- Narrated by: Patti Murin
- Length: 10 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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Single mom Jess Davis is a data and statistics wizard, but no amount of number crunching can convince her to step back into the dating world. After all, her father was never around, her hard-partying mother disappeared when she was six, and her ex decided he wasn’t “father material” before her daughter was even born. Jess holds her loved ones close but working constantly to stay afloat is hard...and lonely. But then Jess hears about GeneticAlly, a buzzy new DNA-based matchmaking company that’s predicted to change dating forever.
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Love love love
- By Alexandra Patterson on 05-19-21
By: Christina Lauren
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The True Love Experiment
- By: Christina Lauren
- Narrated by: Jonathan Cole, Cindy Kay
- Length: 10 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Felicity “Fizzy” Chen is lost. Sure, she’s got an incredible career as a beloved romance novelist with a slew of bestsellers under her belt, but when she’s asked to give a commencement address, it hits her: she hasn’t been practicing what she’s preached. Fizzy hasn’t ever really been in love. Connor Prince, documentary filmmaker and single father, loves his work but when his profit-minded boss orders him to create a reality TV show, Connor is out of his element. Desperate to find his romantic lead, a chance run-in with an exasperated Fizzy offers Connor the perfect solution.
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I hate Cindy Kay’s voice so much I have to listen at 3x speed
- By Shelby Sundwall on 05-17-23
By: Christina Lauren
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Dammi Mille Baci (Give me a Thousand Kisses) Horse Whisperer’s story—Sweet Equestrian Romance
- Vienna Calling Book 1
- By: Hyunah KIM
- Narrated by: Virtual Voice
- Length: 8 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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*** Global Book Awards 2024 SILVER MEDAL WINNER for Contemporary Romance *** She is madly in love. But he can’t see past his pain. Will he ever open up to her? Can a man with a tortured past allow himself to be loved? Axel, a striking young artist, haunted by his childhood trauma, finds peace within himself through art – expressing himself on canvas – and through the company of his favourite horse. His torment becomes the source of his inspiration to paint. One night, Hyunah stumbles into his atelier, igniting a spark neither of them could foresee. He takes her out to discover Vienna ...
By: Hyunah KIM
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Never Kiss The Cowboy Next Door
- A Brother's Best Friend, Small Town Sweet Romance
- By: Olivia Sage
- Narrated by: Virtual Voice
- Length: 6 hrs
- Unabridged
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My best friend’s brother moved in next door, and did I mention he was my childhood crush. I’m a single Mom stuck working a dead-end job, and he’s cowboy who’s down on his luck. Why are we being drawn together? The last thing I want is to interfere with Jackson’s return to the cowboy lifestyle. But he's only next door, and I cannot avoid him any longer. I feel something between us, is it compassion for the other’s struggle, or passion for each other? I can think of a hundred different explanations for how dangerous of an idea this is. I’m a widow who is ten years younger, and ...
By: Olivia Sage
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Cruel Winter with You
- Under the Mistletoe Collection
- By: Ali Hazelwood
- Narrated by: Vivienne LaRue
- Length: 2 hrs
- Unabridged
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All newly minted pediatrician Jamie Malek wants is to borrow a roasting pan for Christmas dinner. Unfortunately, that requires her to interact with Marc—her best friend’s troublemaking brother, who’s now a tech billionaire. He’s the one who got away. She’s the one who broke his heart. Outside, a howling blizzard. Inside, a crackling fire. Suddenly, being snowbound with the man she never expected to see again might not be such a bad way to spend a winter’s night.
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Endless insecurities and translation fails
- By 🔥 Phx17 🔥 on 11-12-24
By: Ali Hazelwood
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Something Wilder
- By: Christina Lauren
- Narrated by: Patti Murin, Jon Root, Christina Lauren
- Length: 9 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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Growing up the daughter of notorious treasure hunter and absentee father Duke Wilder left Lily without much patience for the profession…or much money in the bank. But Lily is resourceful, and now uses Duke’s coveted hand-drawn maps to guide tourists on fake treasure hunts through the red rock canyons of Utah. It pays the bills but doesn’t leave enough to fulfill her dream of buying back the beloved ranch her father sold years ago, and definitely not enough to deal with the sight of the man she once loved walking back into her life with a motley crew of friends ready to hit the trails.
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I was surprised…
- By Gillian on 05-23-22
By: Christina Lauren
What listeners say about The Exception to the Rule
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- SkySky
- 01-29-24
Perfect
This made me absolutely giddy. I will be reading this again. Excited for the rest of the books in this mini novella series.
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- Fallon Smith
- 01-25-24
It’s Perfect!!
5 Stars! I am normally not one for novellas or short stories so I was hesitant but Christina Lauren should never be doubted. This was absolutely adorable and I loved every second of it! Perfect Valentine’s Day read! It felt like you watched your favorite rom com!
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1 person found this helpful
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- Angie Rodriguez
- 02-08-24
Such a cute story
I loved this book! The story was sweet and the characters were so endearing. It goes by quick—the characters are so engrossing.
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- NightRunner
- 02-08-24
Read past 50%
4.5 Stars for me!!
I thoroughly enjoyed the story and will listen to the next book in the series. This story takes place over several years and is mostly back and forth email. When I first started listening, I thought that I would hate it but was pleasantly surprised. Give it to the 50 percent mark if you are prepared to DNF the story.
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- Lauren Smith
- 01-25-24
The dual POV
I absolutely loved this! It was so cute 🥰 the audiobook was fun to listen to while I was working.
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- Better with audiobooks
- 02-01-24
Perfect feel good Valentine’s Day story
I loved everything about this story. It was super sweet and fun. The narrator’s were fantastic and the way Christina Lauren was able to cover so many topics in a short story was perfection. The only thing that makes me sad is I wish it was a full length book so I could learn more about T and C!
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- crusader93
- 02-06-24
Fun Short Story!
I enjoy many of the authors featured in this series of short stories and was pleased CL started it off! The story was fun, lighthearted, and had a great HEA. I’ll admit it was a little slow in the beginning (which isn’t very long in a short), but things really picked up! The narration was perfect!
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- Kimberly
- 01-24-24
So cute and no drama
Sometimes romance novels get tiresome because of all the unnecessary drama. This story was short and sweet and I loved how it unfolded.
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- Books4litsouls
- 02-07-24
cute story
the concept is so cute 😍 I find it a little you got Mail without the competition
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- Michael Garner
- 03-25-24
Good Fun
This story had all the elements of a good story including shared history, mutual support, and flirty intrigue. The email address talking is always a little tedious but it was done as well as can be expected. I liked the characters and the situations but the meet was nearly unrealistic but made the story that much better.
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