Audio: Aurora Blazing by Jessie Mihalik

Narrated by: Emily Woo Zeller

Series: Consortium Rebellion, Book 2

Length: 12 hrs and 22 mins

Unabridged Audiobook

Release date: 10-01-19

Language: English

Publisher: HarperAudio

Sci fi

In exchange for an honest review

I liked this one even better than book 1! I do enjoy when that happens.

The world is great. I am not going to explain it. Space, rich houses, a war going on. Just a really interesting world building that you need to read about.

Biance is a member of a High House. She was married to an asshat (that is kind, he was an evil inventor). She is a great hacker and uses her talents for good. I liked everything about her, and what a shitty time she had had!

She must find her brother. The sexy chief of security is on her tail to bring her back. Her House is at war.

Action, lots and lots of it. The romance is slow building and has been for years. I did like that they took it easy, I mean she is on the run, he is running too, there are baddies left and right. Who has time to stop for that then.

Narration

Emily Woo Zeller is great and does an amazing job with Bianca and the rest. I like her style and voice. She fits very well in a futuristic world.

The narration does well with non stop action and builds the tension.  A great listen

As the dutiful daughter of High House von Hasenberg, Bianca set aside her personal feelings and agreed to a political match arranged by her family, only to end up trapped in a loveless, miserable marriage. When her husband unexpectedly dies, Bianca vows never to wed again. Newly independent, she secretly uses her wealth and influence to save other women stuck in dire circumstances. Information is power and Bianca has a network of allies and spies that would be the envy of the 'verse-if anyone knew about it.

When her family's House is mysteriously attacked, Bianca's oldest brother, the heir to House von Hasenberg, disappears. Fearful for her brother's life, the headstrong Bianca defies her father and leaves Earth to save him. Ian Bishop, the director of House von Hasenberg security-and Bianca's first love-is ordered to find and retrieve the rebellious woman.

Ian is the last man Bianca wants to see. To evade capture, she leads him on a merry chase across the universe. But when their paths finally collide, she knows she must persuade him to help her. Bianca will do anything to save her sibling, even if it means spending time alone on a small ship with the handsome, infuriating man who once broke her heart.

As the search takes them deep into rival House Rockhurst territory, Bianca must decide if she can trust Ian with the one piece of information that could destroy her completely . . .

Audio: The Wallflower Wager by Tessa Dare

Narrated by: Mary Jane Wells
Length: 7 hrs and 8 mins
Unabridged Audiobook
Girl meets Duke #3
Release date: 08-13-19
Language: English
Publisher: HarperAudio

Oh this one was delightful! Penelope was such a fun character. She loves  animals.  She does not move in society, she has a close knit group of friends, and she is a bit crazy (in the best way!)

Gabriel was delicious. He was all I am bad, but he was so not bad at all. And he just went along with the crazy ride that was Pen and all her animals.

There is a pet hedgehog, a goat, an otter, oh the list just goes on. And the parrot is one funny bird. They shake things up, and they make Gabriel see the real Pen. Awwww, right!

It is a really amusing. Pen does not stop for anything. And it was fun watching Gabriel fall for her.

Just pure fun!

Narration ;Mary Jane Wells
The narrator's voice for Pen made me want to be friends with her. It really is the best feeling. I liked her Gabriel too.
She did a great job with this one. I would certainly listen to her again

Wealthy and ruthless, Gabriel Duke clawed his way from the lowliest slums to the pinnacle of high society - and now he wants to get even.

Loyal and passionate, Lady Penelope Campion never met a lost or wounded creature she wouldn’t take into her home and her heart.

When her imposing - and attractive - new neighbor demands she clear out the rescued animals, Penny sets him a challenge. She will part with her precious charges, if he can find them loving homes.

Done, Gabriel says. How hard can it be to find homes for a few kittens?

And a two-legged dog.

And a foul-mouthed parrot.

And a goat, an otter, a hedgehog....

Easier said than done, for a cold-blooded bastard who wouldn’t know a loving home from a workhouse. Soon, he’s covered in cat hair, knee-deep in adorable, and bewitched by a shyly pretty spinster who defies his every attempt to resist. Now she’s set her mind and heart on saving him.

Not if he ruins her first.

Audio Review: Brazen and the Beast by Sarah McLean

Audiobook, Unabridged 11 h 25 min

Published July 30th 2019 by HarperAudio

Series: The Bareknuckle Bastards #2

Historical romance

In exchange for an honest review

My Thoughts

Oh the horror, she is 29! Not even a spinster anymore, just forgotten. But Hattie did not care, she wanted to live her own life and make her own rules. You go Hattie!

Hattie wants to rid herself of her virginity and the road she aims to take, well her rules. She also wants to take over her dad's business as her brother does not know a ship from a rowing boat.

Beast is a crime lord in Covent Garden, he and his brother and sister rule that place, but they are "nice" criminals, so they have some rules. He is also the bastard son of this evil Duke that pitted his kids against each other. And now I have to talk about his evil brother the Duke, that guy is getting his own book, but that guy is so evil? Not sure there, but then we do not get all the details.

Hattie and the Beast meets. He thinks she is plotting with his evil brother and wants to take her down. She is upset cos he is ruining her plans. At times I felt all omg Hattie, take care of yourself! But then I quickly realised that she could. She is his equal.

I enjoyed this book and these two main characters. They had such great chemistry. I also liked the side characters like her bestie Nora.

