Helene

Disappointed by glowing reviews

Revisado: 04-27-25

Main character acted like a 14-year-old, Weak story where we are promised information in the future. Mostly about clothes, interior design and sickening wealth and sex/lust.
I really liked the fever series and KMM‘s earlier works, but this felt like a juvenile effort.

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Mediocre effort

Revisado: 01-29-25

I love Nettle and Bone, so rich in its descriptions and such interesting characters so this was such a disappointment in comparison. It’s not that it’s badly written, but it’s very superficial. The characters are two dimensional at best and Cordelia’s stammering gets on your nerves and the caricature evilness of her mother is low effort.

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Potential lost, still entertaining

Revisado: 08-10-20

Ashley has built an intriguing world, but nothing is fleshed out - except the flesh.

Everyone good is beautiful and amazing at sex. Doing it and talking about it. A LOT. The priests are bad and enjoy sadistic arsef*cking and practise mutilation as punishment. Three of the main four male characters are described in much the same way, Alpha A-holes. The four lead females are incredibly gorgeous and very innocent.

The worldbuilding and premise makes for a kind of story an author like Brandon Sanderson, Ilona Andrews or Craig Schaefer could have done so much more with.

Anyway, I shall continue listening to the end of this series as included in my subscription. The good parts are the story moving forward, politics, details of trade and goods, nature, magicks. Bogged down by descriptions of what everyone is wearing in painstaking detail as well as their glowing dewy skin, muscled arms, sparkling eyes and bouncy hair. And the sex they constantly have or constantly think of having.

Currently midway through book two.

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Non-chemistry snooze fest

Revisado: 07-02-19

I thought this would be an interesting take on the challenges that people with diagnoses that are not evident on the outside face when trying to establish and maintain relationships. But it was juvenile and tedious so I gave up.

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Uneven

Revisado: 06-13-19

I listened to this as part of the Romance/Escape package, and I am giving up after two hours. The narrator does an excellent job but she cannot change the fact that the lead male character is an asshole. For him, and for the police who handled the case back in Seattle seven years ago, this is all about them. How THEY must solve this.
They talk about the lead female character as someone who HAS to help them, regardless of the cost to her mental health.
Nothing about how they could go about helping her remembering.
Example: Lead Male Asshole goes to visit Lead Female at her house for the first time and does nothing to expel her fears, or calm her. Parts of this book is well written and then a jarring passage comes along. Mostly involving conversation, which is very stilted and stereotypical.

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Disappointment from JAL

Revisado: 04-04-19

It started out well, classic JAL, and then - soon after the meet cute - things get into a rut:
new guests arrive - same vetting with ladies on the sofa - lots and lots of tea - Captain Hardy out on business - rinse and repeat. Predictable and boring. The ladies are stuck inside the Grand Palace (!!!) and the air is getting stale. No surprises. No moving scenes. Not even entertaining or distracting enough for my commute to/from work.
JAL has written the historic romantic masterpieces The Perils of Pleasure and Like No Other Lover (no Dukes) and compared to those, this is Taco Bell versus Fine Mexican Dining.
It makes be very, very sad.
Also, Justine Eyre is terrible at doing men's voices. She ruined the Matrimonial Advertisement for me. Any book with her as the narrator is now on auto-ignore.

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Slow becomes boring

Revisado: 10-29-18

Interesting concept, excellent narration and well written, but I could not bring myself to care for the main characters and a thorough buildup became tortuously slow and boring somewhere after the middle. Nothing happened. I am not going to continue reading this series and if it weren’t for the fact that it was part of the Romance package I would be severely disappointed to have spent a whole credit on this book.

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Fantastic story, mediocre narration

Revisado: 01-16-18

Would you consider the audio edition of The Master of All Desires to be better than the print version?

Not at all. In fact, I almost gave up because the narrator came across as a theater school drop-out. Too dramatic and airy and lots of heavy intakes of breath. I found her immensely trying at the beginning of the book, almost gave up. But, I managed to get past my irritation and could enjoy the story and its many fascinating twists and turns. Narration got better at around 30%. Or, I got used to it.

What did you like best about this story?

I felt like I was moved back in time and really immersed in Renaissance France. The book stays true to actual historical events. The characters - even supporting cast - are varied and interesting personalities. One thing though: a great many of them think they, and only they, deserve good things more than others.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Maybe because the book is very rich, interspersing various viewpoints and extracts of letters, it is difficult to understand who is talking in the beginning. If you are reading, this is obviously not a problem. Re. narration - see above. One point in narrator's favour is that her pronunciation of French names and places is very good. The Italian accent of the queen is also well done.

If you could rename The Master of All Desires, what would you call it?

Why would I? The title is perfect!

Any additional comments?

I love aunt Pauline. Would really like a tante like her. Sibille is very young and earnest but she grows and matures and shows grit and stamina towards the end.
Menander is a truly evil little talking head, but extremely entertaining.

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Unputdownable

Revisado: 10-10-16

What did you love best about If You Find Me?

It feels real in a scary sort of way. Carey is so matter-of-fact when she tells us the story: the end, the middle and the beginning. All the horrifying details that were part of her everyday life for so long, and the unwavering love for her sister.

What was one of the most memorable moments of If You Find Me?

Carey's resolve in taking care of business. I felt the cold forest in the bright star night.

What about Tai Sammons’s performance did you like?

She was perfect, I felt like I was in Carey's head.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Definitely.

Any additional comments?

This book deals with disturbing subject matters, but not in a sensational way. It makes it more realistic. I felt a pang of regret for this fictional character who lost so many years with her Dad. Her mother was not evil, but very sick and Carey's loyalty towards her for a long time is understandable.

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Dreadful misogyny

Revisado: 05-19-14

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

A plot other than quarrel - fuck - argue - fuck - hate on you - fuck

What could Christina Lauren have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

This obviously appeals to a large number of listeners, but whereas I found Tangled - a similar book set in an office environment with a sexual tension building - hilarious, this was just dreadful.He was a dick and she was a shallow shrew.

What about Grace Grant’s performance did you like?

Grace Grant did an excellent job with what she was given.

Any additional comments?

Note to self: check out friends reviews on GoodReads before committing to a book.

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