The Making of Jackson Parrish is a tightly constructed, fast-paced audiobook original prequel to Liv Constantine’s bestselling novel The Last Mrs. Parrish. This audiobook might be short, but it still delivers an action-packed and compelling origin story—foreshadowing how Jackson Parrish became the manipulative, power-obsessed villain in The Last Mrs. Parrish!
This story begins in Chicago, where Jackson is working in a low-level position at his father’s company. An affair with his colleague escalates into a scandal that ruptures Jackson’s already fractured relationship with his father. Cast out by his father and shielded by his protective mother, Jackson is shipped off to Greece. In Greece, he falls under the wing of Stavros Demaris, a charismatic and dangerously influential figure. Through Stavros, Jackson is introduced to a world of Mediterranean luxury—yachts in Mykonos, parties, & the intoxicating allure of power and wealth!
The story is told mostly from Jackson’s POV, giving listeners direct access to his charm, narcissistic tendencies, resentment towards his father, and growing ruthlessness. He’s an unreliable narrator—especially when it comes to his stance on personal relationships—but he’s also brutally honest in his justifications, which makes him captivating! Jackson’s mother is blind to his true manipulative nature and constantly coddles him—her decision to send Jackson away for “reflection and reset” catalyzes his transformation. On Mykonos, his worldly mentor, Stavros Demaris, is a man who embodies both opportunity and corruption—Stavros’s tragic backstory fuelled him to become a powerful manipulator, and Jackson is in awe of him. Stavros becomes not only a mentor but also part father figure and part tempter for Jackson—and his presence constantly looms over Jackson’s choices!
The book has some major themes—Jackson’s ambition and reinvention showcase how he’s able to build an identity and power using menace and charm. The seduction of power, wealth, and status is at the heart of the story—and they become a drug for Jackson that he can’t get enough of—and relationships become the means to an end instead of something meaningful. The story also shows a more human side to Jackson—he has never recovered from the loss and grief of his first love, Lily, and no love interest he meets compares to her.
The atmospheric Mykonos setting is the perfect backdrop for a seduction story of wealth and power with its hum of parties, luxury yachts, and intoxicating wealth. All the dazzling sites are masking the moral rot going on around the island—mirroring Jackson’s own morally black interior hiding behind his striking appearance.
At just under four hours, the audiobook is tightly paced—there are no filler scenes, major subplots, or repetitive dialogue/inner monologues. Every scene moves the story forward and drives Jackson further into his obsession with power, wealth, status—and ultimately full independence from his father! The audiobook literally flies by—and listeners might crave a longer exploration of Jackson’s early years, as the story is so interesting and addictive! It’s important to know that this is more of a character study of Jackson, and although there are some twists and turns, don’t expect anything jaw-dropping like you’d get in a full-length novel!
Overall, The Making of Jackson Parrish is a compelling origin story and the perfect companion piece to The Last Mrs. Parrish. This is a must-listen for fans of Constantine’s work, villain origin stories, and fast-paced psychological drama thrillers that are binge-worthy!
Narrator Performance
The audiobook of The Making Of Jackson Parrish is performed by seasoned narrators Scott Brick, Ari Fliakos, and Suzanne Elise Freeman.
Scott Brick’s performance is the heart of the audiobook, portraying Jackson’s POV. Brick performs every single line with commanding intensity and ever-shifting expression to perfectly match Jackson’s constant fluctuating energy and manipulative mind. Brick portrays Jackson’s mother with warmth and empathy in her tone, accurately conveying a mother who’s trying to console and protect her son from his father’s wrath—a great contrast to Brick’s harsh portrayal of Jackson’s father. The genius in Brick’s performance of Jackson is in its duality—he portrays Jackson as warm, inviting, and persuasive when Jackson is winning people over and cold and calculating when Jackson has his back up against the wall—truly giving the “making of a monster” vibes! The performance is so charming and intimate that Brick makes listeners feel like Jackson is confiding in them personally. There really couldn’t have been a better narrator to play Jackson, and listeners will crave more of Brick’s performance when it’s over!
Ari Fliakos provides a contrasting performance as Stavros Demaris, along with other supporting male characters. Fliakos uses a powerful, fluid voice to perfectly capture Stavros’s charisma and intimidating personality—and the portrayal makes it clear why a young Jackson would be in awe of him. Fliakos gives distinct voices and authentic-sounding accents to Stavros and some male side characters, making them come alive and making the listening experience more immersive!