Fun times

Narrator

Justine Eyre! I just can't grown tired of her historical romance narrations, I truly enjoy her voices 

When Lady Henrietta Sedley declares her twenty-ninth year her own, she has plans to inherit her father’s business, to make her own fortune, and to live her own life. But first, she intends to experience a taste of the pleasure she’ll forgo as a confirmed spinster. Everything is going perfectly…until she discovers the most beautiful man she’s ever seen tied up in her carriage and threatening to ruin the Year of Hattie before it’s even begun.

The Bastard’s Proposal

When he wakes in a carriage at Hattie’s feet, Whit, a king of Covent Garden known to all the world as Beast, can’t help but wonder about the strange woman who frees him—especially when he discovers she’s headed for a night of pleasure . . . on his turf. He is more than happy to offer Hattie all she desires…for a price.

An Unexpected Passion

Soon, Hattie and Whit find themselves rivals in business and pleasure. She won’t give up her plans; he won’t give up his power . . . and neither of them sees that if they’re not careful, they’ll have no choice but to give up everything . . . including their hearts. 

Audio: Say no to the Duke - Eloisa James

Narrated by: Susan Duerden

Series: Wildes of Lindow Castle, Book 4

Length: 8 hrs and 58 mins

Unabridged Audiobook

Release date: 06-25-19

Language: English

Publisher: HarperAudio

Historical romance

I got this book in exchange for an honest review

I tried not to picture them too much, I did like that it was 1780s, but the wigs, ugh, the wigs, lol.

Betsy has done her best to put on the persona of the good girl persona, the perfect society girl, the perfect bride to be. All to wash away the stigma of her mother running away with a Prussian (also her sister's book looks to be really interesting as she is blonde and obviously not a Wilde.)

But yes, Betsy is not really the quiet demure one, she is a Wilde, she rides horse standing up shooting arrows. She plays billiard and she wants to wear breeches. But she also wants to show everyone that she can catch a Duke. She is also really scared that showing passion means that she will run away and leave her kids. She carry her mother's shame in her heart.

Jeremy has ptsd from the revolutionary war. He drinks (and not) and tries to continue a normal life.

They banter, a lot! The things they say, wow, this is not regency. They do say the naughtiest things.

One problem I had was that they talk, a lot! Honestly a bit too much, the whole book was these two talking.

I also wanted more of aunt know? I have no idea how to spell that. But she fun! And the brother's books do sound fun, as those her sisters that will come.

I also felt that she should totally have gone for the Duke. Sure he was stuffy, but I think he would have been great. But then she was wild and he was too. So Betsy and Jeremy will surely continue to banter the rest of their lives.

I did want more of the supportive cast cos they sounded fun!

Narrator

She was great with all voices, she really got Betsy's voice right, the perfect blend of demure and wild.

Lady Betsy Wilde’s first season was triumphant by any measure, and a duke has proposed - but before marriage, she longs for one last adventure.

No gentleman would agree to her scandalous plan - but Lord Jeremy Roden is no gentleman. He offers a wager. If she wins a billiards game, he’ll provide the breeches.

If he wins...she is his, for one wild night.

But what happens when Jeremy realizes that one night will never be enough? 

In the most important battle of his life, he’ll have to convince Betsy to say no to the duke.

Audio: The rest of the story by Sarah Dessen

Narrated by: Rebecca Soler

Length: 12 hrs and 4 mins

Unabridged Audiobook

Release date: 06-04-19

Language: English

Publisher: HarperAudio

YA fiction

I received this book in exchange for an honest review

Emma is sent to her grandmother for the summer as her dad goes on his honeymoon, and her other grandmother travels. But she has not seen any of her mother's family for 10 years, she can not remember them at all.

I did feel her anger was a bit misplaced at times, as she got to know them she grew to like them, and she was angry at her dad for not taking her there sooner. But the road goes both ways, none of her mum's family came to visit her either. And I do get why her mother never wanted to go there (as the story progresses.)

But this is a story of finding yourself and family. Her mother od, and all Emma remember are the stories she told of the Lake. Her mother was in and out of her life a lot since she was an addict. Now she gets to know more about her mother, and again, I understand her father's reluctance, that place means the place that made Emma's mum an addict. But at the same time it was a wonderful place where they fell in love.

I also felt her dad changed in a strange way at the end, like he also had to learn the lesson of what family means. Maybe I am too old, but I get where he is coming from, Emma might have it in her genes and he feels like the lake brings it forward. It is about summer, drinking and having fun.

Ok, I need to get back to the surface now. I liked Emma, even if I did not get the whole call me Saylor thing.  And how it felt like she wanted to live there forever, she did have other friends and family too.

I liked the lake and it's drama, Lake North and North Lake. Her newfound family, her newfound crush (and I liked that it moved really really slow, like not almost happening at all.)

It was a good book. Real and true.

Narrator

I liked the narrator (even if at times she changed the voices a bit before remembering.) I think this was my first time listening to her, and I would listen to her again.

Emma Saylor doesn’t remember a lot about her mother, who died when Emma was 12. But she does remember the stories her mom told her about the big lake that went on forever, with cold, clear water and mossy trees at the edges. 

Now, it’s just Emma and her dad, and life is good, if a little predictable...until Emma is unexpectedly sent to spend the summer with her mother’s family, whom she hasn’t seen since she was a little girl. 

When Emma arrives at North Lake, she realizes there are actually two very different communities there. Her mother grew up in working-class North Lake, while her dad spent summers in the wealthier Lake North resort. The more time Emma spends there, the more it starts to feel like she is also divided into two people. To her father, she is Emma. But to her new family, she is Saylor, the name her mother always called her.

Then there’s Roo, the boy who was her very best friend when she was little. Roo holds the key to her family’s history, and slowly, he helps her put the pieces together about her past. It’s hard not to get caught up in the magic of North Lake - and Saylor finds herself falling under Roo’s spell as well. 

