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Loved it!!

Revisado: 12-02-20

This is the best book of the year so far for me!


I loved the character development, the plot, the evil machinations of the villain, how those machinations were overcome, and the wonderful end of the book. This book was a lo-o-o-o-ong time coming but it was worth every minute of the wait. Chase does her usual stellar job of storytelling, and Ashmont is now second only to Rupert Carsington as my all time favorite book boyfriend. Ashmont is a drunken, brawling, womanizing Duke and is very hard to like. Chase not only redeems him entirely, she does so in a very believable fashion. He actually starts listening to people, and begins to make changes in his habits and attitudes, and that is the making of him. The story is loosely based on The Taming of the Shrew, but quite loosely. I do not consider the heroine a shrew at all, merely an intelligent woman who marches to her own drummer. If you are a fan of traditional-style Regency romance, you will love this one. Perfect prose, delightful humor, three-dimensional characters, interesting settings, and a really fun story to top it all off!


My only (tiny) quibble is that I felt Kate Reading's voice was a bit off, she sounded like she had a cold and her register was lower than usual and her normal spritely vocal energy was dimmed a bit. I especially noticed this in the first half of the book.

I highly recommend this book to fans of romance in general but especially historical romance, romantic comedy, sexual tension, well developed characters, and unexpected plot twists.

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esto le resultó útil a 13 personas

Uneven story

Revisado: 11-30-20

This starts out really fun, and funny too. There are a lot of off-beat interactions between characters, mostly achieved through creative characterizations and good writing. Its clear there are undercurrents that are more serious, but those are definitely in the background. The focus is on fun and four very different, quirky people getting to know one another. Then - BOOM!! - the story goes *very* dark and just ends. I found that quite unsatisfying as a listener; I needed some resolution. Another scene set in the near future maybe showing where everyone was at in their lives might have been nice. It just felt....unfinished.

Zachary Webber really stands out as the top performer in this ensemble, but all of the actors are quite good. It was fun to hear Zach acting in a play, its quite a different vibe from his narrating style. He just keeps letting us see how talented he is, and it is a treat to watch him grow as an artist. Delphi, Sarah, and PJ all aquit themselves well, too.

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Enjoyable

Revisado: 11-26-20

I liked this mm story a lot, and of course it had amazing narration. But it is fairly short title and the authors seemed to be trying to cram quite a bit of subplot into this tale. There was getting to know co-workers, learning about family backgrounds, back stories on the MCs military histories, vignettes from current jobs, and all the current relationship stuff going on between these two very likable men. All of these story lines only serve to muddy the waters imo. I need more clarity as to who the MCs are and what their present day situation is.

One aspect I found very confusing was Dean's job. Was he a doctor? Was he a medic? Was he some kind of physician's assistant? If he was an actual physician, its pretty unlikely he would have been on the front lines, and he is depicted as having been there. Also, if the Army paid for his medical school he would have had to sign up for 20 years, and that doesn't fit the events in the story either. And while this may seem minor, the Army has Forts, but you are 'on post' when you are present *at* the Fort. (Army brat here! Can you tell? Lol!). Trust me, it is not a minor distinction.

So, while I liked this book and recommend it, I would suggest the authors either leave out the extraneous stuff or write a full-length novel (8-10 hours) where all of that background material can be fully explored. Do more research into modern Army life, the vernacular, the job descriptions, etc. If nothing else, read Army Wives; there is a lot of info for newbies in there! One other niggle: I think Sloane is meant to be demi-sexual and a lot of the reviews are describing this as a gay-for-you story. While it is that as well, I think this man's quiet-to-nonexistant sex life fits better in the demi-sexual continuum. It isn't especially clear, but that was the impression I walked away with.

Michael Ferriaiuolo does his usual outstanding job in the narration booth. He has such a versatile voice, his voice acting is great, and he sells the story effortlessly. His is a voice I never tire of, he is both gifted and a gift to his listeners! :::sigh:::

I do recommend this with the above reservations, and I am looking forward to the next installment of the series!

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Trigger warning

Revisado: 11-16-20

Just to warn listeners, early in the story there is a motorcycle death mentioned. I dnf'd at that point, but the narration is awesome. The story seemed a bit edgier than most Blakely books, but I didn't get far.

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Perfect story, perfect narration, perfect ending!

