Molly

This Book is As Long as Barbra’s Shocking Ego…

Revisado: 12-21-23

Let me start by saying that like many Gen X daughters of Baby Boomer moms, Barbra was a beloved figure in my household. My mom loved her music, her movies, and I came to love them, too. The Way We Were is one of my favorite films of all time, and some of her lesser known hit songs - like “Stoney End” and “Prisoner (The Theme from The Eyes of Laura Mars)” are two of my favorite songs, not to mention the entire “Guilty” album; tunes that immediately bring back wonderful, everyday memories of running errands with my mom as a child (BTW, she doesn’t even mention recording “Prisoner”, probably because she wasn’t involved in producing it, and as you’ll find out listening to this book, if Babs wasn’t involved in EVERY ASPECT of the production of a song, album, or film, than it was deeply flawed, according to her!)

The woman’s talent cannot be denied. She’s incredible in so many ways, and her 60+ year career demonstrates that. BUT…this woman’s ego is even worse than all the rumors have indicated. Hours - about 9 of the 49 hours in my estimation - are dedicated to her reading ONLY the most positive, effusive reviews, letters, comments, and tributes written and said about her. And it’s not just limited to her singing or acting talents; we also are treated to copious amounts of commentary from world leaders, politicians, and academics who have told her how brilliant she is, how insightful her views are on everything from domestic policy to climate change! Her relationship with the Clintons alone was apparently even closer (and more disturbing) than we were aware of even during the “Lincoln Bedroom” scandal, as Barbra details how she consistently advised Pres Clinton how to handle everything from the Lewinsky scandal to the debates with Bob Dole! When she reads a letter she wrote and sent to DFL senators about how they should be acting and behaving, you immediately get a mental picture of these Senators reading this thing and thinking “Who the hell does this broad think she is?”

And her constant political hypocrisy gets NAUSEATING. She consistently tells us what a women’s rights advocate she is, and then glosses over the Clinton-Lewinsky affair by telling us it was none of our business what went on in a sacred office that we pay for because it was Clinton’s “private life,” then lists every scandalous affair that a Republican politician had and insists we should be outraged by it. There’s no mention of the abuse of power displayed in the most powerful man in the world choosing to have an affair with a 22 year old subordinate. No mention at all of the multiple women who have accused Clinton of sexual harassment and assault. No mention of Hilary Clinton referring to these women as “bimbo eruptions.” SOME WOMENS RIGHTS ADVOCATE! And then there’s the countless bragging about being an LGBTQ advocate, but then later talks about the inherent biological differences between men and women’s bodies (when talking about her latest advocacy for women’s heart disease) and doesn’t seem to even realize that these words fly directly in the face of what liberals want us to accept about transgenderism (that gender is a societal construct and there is no difference between a trans woman and a naturally born female.)

I somehow managed to listen to all 49 hours of this book, and while I will always appreciate this woman’s singular talents (as an actor and vocalist ONLY) it really could have been condensed down to something she told us at the very start of her career: one page, four words: “I’M THE GREATEST STAR.”

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Hot Smut, Great Narration, Storyline a Little Lacking…

Revisado: 11-19-23

…at least for me. WARNING: SLIGHT SPOILER AHEAD

I tend to like my mafia themed romances a lot darker than this one. Vito (the MMC) is brilliantly narrated by Patrick Zeller and his alpha instincts and complete possessiveness are everything I love in one of these…and while I love a HEA ending, I just don’t feel the need (or see the likelihood) of a mafia man changing his stripes quite this easily. I kind of prefer my MMF’s in this scenario to “embrace” the darkness within her antihero rather than be repelled by them and try to change them. So if you’re looking for REAL dark mafia erotic romance, this isn’t quite it. But Dani Wyatt DOES deliver on the hot scenes (she’s second only to Jenika Snow in this department IMO) so definitely consider this one a “closed door” listen!

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Warning: You Got to Love Dark, Toxic Masculinity

Revisado: 10-20-23

Ok, as you can see from many other reviews, there’s a lot of trigger warning moments and the dichotomy between a guy who hunts sex predators and essentially is one himself is a bit baffling. I sense the author was going for a “Dexter” sort of scenario here and it didn’t come off all that well.

Perhaps if they’d made it more clear that he has issues with underage trafficking, or that he had read Adeline’s diaries and knew she fantasized about dubious consent scenarios it would make more sense…That being said, you have to be a certain kind of person to find this story and the MMC scorching hot, and if you ARE that kind of person, the character of Zane (especially as voiced by the incomparable Teddy Hamilton) will become your dream man. You will need to love twisted, completely obsessed and dangerous alpha males who will kill (literally kill) anyone who dares to touch his woman and you need to love men who are completely devoted to their woman but want to also sexually dominate them. If you like them especially dark and freaky and enjoy dubious consent…you’ll love this book. It is NOT for the faint of heart. This is a VERY niche book for a very select audience. But if you think there’s something weirdly hot about a guy cutting off the hands of a bad man who touched you and leaving them for you to prove you belong to him (and I know there’s some of us out there who do - I can’t be the ONLY one!) then…you’re about to meet your new obsession in Zane.