For Saylor, it’s like a whole new world is opening up to her. But when it’s time to go back home, which side of her - Emma or Saylor - will win out?

Audio: Ordinary Girls by Blair Thornburgh

Narrated by: Jorjeana Marie

Length: 8 hrs and 21 mins

Unabridged Audiobook

Release date: 06-04-19

Language: English

Publisher: HarperAudio

Fiction YA

So nothing really happens, and a lot of fancy words are used, but, it was just so lovely to read a YA book where ok so there was some drama, but it was real drama. It was calm, and then a storm might come, but they weathered it.

Patience, aka Plum and Ginny lives with their mum in a crumbling house. Too big, too old, plumbing that goes out, not enough money to care for it.

Their mum only works part-time at the uni, her paintings does not sell. Money is a problem.

Ginny is a dramaqueen in the old sense, I mean 19th century way. All those Austen and Bronte heroes, or wait, Anne, yes totally Anne. Ginny is really smart, but worries constantly how to get into College, and then pay for it.

Plum is the calm, normal one, she is the narrator as she worries about their home, about her sister who is always in the spotlight, and then she gets a secret of her own. And I liked that, something just for her, all so very calm and by accident.

The prose is very flowery, and yes all those fancy words that P likes to use might not be to everyone's taste. But it works so well

It is very sweet, upbeat, and even when they struggle they push forward, at least Plum does. I enjoyed it.

Narrator

Oh she nailed Ginny when she was despairing at the world at times, so drama. She gave  Plum a great voice too. I liked it and made the story flow.

It was my first time with this narrator and I would listen to her again

For siblings as different as Plum and Ginny, getting on each other’s nerves is par for the course. But when the family’s finances hit a snag, sending chaos through the house in a way only characters from a Jane Austen novel could understand, a distance grows between them like never before.

Plum, a self-described social outcast, finally has something in her life that doesn’t revolve around her dramatic older sister. But what if coming into her own means Plum isn’t there for Ginny when she, struggling with a hard secret of her own, needs her most?

I received this audiobook free of charge in exchange for an honest review

Audio: Like a love story by Abdi Nazemian

Narrated by: Lauren Ambrose, Vikas Adam, Michael Crouch

Length: 10 hrs and 50 mins

Unabridged Audiobook

Release date: 06-04-19

Language: English

Publisher: HarperAudio

YA Fiction

Maybe emotional YA fiction is the fiction for me. It always have a bigger impact.

This book has 3 narrators and it works so well when they read their chapters. First there is Vikas Adam as Reza, and yes I absolutely love his voice so that was a big yes for me. Reza is the one fighting his feelings for other boys. He grew up in Iran, he was there during the revolution, and now he has a new life in NY. He is the one in the closet, the one afraid that just being gay will give him AIDS. Since no one is explaining things. I liked Reza, it is not always easy to be brave.

Judy wants to be a fashion designer, at school she is known as the girl with the gay bff and well, for being overweight. She was voiced by a good narrator too. She was the one standing in the shadows, wanting to break out. I also liked her parents, sure her mum could say the wrong things, but considering Art's parents, yes, Judy had the best ones. The book is also about her uncle Stephen who is dying from AIDS. And that does brings so much more into the book. Stephen was so wonderful, and seeing him on what must be his last breath was so hard. I know the 80s was bad, but reading about it is always different. Heartbreaking.

But yes, last there is Art, out and proud, and not giving an f who knows. I really do not have anything more to say about Art, other that he did break my heart at the end.

It was a great story, I knew it from the moment it began. It pulled me in at once, the voices was well done and brought the characters to life.

It was heartbreak, love, fake love, love for Madonna, love for life. Love for being alive.

A great listen

Narrators

I already say that I love Vikas Adam, and I do, he has the perfect voice.

It was my first time listening to Lauren Ambrose and  Micheal Crouch, but their voices fit really well with the characters they voiced.

It's 1989 in New York City, and for three teens, the world is changing.

Reza is an Iranian boy who has just moved to the city with his mother to live with his stepfather and stepbrother. He's terrified that someone will guess the truth he can barely acknowledge about himself. Reza knows he's gay, but all he knows of gay life are the media's images of men dying of AIDS.

Judy is an aspiring fashion designer who worships her uncle Stephen, a gay man with AIDS who devotes his time to activism as a member of ACT UP. Judy has never imagined finding romance...until she falls for Reza and they start dating.

Art is Judy's best friend, their school's only out and proud teen. He'll never be who his conservative parents want him to be, so he rebels by documenting the AIDS crisis through his photographs.

As Reza and Art grow closer, Reza struggles to find a way out of his deception that won't break Judy's heart--and destroy the most meaningful friendship he's ever known.

I received this book from Harper Collins in  exchange for an honest review

Audio: A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers

Narrated by: Rachel Dulude

Series: Wayfarers, Book 2

Length: 11 hrs and 29 mins

Unabridged Audiobook

Release date: 05-21-19

Publisher: HarperAudio

Sci-fi

To review

I did like this one a lot more than book 1, but then I also listened to this, while I read book 1, and what can I say, audiobooks rock.

This was a Dual narrative. First we have Lovelace, yes we did meet her in book 1, but this is a stand alone, and I did also feel that I would not have needed to read book 1. In that one she had to be reset, and now she is in a body instead of a ship (being an AI and all). So she has to try to live as a human, and there is also the possibility of getting caught as it is illegal. And it was so fascinating as this AI is experiencing the world, getting friends and wondering what make her her. We also get different alien cultures thrown in as she lives in a place settled by many. And they are all so fascinating!

