Monday 14 May 2018

Audio: Dangerous to know Anthology

"One has all the goodness, and the other all the appearance of it." —Jane Austen

Jane Austen’s masterpieces are littered with unsuitable gentlemen—Willoughby, Wickham, Churchill, Crawford, Tilney, Elliot, et al.—adding color and depth to her plots but often barely sketched. Have you never wondered about the pasts of her rakes, rattles, and gentlemen rogues? Surely, there's more than one side to their stories. 

It is a universal truth, we are captivated by smoldering looks, daring charms ... a happy-go-lucky, cool confidence. All the while, our loyal confidants are shouting on deaf ears, “He is a cad—a brute—all wrong!” But is that not how tender hearts are broken...by loving the undeserving? How did they become the men Jane Austen created?

In this romance anthology, eleven Austenesque authors expose the histories of Austen’s anti-heroes. "Dangerous to Know: Jane Austen’s Rakes & Gentlemen Rogues" is a titillating collection of Georgian era short stories—a backstory or parallel tale off-stage of canon—whilst remaining steadfast to the characters we recognize in Austen’s great works.


Audible Audio, 14 h
Published April 24th 2018 by The Quill Ink
Jane Austen variations
For review

My thoughts
And here come the tales of all those rakes and rogues you find in Austen. Some that I like, some that I detest and some that are fun to hate. 

“Willoughby’s Crossroads” (John Willoughby, Sense and Sensibility) by Joana Starnes
Oh Willoughby, I so saw you there and then you went and made a mess of things. It is a look at what happened before he ever met Marianne, and the choices he made.

 “A Wicked Game” (George Wickham, Pride and Prejudice) by Katie Oliver
I actually liked Wickham! He was just a young fool, who later in life made so many mistakes. Poor guy. And then he married Lydia in the end, I mean poor guy will pay for that his entire life. 


 “Fitzwilliam’s Folly” (Colonel Fitzwilliam, Pride and Prejudice) by Beau North; 
Fitzwilliam has a bit of a rep with the ladies, but he is an honorable rake, and here he meets his match

“The Address of a Frenchwoman” (Thomas Bertram, Mansfield Park) by Lona Manning;
MP is the one I have seen the least, or read. I really can not recall anything of Thomas, but I liked how he was here and how he fell in love.

 “Last Letter to Mansfield” (Henry Crawford, Mansfield Park) by Brooke West;
Oh Henry, you dug your own grave. I still liked him

 “An Honest Man” (Frank Churchill, Emma) by Karen M Cox; 
Nope, I will never like Frank. It was not a good thing he did, and here we see how he and Jane fell in love, or lust.

“One Fair Claim” (Sir Walter Elliot, Persuasion) by Christina Morland; 
Oh he was such a pompous fool!

“The Lost Chapter in the Life of William Elliot” (William Elliot, Persuasion) by Jenetta James;
I found myself liking him as he fell in love and I felt sorry for him

 “As Much as He Can” (General Tilney, Northanger Abbey) by Sophia Rose;
Yes, NA is another one that I do not know that well, but I take it from this that the General was not a good guy ;) But here, awww, I get man, I get it

 “The Art of Sinking” (John Thorpe, Northanger Abbey) by J. Marie Croft; 
Well this guy is just an idiot. Interesting to hear about, but what a rogue! You had it coming

For Mischief’s Sake” (Captain Frederick Tilney, Northanger Abbey) by Amy D’Orazio
.THis even had me snorting. At first I was not sure what to make of him, but I guess I get it in a way, and then when he finds love. All is forgiven.

Conclusion:
All these rakes and rogues. Some I can not forgive, some are shown in such a good new light here, that I am inclined to forgive them. But they are all interesting to hear about. What made them into rakes and how it shaped their lives.

Narrator Andre Refig
I like his rake voice ;) They sound so very snobbish at times (in a good way) cos it is just so fitting.

