Ella Quent

Trite and predictable

Revisado: 11-19-24

This did not keep my attention and I kept switching to other audiobooks. I should have realized that although it’s been in my library for a couple years I have never finished listening to it. Couldn’t finish it

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A story of its time

Revisado: 02-15-23

These are charming stories with themes of perseverance, goodheartedness and friendship. They are also stories written almost 70 years ago and reflect the attitudes and prejudices of the times. To judge them using modern standards and sensibilities is more a judgement on the ignorance and inflexibility of those who self decide they are the moral arbiters of the world. This happens all too often in reviews of older books.

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esto le resultó útil a 19 personas

Tedious and trite

Revisado: 01-19-23

From the cat whose mental voice has a New York accent to the constant use of modern vernacular this was more than boring.

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Stilted delivery

Revisado: 01-27-22

The story is a classic M.C.Beaton historical romance.it really helped once I sped the playback up to 1.1 x as otherwise the narrators over-enunciating plodded along painfully.

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Cliches and stereotypes abound

Revisado: 03-21-21

I can only say that I’m glad this was a part of Audible Plus because of I had paid for it I would be even more annoyed. Let’s just break this down.
First the Narrator - if you’re going to be speaking a foreign language make sure you know how to pronounce the words properly - the French was awful and the German even worse - not to mention the hackneyed accents used for the foreign born characters when they were speaking English, those were just offensive. The weird inflection the narrator had going on most of the time was annoying, and the entire reading was emotionless and there was a distinct lack of differentiation among Lee-Lee’s friends - unless it specifically was said who was speaking they were identical.I don’t know enough about Tennessee accents to comment about how authentic those were but I’ve never heard anyone in Vermont speak the way the narrator read those characters.
Secondly the writing - the original German owners of the inn were such stereotypes that they could have been taken from a Hogans Heroes episode, it was offensive and the French waiter was just as bad - it’s just sloppy writing to have a character that supposedly has lived for 20 years in America and can’t even understand the simplest basic English sentences. How on earth did he get a green card or become a citizen.
Without wanting to be rude the main character is totally unsympathetic. She lets her 5 year old run around sucking on a pacifier has she never spoken to an orthodontist? She claims her user of a husband is a good husband because he “LETS” her go shopping, seriously this is not 1902. She moans on and on about standing up to her evil german employees (cue racial stereotyping here) and how hard it is to live in horrible Vermont - a sane person would actually have looked up what the weather and customs are BEFORE they move to a distant place but not Lee-Lee! She just continually shifts the blame - no one told me this, no one told me that, I’ve taken over an inn but couldn’t be bothered to do the slightest amount of research about what this entails before I do it!
I had to force myself to listen through to the end of this book in the hopes that it might get better but alas-no it didn’t. I had downloaded it and the sequel before I listened to the first one but they are going to be deleted as soon as I post this so that I can’t by accident re-listen to this a year down the road.

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esto le resultó útil a 1 persona

Mediocrity at its best

Revisado: 07-17-20

Worst book in what -at times- has been a stellar series. This book sounds like the author just wants to make a buck. I listened to it with little enjoyment and didn’t care when I tuned out for lloooooonnnnngggg segments. Gotta get my credit back

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esto le resultó útil a 12 personas

I wish I could be positive

Revisado: 08-11-18

Unlike the majority of other reviewers this latest book in the series did not leave me wanting more.
First a disclaimer I am a huge fan of this series, have listened to all of the previous books multiple times and have recommended the series to many, many others, that said, had this new narrator been the original voice of Georgie I would never have gotten past book one. How someone whom we have been told is actually english can manage to sound (at times) as though she is putting on an english accent is beyond me. Her voice characterization for Georgie jumps all over the place, often sounding much too posh and then often when Georgie is channeling her great grandmother where it would be appropriate strangely not.
Ms. Blacborow's voices for Darcy and Queenie are quite good but sadly Belinda and Claire are lacking the brittle worldliness that defines their characters in the books, the voices of Binky and Figg are forgettable at best and hearing the narrators mispronunciation of Rannock made me cringe.
Then there's the story itself. This is book 12 and Georgie has been involved in MULTIPLE murders and mysteries. It is inconceivable to me that she could have experienced so much and not become a more suspicious and aware person. In this novel things keep happening that a six year old would find odd and yet Georgie seems continually willing to accept the flimsiest explanations. Not to mention that once again Georgie is sure that Darcy is being unfaithful, something that has happened countless times throughout the series and has truly lost its effectiveness as a plot device.
Hopefully now that Georgie and Darcy have reached wedded bliss the series has reached a conclusion. I for one will re-listen to Katherine Kellgren's wonderful work on the previous books and purchase any future episodes in paperback format.

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esto le resultó útil a 35 personas

Disappointed

Revisado: 11-03-16

I love Connie Willis but must say that I wanted to smack the lead character and yell at the narrator. I realize this is a rather extreme reaction but seriously when the narrator can't even pronounce the lead characters name properly it is nothing but irritating

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esto le resultó útil a 3 personas

A tired rehash

Revisado: 06-28-16

Mary Kay needs to take a break and find some new characters and scenarios. Disrespectful spoiled daughter - little bitty lies. Feckless lying cheating husband - little bitty lies, ladies night. Small island with golf cart transportation - deep dish, save the date. Misunderstood hero who has loves the heroine but only gets her in the end - ladies night, deep dish, summer rental, beach town etc, etc, Heroine who is supposedly intelligent but acts clueless half the time especially as regards the aforementioned hero - pretty well all of them. I've listened to so many MKA books but I think this will be the last unless they release Hissy Fit and Savannah Breeze in full (not abridged) versions.

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Almost funny but...

Revisado: 03-28-16

This book can only be recommended if you enjoy a heroine that is an egocentric, shallow and generally stupid. While I have enjoyed many of Katie MacAllisters books, this one just annoyed me. I don't know if I want to waste another credit on the next book in the series.

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