Then there is Jane, this was actually the POV I liked the most. She lives in a factory with other Janes. They are clones made for the purpose of sorting through trash. A horrible world and she gets away and works for years to get away. And we know she gets away as she meets Lovelace as Pepper. 

Does a lot happen? No not really. Jane's story is the story of a struggle to survive and grow up.

Lovelace's story is about finding yourself.

It is again a talking book, a character driven book, but it works wonderfully through audio. It is the perfect format.

Narrator
I liked her voice. At first I wondered about one of her alien voices, but it was meant to be that way since they do not really speak, then I realised how great it was. Considering all alien races, humans and AI she does a great job with them all

Lovelace was once merely a ship’s artificial intelligence. When she wakes up in a new body, following a total system shutdown and reboot, she has no memory of what came before. As Lovelace learns to negotiate the universe and discover who she is, she makes friends with Pepper, an excitable engineer, who’s determined to help her learn and grow. 

Together, Pepper and Lovey will discover that no matter how vast space is, two people can fill it together. 

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet introduced listeners to the incredible world of Rosemary Harper, a young woman with a restless soul and secrets to keep. When she joined the crew of the Wayfarer, an intergalactic ship, she got more than she bargained for - and learned to live with, and love, her ragtag collection of crewmates. 

Audio: The Song of the Jade Lily - Kirsty Manning

Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld

Length: 12 hrs and 10 mins

Unabridged Audiobook

Release date: 05-14-19

Publisher: HarperAudio

Historical fiction

To review

This one takes place during WWII and present time. With the grandmother and granddaughter. As always with dual timelines I did find one more interesting, and that was Romy's in -39. This one would have worked great as just that too, sure the other POV brought mystery, but still.

Romy and her parents leave for Shanghai in -39. And as always I googled things and the Chinese diplomat in Vienna did give Jews a chance the flee.

Shanghai is another world to them, and she loves it. Of course half is also under Japanese occupation. I did feel the book was lighter, not the right world, but later on they are all put in a ghetto. Evil things are told, but at the same time she fast forward the more troublesome years. Not that I want all darkness, this was not that kind of book.

Romy studied to become a doctor. She met Li, who became her best friend. She hoped her brother who was in Dachau would come to Shanghai (yes that was rather heartbreaking). I liked Romy.

Then in present day Alexandra looses her grandfather Wilhelm, and she takes a job in Shanghai. All she knows about her true origin is that Wilhelm and Romy adopted her mother from Shangai. So she investigates when Romy is closemouthed.

Ok so this was actually the weak point. The secret was not a secret at all. It was cruel of Romy to make it into a secret and not tell her daughter the truth. Because it was NOT a secret. Everyone would have been happier with it out in the open. Sigh, flimsy secrets.

So I can not say much about the child Romy adopts, the secret needs to unravel. Just, why it was a secret I do not know. Cruel, very cruel to keep it so.

There is heartache to be had in Shanghai, sadness, and hope for a better tomorrow. I enjoyed the story, and the end is rather bittersweet.

Narration

I have listened to Saskia before and I like her style. She manages well with accents and male and female voices. You easily fall into her narration.

1939: Two young girls meet in Shanghai, also known as the “Paris of the East”. Beautiful local Li and Jewish refugee Romy form a fierce friendship, but the deepening shadows of World War II fall over the women as they slip between the city's glamorous French Concession district and the teeming streets of the Shanghai Ghetto. Yet soon, the realities of war prove to be too much for these close friends as they are torn apart. 
2016: Fleeing London with a broken heart, Alexandra returns to Australia to be with her grandparents, Romy and Wilhelm. Her grandfather is dying, and over the coming weeks, Romy and Wilhelm begin to reveal the family mysteries they have kept secret for more than half a century. As fragments of her mother's history finally become clear, Alexandra struggles with what she learns while more is also revealed about her grandmother's own past in Shanghai. 
After Wilhelm dies, Alexandra flies to Shanghai, determined to trace her grandparents' past. Peeling back the layers of their hidden lives, she is forced to question what she knows about her family - and herself. 

Audio: Pride Prejudice and other flavors by Sonali Dev

By: Sonali Dev

Narrated by: Soneela Nankani

Length: 15 hrs and 8 mins

Release date: 05-07-19

Series. The Rajes #1

Publisher: HarperAudio

Romantic fiction /PP variation

To review

I am not the biggest fan of modern adaptions, because most of the time I see nothing of the story in them, but here it shone through in a wonderful way. She did pp justice and managed a great adaptation. 

Trisha is the proud surgeon. But her family ties are not the best because of something that happened 15 years ago. 

Arghh, Wickham, he was loathsome in PP, and here she is a bitch. Evil calculating bitch. It was a very fitting modern Wickham, smile and dagger in the back.

DJ is a great chef, but his sister is really ill and he quit everything to take care of her. But he needs money. He is the prejudice then, and Trisha does make it easy for him. Of course I did like Trisha, her pride in her work was justified. Of course she could have seen that other do just as important things. And DJ just saw a rich girl, but she was so much more. But that is PP.

They clash, a lot! They argue, he despise her, she starts to fall. There is Wickham lurking and spreading lies.

I so want to read about Trishas brother, all I am saying. But I am thinking her cousin and younger brother might get their books and not him.

Also her other cousin was really fascinating!

Back to the story. It does follow PP, so you know they will have their fights and reconciliation, and slowly fall in love. They just really have to work for it.

A good story, a really nice PP version.