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Great hero…frustrating heroine, great performances

Revisado: 07-22-22

I don’t know why but there were moments when this heroine just frustrated the heck out of me. All in all it’s got everything you want from a dark mafia romance though. Hot sex scenes, territorial alpha male willing to do everything and anything to protect his woman, etc. And Aiden Snow might be my second favorite male narrator (you just can’t beat Jason Clarke!)

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Wonderful as Usual!

Revisado: 07-11-22

If Jenika wrote a new version of the phone book I’d likely still give it a try, especially if the sexiest male voice in earth, Jason Clarke, was doing the narration. My God that man’s voice just does things to me and he’s so versatile: cocky American vampire in Bite Marks; hot Romanian Lycan in this one, both fine to perfection!

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Wish I Could Give it 6 Stars!

Revisado: 07-03-22

One of the best paranormal erotic romances I’ve EVER read and I just hope the 3rd installment is forth coming. If you like your lead male characters to be a true alpha, possessive, anti-hero who talks filthy and does unspeakable things to the heroine, you have met your dream guy in Bran Duval. A perfect blend of paranormal, romance, comedy, and hot, 🔥🔥🔥sex.

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Brilliance! Absolutely awesome!

Revisado: 07-03-22

If you’re a fan of sexy, dominant, possessive, absolutely filthy male leads, - especially those that are vampires - you’ve hit the jackpot with Bran Duvall! My God! Just the right mix of humor, sexual tension, absolutely HOT sex scenes, and suspense. I never wanted it to end while at the same time I found myself having to skip ahead with the 30 seconds forward several times in order to get to the next part and then go back. Trust me - you will NOT be disappointed! While the best scenario would’ve been to have a duet narration with a hit male voice actor (like Jason Clarke, maybe?) Bran’s parts, this female narrator does a better job than most handling the male part. Audible please bring more of Nikki St Crowe’s work to the platform! She and Jenika Snow are by far the best voices writing in paranormal erotic romance today!

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Eh, with the exception of Troy Duran…

Revisado: 06-24-22

This was my first JT Geissinger novel, and I’m not super impressed. It was just Ok. I loved Liam, the male character and it is voiced absolutely perfectly by Troy Duran, but the female character did little for me. I found her Southern accent annoying and I didn’t believe someone like Liam would be that into her, as she often borders on silliness. And as far as the steam factor goes, I’d also only give it a 🔥🔥out of 5 scale. Since I’m always looking for recommendations on dark romances that really being the alpha male heat, I’ll say if you’re looking for the same, check out Jenika Snow’s Bite Marks or Cold Hearted Bastard, which have way more of both.

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Good bones, but not enough flesh and blood…

Revisado: 06-22-22

I started with “Bite Marks” and “Cold-Hearted Bastard” from Jenika’s canon, and if you’re looking for the full-on fire of alpha male lust, dirty talk, and possessive “toxic masculinity” that so many of us (including myself!) are such fans of her work for, you might be a little disappointed here. The story feels very rushed, the characters don’t fully develop because of it, the sex is good but much tamer than many of Jenika’s other work and it ultimately doesn’t fully live up to its’ promise. Not truly a spoiler here, but this guy tells our heroine she won’t be able to walk after he’s done with her and yet they seem to only have actual sex once? All in all it just feels a bit rushed and like so much more could have been done here. All the building blocks are present for a Jenika Snow master work if she ever revisits it (which she often does and then re-releases) and adds about 100 more pages of character development, build-up, and steamy sex. If you are looking for the best Jenika can do (and she’s one of my favorite authors working in the erotic, dark romance milieu so she can do ALOT) I suggest Bite Marks or Cold Hearted Bastard, both incredible listens you will revisit many, many times. One other note: this narrator is quite good, but I felt her voice didn’t match the character very well; possibly her voice is a bit too old? She sounds more like a woman in her 30’s or 40’s then a virginal 21 year old. And after you get the dual narration from Bite Marks and Cold Hearted Bastard (especially how hot Jason Clarke’s voice is in Bite Marks) it’s pretty tough to want anything else.

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Another Incredible Effort from Jenika Snow

Revisado: 06-22-22

Incredible! Arlo is the anti-hero you never want to say goodbye to - this was by far the best of the of the Underworld Kings series. You can absolutely visualize this becoming a movie. If you’re looking for an alpha male who knows how to burn into your soul with dirty talk, you will NOT be disappointed. Just one thing I do have to say about Ms. Snow’s work (and I apologize if this is a bit on the clinical side) but maybe she doesn’t need to be quite so obsessed with women’s physical response to sex. That response alone - and the constant discussion of volume that all her heroines seem to have - gets to be a bit much for me. But otherwise great book and I hope more of of these come soon from Ms Snow. Also, LOVE the duet narration - JF Harding did a fantastic job (and for me it really hinges on the guy being someone I WANT to hear say those delightfully dirty things!)

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