Once and Again

Lauren moves back to her childhood home on Malibu's Broad Beach Road for what should be a peaceful summer with her family. Instead, she finds herself confronting both unresolved tensions with her mother and the unexpected return of Stone, her first love who shattered her heart years earlier. The reunion forces Lauren to reckon with the Novak family legacy: each woman possesses the power to turn back time exactly once in her lifetime. Her mother Marcella already used this gift to save Lauren's father, leaving her perpetually anxious about future disasters she cannot prevent. Now Lauren must decide whether the mounting pressures in her life warrant using her own irreversible chance to alter the past.

Julia Whelan's nuanced performance captures the emotional complexity of three generations of women grappling with extraordinary power and ordinary heartbreak. Her voice work distinguishes each character while maintaining the contemplative tone essential to this story about fate, choice, and family bonds. Whelan expertly navigates the shifts between present-day scenes and revelations about the past, allowing listeners to feel the weight of each decision alongside Lauren. The intimate audio format enhances the novel's exploration of internal conflict, making Lauren's ultimate choice feel both inevitable and surprising.