Narrator

I have listened to Soneela before and liked her. She is great with accents as she juggles British, American, Indian, and they all work well. As well as the different voices for everyone,

Only in a family like the Rajes could San Francisco's most acclaimed neurosurgeon be considered the black sheep. Dr. Trisha Raje has developed groundbreaking technology and won the respect of her peers and the life-long gratitude of her patients. Still, her large, close-knit family-descended from old Indian nobility-has certain rules to uphold. Trusting outsiders is frowned upon. Disloyalty of any kind is unacceptable. Trisha never intended to jeopardize her brother's political aspirations, yet her long-ago actions inadvertently did just that. At last she has a chance to turn that around.
Up-and-coming chef DJ Caine has known people like Trisha before-people who judge his background and find it lacking, who put pedigree above character. He may need the lucrative, career-making job the Rajes offer, but he has little time for Trisha, especially when he learns that she's the arrogant surgeon who wants to perform an untested procedure on his sister, Emma.
As the two continually clash, their assumptions shatter like spun sugar on one of DJ's stunning desserts. Drawn to DJ's steadiness, humor, and passion-as well as his extraordinary food-Trisha begins to reexamine her view of the world, while challenging his beliefs about the nature of family. But there's a past to be reckoned with before they can hope to savor a future bursting with delicious possibility.

Audio: The Unlikely Adventures of the Shergill Sisters by Balli Kaur Jaswal

Narrated by: Soneela Nankani, Deepti Gupta

Length: 13 hrs and 10 mins

Unabridged Audiobook

Release date: 04-30-19

Language: English

Publisher: HarperAudio

Fiction

To review

My Thoughts

Always when I read something about travel in India it is always so exotic, filled with foods and no dangers at all. But this other shows the side that I always read about in the news. The latest story I read about this child was so horrifying that I wanted to cry.

The sisters are told to dress modestly, not to walk alone and still they all fear at times. Men in groups, leering, brushing up against them. It is that dark side of India, and they do come across a women's movement too. They try to fight back, even if the odds are against them. And it is certainly a story that needs to be told too.

But let us start at the beginning. With 3 sisters, Raj, Jez and Shirnia whose mother pass away and before that she tells them to go on a pilgrimage. To visit holy sites and to get to know each other again.

Raj the oldest is 43 and her son has found a girlfriend only a few years younger than Raj. She is the mother hen who is strict

Jez is a struggling actress with a scandal brewing. She is the wild one

Shirnia, the one who went into an arranged marriage and moved across the world. She is the diplomat.

I liked these sisters. They certainly had their issues, they did not really want to be here, but they come together in the end and become stronger than ever before.

This book touch on another subject too.  And you know what...I am going to put it in a spoiler because you might ut two and two together. Daughters. And I learned something new, I mean I knew that abortions are high and who wants a girl. But that even rich people do it was horrifying, I just wanted to scream why? Why are girls so bad? It really made me sad.

It is a road trip. It is family drama. And it was a really good story to listen to. I enjoyed it a lot. I should check out that previous book by her too.

Narrator

I really liked her voice and her different voices for the sisters. You could always hear who was who with everyone who showed up. She was perfect.

Ha, I did not realise that the mum was a different narrator. I just thought this one did an amazing job, but yes the mother has another narrator who did a good job too

Blurb

The British-born Punjabi Shergill sisters Rajni, Jezmeen, and Shirnia were never close and barely got along growing up and now have grown even further apart as adults. Rajni, a school principal, is a stickler for order. Jezmeen, a 30-year-old struggling actress, fears her big break may never come. Shirina, the peacemaking "good" sister, married into wealth and enjoys a picture-perfect life.

On her deathbed, their mother voices one last wish: that her daughters will make a pilgrimage together to the Golden Temple in Amritsar to carry out her final rites. After a trip to India with her mother long ago, Rajni vowed never to return. But she’s always been a dutiful daughter and cannot, even now, refuse her mother’s request. Jezmeen has just been publicly fired from her television job, so the trip to India is a welcome break to help her pick up the pieces of her broken career. Shirina’s in-laws are pushing her to make a pivotal decision about her married life; time away will help her decide whether to meekly obey or to bravely stand up for herself for the first time.

Arriving in India, these sisters will make unexpected discoveries about themselves, their mother, and their lives - and learn the real story behind the trip Rajni took with their mother long ago - a momentous journey that resulted in Mum never being able to return to India again.

The Unlikely Adventures of the Shergill Sisters is a female take on the Indian travel narrative. "I was curious about how different the trip would be if it were undertaken by women, who are vulnerable to different dangers in a male-dominated society," Balli Kaur Jaswal writes. "I also wanted to explore the tensions between tradition and modernity in immigrant communities, and particularly how those tensions play out among women like these sisters, who are the first generation to be raised outside of India."

Audio: To wed an Heiress by Karen Ranney

Narrated by: Liam Gerrard

Series: All for Love, Book 2

Length: 9 hrs and 23 mins

Unabridged Audiobook

Release date: 03-26-19

Language: English

Publisher: HarperAudio

Historical romance

For review

My Thoughts

Mercy is an heiress who runs away from home and goes to see her gran in Scotland. I liked how smart she was about it, she takes her maid with her, she books passage on one of her dad's ships. I can stand by this runaway.

Then she meets Lennox. Reluctant Earl with a Castle that is falling down, and who loves building flying machines. I liked Lennox, he was always just there you know.

Mercy's Scottish family were idiots the bunch of them, ugh! Her former fiance was an asshat! I am glad she ran away. Her family back home did have the best of intentions, so I forgive them.

Oh and there is a feud. So she is not allowed to meet Lennox. But does she care, no.

They meet, fall in love (cos who wouldn't) and then there is some family drama and they live happily ever after.