Revisado: 11-12-20

I had no idea what to expect from this title, but it checked all the boxes for me! Its a unique story about a budding entrepreneur and a tech support operator who start with a phone call to troubleshoot her website. After she had been on hold for 3+ hours! But she makes him laugh, and he charms her without realizing it, and, well...thereby hangs the tale! And an utterly charming one it is, too.

The narration style is duet, so Luci Christian voices all the female parts and Neil Hellegers voices the male parts. I like the idea of duet narration, but it is seldom well-executed. Here it is perfection! The actors play off of one another, responding to emotional and vocal cues like Hepburn and Tracy, which gives you the sense of watching a movie. Adding to that feeling are quiet sound effects; the buzzing of phones, footsteps, door bells, cats meowing, etc. The sound effects are subtle and do not distract from the narration - they enhance it instead. It really has been done exquisitely well. This is my first experience with these two narrators, but oh my. They are very very good! I look forward to more narration by them in my future.

Both characters have issues with parents, but they are not the usual things you see in contemporary romance. And the way in which they handle the issues are just as unexpected. There are a few twists in the story, lots of laughs, and exceptionally well developed characters. I enjoyed the family dynamics and what that revealed about all of the characters. The story is mostly told through phone conversations, texts, and emails, which can be annoying if not carefully handled. Here it is done beautifully, it all feels really natural, easy and fluid.

For now at least this book is free on Audible, but I would not have felt cheated at all if it had cost me a credit. I cannot recommend this book highly enough, its the happiest surprise I've had in an audio book since 'Getting Schooled' was first released. There isn't much swearing (A few f-bombs, though), there are no graphic sex scenes, there is no violence or bullying. There are cyber threats to an animal, but only threats that are not explicit. This would be perfectly appropriate for nearly any listener of nearly any age. A mature 14 year old to an immature 114 year old and every age in between.

Download this book NOW!! I think you'll love it.

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esto le resultó útil a 2 personas

Very fun cosy mystery!

Revisado: 10-31-20

I don't read many mysteries, and especially cosy mysteries, but this one caught my attention because of the price, I was very pleasantly surprised by not only the mystery but the charming characters created by the authors. The protagonists are a newly married couple, he's an English nobleman and she's an American working class woman. Both have been in the Great War and have bounced around in government service for several years, apparently doing clandestine work for their respective countries. Now they are going to live in England, in the small village where Harry grew up. On the first night back there is a murder and we're off to the races!

I really liked this sexy young couple who are clearly mad about each other, They have a slight Nick & Nora Charles feel to them. There is not a lot of description, but the book is pretty short, and sometimes description can get in the way. The narration is very good, but Nathaniel Parker's American accent needs a little work. Most characters are English though, so there is not too much of a problem in that regard. I plan to continue the series, especially since the cost is so reasonable. If you are looking for a brief, fun listen that is appropriate for anyone age 12 and up, (no sex, but some kissing and of course murder, mild swearing) this might suit you. This would be fun for a family to listen to together, I think!

Recommended.

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Charming story about mature people

Revisado: 09-22-20

This is light and amusing, but it's also refreshingly grown-up. No big misunderstandings, stupid fights, massively insecure people, accidental babies, or any of the other gimmicks contemporary romance relies on far too often. There is a big brother who is pretty overbearing, but other than that I really liked this one. It's getting hard to find hockey romance that isn't juvenile, that is written well, and is original. The narration is also very very good. A solid 4-star listen!

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esto le resultó útil a 4 personas

Predictable

Revisado: 09-16-20

I was unimpressed with this book, and disappointed that Zachary Webber didn't narrate more chapters. I'm really tired of the 'insecure woman who needs to be loved to find her strength' trope. To me, this was just a bit tedious and way too repetitive.

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esto le resultó útil a 14 personas

Predictable

Revisado: 09-16-20

I was unimpressed with this book, and disappointed that Zachary Webber didn't narrate more chapters. I'm really tired of the 'insecure woman who needs to be loved to find her strength' trope. To me, this was just a bit tedious and way too repetitive.

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esto le resultó útil a 14 personas

Playful and amusing

Revisado: 09-14-20

I liked this story about a romance writer and a baseball player who find love. It could have been tightened up a bit, but it was still very fun. Great light fare, lots of laughs. Narration is very good.

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