Suzanne Elise Freeman performs the narration of Jackson’s love interest, Evangeline, and gives a dynamic, compelling performance of the character, authentically capturing her emotional, impulsive nature—the performance shows that Evangeline is a match for Jackson in many ways!
The audiobook is a crisp, high-quality production and includes subtle sound effects and dramatic background music at the end of cliffhanger chapters that make the listening experience more exciting than your typical audiobook! The outstanding performance of all three narrators elevates the psychological pull of the story and makes it a truly binge-worthy listen!
Narrator Performance
The audiobook of The Making Of Jackson Parrish is performed by seasoned narrators Scott Brick, Ari Fliakos, and Suzanne Elise Freeman.
Scott Brick’s performance is the heart of the audiobook, portraying Jackson’s POV. Brick performs every single line with commanding intensity and ever-shifting expression to perfectly match Jackson’s constant fluctuating energy and manipulative mind. Brick portrays Jackson’s mother with warmth and empathy in her tone, accurately conveying a mother who’s trying to console and protect her son from his father’s wrath—a great contrast to Brick’s harsh portrayal of Jackson’s father. The genius in Brick’s performance of Jackson is in its duality—he portrays Jackson as warm, inviting, and persuasive when Jackson is winning people over and cold and calculating when Jackson has his back up against the wall—truly giving the “making of a monster” vibes! The performance is so charming and intimate that Brick makes listeners feel like Jackson is confiding in them personally. There really couldn’t have been a better narrator to play Jackson, and listeners will crave more of Brick’s performance when it’s over!
Ari Fliakos provides a contrasting performance as Stavros Demaris, along with other supporting male characters. Fliakos uses a powerful, fluid voice to perfectly capture Stavros’s charisma and intimidating personality—and the portrayal makes it clear why a young Jackson would be in awe of him. Fliakos gives distinct voices and authentic-sounding accents to Stavros and some male side characters, making them come alive and making the listening experience more immersive!
Suzanne Elise Freeman performs the narration of Jackson’s love interest, Evangeline, and gives a dynamic, compelling performance of the character, authentically capturing her emotional, impulsive nature—the performance shows that Evangeline is a match for Jackson in many ways!
The audiobook is a crisp, high-quality production and includes subtle sound effects and dramatic background music at the end of cliffhanger chapters that make the listening experience more exciting than your typical audiobook! The outstanding performance of all three narrators elevates the psychological pull of the story and makes it a truly binge-worthy listen!
The audiobook of The Making Of Jackson Parrish is performed by seasoned narrators Scott Brick, Ari Fliakos, and Suzanne Elise Freeman.
Scott Brick’s performance is the heart of the audiobook, portraying Jackson’s POV. Brick performs every single line with commanding intensity and ever-shifting expression to perfectly match Jackson’s constant fluctuating energy and manipulative mind. Brick portrays Jackson’s mother with warmth and empathy in her tone, accurately conveying a mother who’s trying to console and protect her son from his father’s wrath—a great contrast to Brick’s harsh portrayal of Jackson’s father. The genius in Brick’s performance of Jackson is in its duality—he portrays Jackson as warm, inviting, and persuasive when Jackson is winning people over and cold and calculating when Jackson has his back up against the wall—truly giving the “making of a monster” vibes! The performance is so charming and intimate that Brick makes listeners feel like Jackson is confiding in them personally. There really couldn’t have been a better narrator to play Jackson, and listeners will crave more of Brick’s performance when it’s over!
Ari Fliakos provides a contrasting performance as Stavros Demaris, along with other supporting male characters. Fliakos uses a powerful, fluid voice to perfectly capture Stavros’s charisma and intimidating personality—and the portrayal makes it clear why a young Jackson would be in awe of him. Fliakos gives distinct voices and authentic-sounding accents to Stavros and some male side characters, making them come alive and making the listening experience more immersive!
Suzanne Elise Freeman performs the narration of Jackson’s love interest, Evangeline, and gives a dynamic, compelling performance of the character, authentically capturing her emotional, impulsive nature—the performance shows that Evangeline is a match for Jackson in many ways!
The audiobook is a crisp, high-quality production and includes subtle sound effects and dramatic background music at the end of cliffhanger chapters that make the listening experience more exciting than your typical audiobook! The outstanding performance of all three narrators elevates the psychological pull of the story and makes it a truly binge-worthy listen!