I enjoyed it :)

Narration

I did like the narrator. But his Mercy voice did at first sound like she had a cold or something, but then you got used to it. It was just his female voice. He did have nice distinct voices to all the big players and I liked his soft Scottish accent 

Blurb

Rebellion drove Mercy Rutherford to Scotland to escape the possessive grip of her fiance. But it's fate that lands her in the crumbling highlands castle of Ross Caithart. A dreamer with visions of inventing airships, he's most certainly mad. Handsome beyond words, he's also causing an irresistible flutter in her stomach beyond reason. When Gregory arrives to see their arranged marriage to its bitter end, Mercy desperately turns to Ross with an offer of her fortune-and her hand in marriage.

The Earl of Morton has a reputation for being a daredevil eccentric, but even he is hesitant to engage in such a rash proposition-no matter how utterly beguiled he is by the wildly independent American heiress. And yet, with so much at stake, how can he possibly say no? But when their unconventional union grows into a passionate and inseparable love, more than Gregory's obsession threatens them. Now, Ross and Mercy will have to risk more than their hearts to save it

Audio: The infamous Duchess - Sophie Barnes

Narrated by: Carolyn Morris

Series: Diamonds in the Rough, Book 4

Length: 11 hrs and 26 mins

Unabridged Audiobook

Release date: 03-26-19

Publisher: HarperAudio

Historical romance

For review

My Thoughts

I liked this one. It had real drama. I mean if a 16 year old married some 70-80 year old man then of course people would gossip about her, of course the son would be mad. 

Viola married an old man, one day later he died leaving everything to her. But he was a good guy, who wanted for her to be cared for. No funny business. And with that money she built a hospital. How anyone can gossip about that I do not know. She built a hospital! She is no gold digger.

But would I gossip about her? Probably. I get why she hid from society.

Right so the son comes back and wants all the money and calls her out. Ugh, I hated that guy. But yes if your dad married and then died, of course you would be all omg he left HER all the money?! But luckily he is a total arsehat so I wont even forgive him for a second. That is the drama, court room drama to be.

And the romance is with a  scoundrel, who is not a scoundrel but a really good guy. He will help her deal with her stepson. I liked him.

Then end, oh my, there was like 20 min left when I had to stop, but I had to keep going cos it got intense!

I enjoyed this. Romance, real drama and interesting characters.

And it looks to be a good book next too. I liked the build up for that one.

Narration

I liked this narrator. She works great for historical romance. I liked her female voices. Her male voices sound funny at first, but then they are just perfect for HR.

She works the story well and I hope to hear more from her.

Blurb

Branded a money-hungry con artist for marrying the elderly Duke of Tremaine days before his death, Viola Cartwright has found refuge in her work at St. Agatha’s Hospital. No one must know the painful reason behind her marriage. She steers clear of attachments—until Henry Lowell, heir to the Viscount Armswell, lands on her operating table after a duel. Charming and wickedly handsome, Lowell is one of London’s most inveterate scoundrels. Yet he may not be all that he appears.

And the man who can promise a future filled with love… 

Posing as an unrepentant rake has helped Lowell avoid women pursuing him only for his title. But now that duty has finally called on him to marry, he finds himself entranced by the mysterious, independent-minded Viola. Then her late husband’s son returns from overseas, contesting Viola’s inheritance. Lowell longs to help her and sets out to convince Viola that a strategic union may be the best way to save all she holds dear. But can he also persuade her to take a chance on love…?

Audio: Can't escape love - Alyssa Cole

Narrated by: Karen Chilton

Series: Reluctant Royals 3,5

Length: 4 hrs and 23 mins

Unabridged Audiobook

Release date: 03-19-19

Publisher: HarperAudio

Contemporary romance

Thank you Harper for this review copy

My Thoughts

Another novella in this series, and I have not read a single actual book! But hey it truly works! I even enjoyed this one more than the last one, as that one was a talking book, and here they did spend days together.

Reggie has created a nerd site that is gaining popularity. That site is her whole life. I liked Reggie, she was work oriented, and she loves anime and well nerdy things. All those fun things in life. And yes like the cover shows, she is in a wheelchair. ANd like that has ever stopper her

Gustave was adorable. Puzzles, design and logic are his things. And I like how he truly fell for her.

There are information about what is going on in book 3, but it works out like any other short sidestory. And what can I say, I like Reggie more.

They need each other's help, they fall in lust. It might be a novella, but it feels like an entire book.

Short and fun. I liked this

Narration

I liked her voices and she made this novella work great. You are really there with them.

Blurb

Regina Hobbs is nerdy by nature, businesswoman by nurture. She's finally taking her pop culture-centered media enterprise, Girls with Glasses, to the next level, but the stress is forcing her to face a familiar supervillain: insomnia. The only thing that helps her sleep when things get this bad is the deep, soothing voice of puzzle-obsessed live streamer Gustave Nguyen. The problem? His archive has been deleted.

Gus has been tasked with creating an escape room themed around a romance anime...except he knows nothing about romance or anime. Then mega-nerd and anime expert Reggie comes calling, and they make a trade: his voice for her knowledge. But when their online friendship has IRL chemistry, will they be able to escape love?

Audio: This Scot of Mine - Sophie Jordan

Narrated by: Carmen Rose

Series: The Rogue Files, Book 4

Length: 7 hrs and 17 mins

Unabridged Audiobook

Release date: 03-12-19

Publisher: HarperAudio

Thank you Harper for this review copy

Historical romance

My Thoughts

This is my second pregnant lady marries a Scot this year!

But this one is different. She told her fiance she was preggers to get away from him. Maybe you should have run away instead of ruining yourself and your family. Women! But Clara did have a good point for getting away cos he was not a nice man. So hide in Scotland with her brother is the answer.

