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Dara

  • 104
  • reviews
  • 3
  • helpful votes
  • 107
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Romance with Sizzle

Overall
4 out of 5 stars
Performance
5 out of 5 stars
Story
4 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 2025-01-01

I thought the author did a good job of building chemistry and emotional layers with her character development. The emotional angst was evident but not overpowering. It was just enough to give a holiday romance depth and a bit of grit which I prefer rather than a whole lot of 'fluff'. There was some graphic sexual content which was balanced well with the story content. The side characters were interesting and created a colourful community. The narrator did an excellent job.

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Content May Have Triggers for Some Listeners...

Overall
2 out of 5 stars
Performance
3 out of 5 stars
Story
2 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 2024-12-17

There is non / dub consent content & hitting with a belt. So this story probably contains triggers for some. This is unfortunate since there is a pretty interesting back story and mystery. My two stars are for the layers of writing building the mystery The female narrator is good but the male narrator sounds like an eighty year old gangster so ... it's a bit cringe.

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3.5 *** stars

Overall
3 out of 5 stars
Performance
4 out of 5 stars
Story
3 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 2024-12-16

This was a decent book with some spice and cuteness. I enjoyed the side characters especially the boy. The author & narrator realistically depicted his age. Layers of writing were good. However, with a book of this length, I'm always hoping for greater emotional layers and deeper character development especially when the book is so dependent on the relations holding the reader's attention rather than action, adventure or mystery. The narrators did a good job.

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Thank goodness this is fiction...

Overall
1 out of 5 stars
Performance
3 out of 5 stars
Story
1 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 2024-12-08

The kink in this is pretty cringe. It's about drugging and raping. No other way to accurately describe the situation. So reader beware of triggers. Not for the faint of heart.

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Solid Book Series

Overall
4 out of 5 stars
Performance
4 out of 5 stars
Story
4 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 2024-11-13

Each book has a blend of romance and mystery. The layers of character development and plot are well written. As the characters get to know one another we as readers get to know the characters and witness interesting mysteries unfold. The book series has some spice but not as much as I was expecting. That was a bit of a disappointment but the rest of the writing is interesting and all the books held my attention. Out of all the books, the third book contains the most sensitive subject matter but there isn't an overabundance of detail and the character responses are realistic. All three stories have heart and it builds a connection between the reader and the listener. The narration upholds the writing for the most part and the narrators realistically portray the character emotions.

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Pleasant Surprise!

Overall
4 out of 5 stars
Performance
3 out of 5 stars
Story
4 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 2024-11-09

Wow, what a pleasant surprise. Even though there isn't an over abundance of emotional processing, this book has emotional depth. The author is able to show us more than tell us who these character are and what they are feeling. This is achieved by clever layers of character development via character dynamics and character behaviour. This process along with cleverly handled sensitive subject matter make this book 'shine'. It's a 'breath of fresh air' to experience an author so accurately depict a certain personality type and their life experience. This book has heart. The narrator upheld most of the character development and some cleverly written complex scenes. She does an excellent job with one very important area of the book. Yet, at times, her timing was off / very fast. I actually needed to slow the player speed by 1 level (then it was perfect). There are either mispronounced words or editing errors in a couple places....not sure. In other words, some of the narration is excellent and other aspects different. This book is worth the credit and worth checking out.

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3.75 ***STARS - Solid Series

Overall
4 out of 5 stars
Performance
4 out of 5 stars
Story
3 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 2024-11-09

Some of the books were more entertaining than others. I think the 2nd book could of used a bit more humour & the suspenseful aspects of the plot introduced earlier in the book. This would have given the 2 main characters more interesting dynamics, a more realistic reason for attachment to each other and created a deeper emotional bond between reader and the fictional characters. Nevertheless, overall the character development was better than average with some characters. Most of the character dynamics well written and the humour and suspense welcomed additions. The author did a great job with secondary characters such as Alfie and Violet, etc. and relational dynamics with the inclusion of work / family characters. In my opinion, these are the aspects that 'shone' and were most entertaining. They created an emotional connection between myself and the fictional characters. Regardless, if there was more emotional depth and processing at some points the books would be improved. The narration was great for the most part and upheld the character development and character dynamics.

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The Entertainment Continues in this series.

Overall
4 out of 5 stars
Performance
4 out of 5 stars
Story
4 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 2024-10-30

This is book 2 of a series and the entertainment value continues. The story is based an a rather unique take of the Cinderella trope. The character development and character dynamics created humour and emotional insight. Some of the spice was rather unique and one scene a bit off putting but I didn't find it detracted too much from the entertainment value. So far I'm pleased with the series and hope the books to follow will be just as entertaining without any too outlandish spice.

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Entertaining

Overall
4 out of 5 stars
Performance
4 out of 5 stars
Story
4 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 2024-10-30

The character development, character dynamics, emotional insight, humour and bit of suspense create a very entertaining story. The narration was good for the most part and upheld the quality of the book.

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Unique Take on Old Tropes

Overall
5 out of 5 stars
Performance
5 out of 5 stars
Story
5 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 2024-10-25

This is a well written romance with a dash of mystery. It contains sensitive subject matter which is handled respectfully, thus, creating effectively accurate layers of emotional depth. The character development and character dynamics are the stars of this story. Other than a smartly written sexual encounter at the beginning of the story, this is a slow burn romance that held my attention throughout. The narration is excellent and upholds the quality character development along with the suspenseful and comedic aspects of the book. This is the first book I have thoroughly enjoyed in a very long time.

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