36 comments:

  1. Hmmm... I fear this book would be lost on me since I am not an Austenian, and haven't read the books. But cool anthology!

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    Replies
    1. But then again you do not have to since all of these (well almost all) take place before the books

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    2. We tried to create this anthology with enough information in each story so that they can stand alone. If you are familiar with canon, it surely enhances the listening or reading experience but not at all necessary. Or at least that was our intent.

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  2. Love this tag Blodeuedd-"Some that I like, some that I detest and some that are fun to hate" Glad you enjoyed these!

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    1. I am so glad that you totally “got”...to make them all redeemed, all good would not have been in he same vein as Austen... We wanted the Rakes to be seen through their own eyes, whether they found their happily ever after or just as they ever were ... I think the Authors were authentic. And clever with how they made it so.

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  3. a great variety of stories, glad to see you enjoyed some

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  4. I like anthologies I get a taste of author's writing styles.

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    Replies
    1. It's sure good for that

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    2. I agree! And each story here is about a 45 minute to 1 1/4 hour listen so I find anthologies perfect when doing tedious tasks like folding a mountain of laundry or commuting or errands. And I have found them excellent vehicles to discover Authors I might never have found. Thanks for giving this a try.

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  5. I am afraid this one isn’t for me... I just don’t get the whole rakes and rogues thing.

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    1. Aww but see they are not that kind, you know, the rake that finds love and changes. Most of these stay aholes, some change. It's not romance, it's rake

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    2. Hahhaha! ALL the Rakes may not have been redeemable but “from knowing him better, his disposition was better understood.”

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  6. Anthologies are not for me, but I'm glad to see there was a good mix of here and some that you enjoyed!

    ~Mogsy @ BiblioSanctum

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    1. I do like them in audio too, even if I have to write a short paragraph
      after each one so I do not forget ;)

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  7. Yay! You got exactly what we were doing here. Thanks for the review, lady! :)

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  8. No I am just not into rogues and anti heroes. I like a rosy tinted look at heroes!!

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    Replies
    1. Oh I do get that, but these are NOT heroes. They are true rakes and idiots at times. It is a look at their lives, not romance

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  9. Thank you for the kind review of our not-so-kind characters :)

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    Replies
    1. Some do need a boot up their behind lol

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  10. Glad that you enjoyed these books and I love how you described his voice as rakish and snobbish but in a good way :)

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  11. We think there is romance in the stories and some do find their happily ever after, some are just as we always knew they were, some were redeemed and given a chance to grow, and some well...a leopard doesn’t change his spots. All in all, I think the authors did a great remarkabke being true to canon while giving us a glimpse through the #RakesAndGentlemenRogues’ eyes.

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  12. Thank you for taking the time to listen to the 14 plus hours of our anthology...and giving us your honest impressions of the collection. I was pleased you “understood” our intent of staying true to Austen’s characterizations while showing a story from their point of view.
    I loved our British voice actor André Refig’s performance. I think he successfully brought honesty to each Rake and Gentleman Rogue plus all the other characters involved without falling into the burlesque or ridiculous. When he smiles, I feel like I can actually hear it. And as he has lived part of his life in France, his French accent for several French characters was beautiful. He was such a pro to work with. I hope anyone in the UK goes out to see him this summer in the play, Oberron’s Cure. http://www.andrerefig.com/upcoming/2018/6/2/oberons-cure

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    Replies
    1. I did like that some did not change, not even a good woman can change everyone. And I did like that some changed, cos, yes everyone can change :)

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  13. Sounds like so much funnnnn

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  14. Ohh I like this anthology!

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  15. Oh, Willoughby! My heart will always ache for him and Marianne. They should've been together. But I guess the idiot couldn't keep it in his pants before he met Marianne. He made his bed but crushed Marianne in the process. :(

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    Replies
    1. Omg yes! She was so broken, damn that man!! But I do believe he truly cared, but effed it up

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