Hunt was all Scot. I liked that. But he also deathly afraid of a curse, and from what I saw, that curse is real. Which makes me think of the idiot that made the curse. Arghh, it really made me hate that woman. Ok so sure make that first man suffer, but all the rest?! That is a lot of families torn apart. Ok so yes there is this curse that will kill him if he fathers a child...

But she is already pregnant! Marry her

Curses are silly, sheesh these Scots, marry him!

There will be tension as truths are told. And they do marry since they are attracted to each other so lots of passion too.

Sure the curse is there, but this that is the only suspense thing. And then at the end there is some drama that will lead to another couple, and it did make me somewhat curious.

Scots, fake pregnancies and curses! I enjoyed it

Narration

I think this was my first by this narrator, and she did a good job. A good Scottish accent is everything. There are so many way to play it and she did well.

blurb:

Desperate to escape her vile fiance, Lady Clara devises a bold lie-that she's pregnant with another man's child. With her reputation in tatters, Clara flees to Scotland to live out her days in disgrace, resigned to her fate as a spinster...until she claps eyes on the powerful and wickedly handsome Laird Hunt MacLarin.

She's the answer to his curse...

Laird of an ancient clan, Hunt needs an heir, but he comes from a long line of men cursed to die before the birth of their firstborn. When the Duke of Autenberry approaches him with a proposition-marry my ruined sister-it seems the perfect solution. Even better, the defiant lass stirs him to his very soul.

No escaping the truth...

Except marriage cannot set them free. No matter how much Hunt desires her. No matter how much Clara burns for him. Soon she is falling for her husband, but is love enough to end the curse? Or is the tragic history of the MacLarin Clan doomed to repeat itself?

Audio: Devil's Daughter - Lisa Kleypas

Audible Audio, Unabridged, 9h

Published February 19th 2019 by HarperAudio

Series: The Ravenels #5

Mary Jane Wells, narrator

Historical romance

Thank you Harper for this review copy!

My Thoughts

Oh this one was really delightful! There is banter and then there is banter. These two just made each other laugh. It was flirting, it was fun, it was great.

Phoebe is a young widow with two boys. Such sweet fun boys too, and I loved her interactions with them.

West was, omg, ok so there are rakes and then there is West. He used to be a potbellied drunk who peed in fountains. To go near him is to court scandal. Now he is fit, hardworking and loving the job he does. But yes his rep will not go away.

They meet, they get under each other's skin, she gets mad, he wonders why. Honestly, delightful. There talks were amusing.

And, yes I loved how he played with her kids. He was such a freaking good guy!

I have not read the Wallflower series, but I am a bit in love with Phoebe's dad, rawr!

I kept waiting for them to get their act together. Him with his she is above me, and hers, I promised my dead hubbie to marry this boring guy!

Conclusion:

A cute tale with lots of passion too. Two people under the same roof. Love, shenanigans, and a cat.

Narration

I loved her voice for him! It was utterly perfection!

I also liked her voice for the rest too. Phoebe sounded fun and everyone had a distinct nice voice. It also made me wonder about a gentleman we met, I do want a book about him.

Great fun narration

Blurb

Although beautiful young widow Phoebe, Lady Clare, has never met West Ravenel, she knows one thing for certain: he's a mean, rotten bully. Back in boarding school, he made her late husband's life a misery, and she'll never forgive him for it. But when Phoebe attends a family wedding, she encounters a dashing and impossibly charming stranger who sends a fire-and-ice jolt of attraction through her. And then he introduces himself...as none other than West Ravenel.

West is a man with a tarnished past. No apologies, no excuses. However, from the moment he meets Phoebe, West is consumed by irresistible desire...not to mention the bitter awareness that a woman like her is far out of his reach. What West doesn't bargain on is that Phoebe is no straitlaced aristocratic lady. She's the daughter of a strong-willed wallflower who long ago eloped with Sebastian, Lord St. Vincent—the most devilishly wicked rake in England.

Before long, Phoebe sets out to seduce the man who has awakened her fiery nature and shown her unimaginable pleasure. Will their overwhelming passion be enough to overcome the obstacles of the past?

Only the devil's daughter knows... 

Audio: We set the dark on fire - Tehlor Key Mejia

• By: Tehlor Kay Mejia
• Narrated by: Kyla Garcia
• Length: 9 hrs and 54 mins
• Unabridged Audiobook
• Release date: 02-26-19
• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperAudio
• Thank you Harper for this copy!
• 
  

My Thoughts

A sort of dystopian fantasy, or who knows, might be prove to be our world in the end or something.

Now when I think of it I would like to know more of this world. The lucky ones live behind a wall...ok but why? They say it is because of an old legend about the gods, but again, why? I mean those behind really wants in. And this whole thing takes place on an island so what is beyond?

The rich also gets two wives. One pretty to give him children, one smart to stand by his side- And the men never sleeps with that second wife...really? Come on.

It is an interesting world and I can see what the author is trying to do. Wall. Immigration. Women as chattel. Social injustice. But she does put a lot in the plate.

Daniela, our proper heroine is smart, but she sure does not listen to what she is told.

Her husband is a d"ck.

The second wife is b#tch.

There is a revolution coming and she is told so spy for the resistance. But she just wants to give her parents a better life! So not cool Resistance people, not cool. But then everyone can get a better life if this world change.

There is a romance that comes out of nowhere and makes no sense. I could have liked it if it had...well happened earlier, now it felt to sudden and well spoilers! I can not really say more.

Still, this was an interesting world and story. The ending is a total evil cliffhanger so I was not a fan of that. I hope the next book gives us more about the world.

Narrator

She was great with different voices. And she made Mattheo sound so cold, perfect for him.

Blurb

At the Medio School for Girls, distinguished young women are trained for one of two roles in their polarized society. Depending on her specialization, a graduate will one day run a husband’s household or raise his children. Both paths promise a life of comfort and luxury, far from the frequent political uprisings of the lower class.

Daniela Vargas is the school’s top student, but her pedigree is a lie. She must keep the truth hidden or be sent back to the fringes of society.

And school couldn’t prepare her for the difficult choices she must make after graduation, especially when she is asked to spy for a resistance group desperately fighting to bring equality to Medio.

Will Dani cling to the privilege her parents fought to win for her, or will she give up everything she’s striven for in pursuit of a free Medio - and a chance at a forbidden love?

Audio: Lady Derring takes a lover - Julie Anne Long

Narrated by: Justine Eyre

Length: 9 hrs and 13 mins

Release date: 02-26-19

Publisher: HarperAudio

Series: The Palace of rogues #1

Historical romance

Thank you Harper for this audiobook!

My Thoughts

Delilah is a young widow left with nothing. Her husband was in debt, but he did leave her a house by the docks. And she gets the idea of making into a boarding house...by the docks...

She was kind, but she did have a side she never got to show as she was the nice little wife for her husband. I did like her snark, you never saw it coming.

Tristan is looking for smugglers and his quest leads him to her door. And honestly why this was I do not know. i mean I get why, but two and four does not five make. Still he fancies her, she fancies him back. He is the stoic kind, but there is more to him, even if not shown a lot.

The boarding house proved to be a fun idea. A weird collection of people with nothing in common. A quest for smugglers, and a couple falling in love. The next book looks to be a fun one too.

Conclusion

Cute and fun

Narrator
Justine Eyre! Ha, I can not grow bored with her voices.  Her narrations are always fun

Blurb

Delilah Swanpool, Countess of Derring, learns the hard way that her husband, Dear Dull Derring, is a lot more interesting-and perfidious-dead than alive. It's a devil of an inheritance, but in the grand ruins of the one building Derring left her, are the seeds of her liberation. And she vows never again to place herself at the mercy of a man.

But battle-hardened Captain Tristan Hardy is nothing if not merciless. When the charismatic naval hero tracks a notorious smuggler to a London boarding house known as the Rogue's Palace, seducing the beautiful, blue-blooded proprietress to get his man seems like a small sacrifice.

They both believe love is a myth. But a desire beyond reason threatens to destroy the armor around their hearts. Now a shattering decision looms: Will Tristan betray his own code of honor...or choose a love that might be the truest thing he's ever known? 

Audio: The Curiosities - Susan Gloss

Narrated by: Karen White

Length: 9 hrs and 46 mins

Unabridged Audiobook

Release date: 02-05-19

Publisher: HarperAudio

Thank you Harper for this review copy

Fiction

My Thoughts

I think the cover is pretty, but it does not really show the book as it is. There is sadness, loss and other issues to be dealt with. The cover is more like I felt about the book at the end, hopeful.

Nell is having trouble in her marriage. They want a baby and she is spending so much money on IVF. So she gets a job at an artists colony. Nell is dealing with loss and trying to cope her own way. Some of  the things in her story really shook me at my core.

Then there are the artists. Annie, who was famous in the 70s for her part as a feminist. And who is trying something new, but everyone always remembers the past.

Paige, who is brilliant, but can not settle on a style. She wants it all and she wants to feel. I can't say I was a fan of Paige, but then Paige is not someone who lets anyone close and even through this yo felt that.

Odin, who works with metal, he too is dealing with loss. Odin was so sweet, I liked him.

But there is also Betsy, the woman who made this possible and who passed away. Her life was fascinating. She collected art from all over the world and all forms. She was a true collector and art lover. She should have her own book.

So yes there is a lot of loss and people trying to cope their own way. How art is created. And frankly how you deal with a house with artists all doing their own thing.

I liked it, but it was darker that I expected.

Narrator

I had trouble finding the right speed for her voice. And you know I like it fast. But she did male and female voices well and brought a sort of gravitas to it all.

Blurb

Nell Parker has a PhD in Art History, a loving husband named Josh, and a Craftsman bungalow in Madison, WI. But her last pregnancy ended later in the second trimester, and rather than pausing to grieve, she pushes harder for testing and fertility treatments. Urging Nell to apply for jobs, Josh believes his wife needs something else to focus on other than a baby that may never be.

Finding a job turns out to be difficult for an art historian . . . until Nell sees the ad seeking a director for a new nonprofit called the Mansion Hill Artists' Colony. The colony is the brainchild of the late, unconventional society dame Betsy Barrett, who left behind her vast fortune and a killer collection of modern art to establish an artist-in-residency program to be run out of her lakeside mansion. The executor of Betsy's estate simply hands Nell a set of house keys and wishes her luck.

Nell dives into the new role and discovers that while finding artists to fill the three residency slots is easy, managing their eccentric personalities is not. There's Odin, a young metal sculptor, who keeps the other residents awake with his late-night welding projects. And Annie, a dreadlocked granny known for her gritty photography, whom Nell is almost certain is dealing pot out of the basement studio. Lastly, Lois, an art student from the university, takes up residence in the third-floor turret, experimenting with new printing and design techniques, as well as leading a string of bad boyfriends upstairs when she stumbles home late at night.Despite all the drama, Nell finds something akin to a family among the members of the creative community that she's brought together. And when her attraction to Odin begins to heat up, Nell is forced to decide what will bring her greater joy-the creative, inspired world she's created, or the familiar but increasingly fragile one of her marriage.