The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen

The Doomsday Books, Book 1

De: KJ Charles

Narrado por: Martyn Swain

Abandoned by his father, Gareth Inglis grew up lonely, prickly, and used to disappointment. Still, he longs for a connection. When he meets a charming stranger, he falls head over heels—until everything goes wrong and he's left alone again.

Then Gareth's father dies, turning the shabby London clerk into Sir Gareth, with a grand house on the remote Romney Marsh and a family he doesn't know. The Marsh is another world, a strange, empty place notorious for its ruthless gangs of smugglers. And one of them is dangerously familiar…

Joss Doomsday has run the Doomsday smuggling clan since he was a boy. When the new baronet—his old lover—agrees to testify against Joss's sister, Joss acts fast to stop him. Their reunion is anything but happy, yet after the dust settles, neither can stay away. Soon, all Joss and Gareth want is the chance to be together. But the bleak, bare Marsh holds deadly secrets. And when Gareth finds himself threatened from every side, the gentleman and the smuggler must trust one another not just with their hearts but also with their lives.

©2023 KJ Charles (P)2023 Dreamscape Media

Another superb book from KJ Charles!

Another superb book from KJ Charles! The narrator does a fantastic job as well. The emotional arc and the action are well balanced and both are compelling in their own rights. Highly recommend.

Loved it!

I loved the story! I loved the narration!

I have loved KJ Charles other books and look forward to reading more of them!

Christmas in April

This novel was a surprise gift to me from the universe. How have I never found KJ Charles before? I was riveted all the way through.The novel has a gripping plot, main characters who grow and heal each other in the course of the story, a passionate romance, not to mention competent historical detail and a nail-biting finish. I agree with the listeners who found the narration an obstacle to enjoyment. Long pauses between words are unnatural. However, I was able to overlook the weird narration as I got more caught up in the story. Thank goodness the dialogue didn't get the same treatment and the voices were good. I count this a lucky find. I hope to be reading a lot more KJ Charles in future.

Great story. Frustrating narration.

The narration was frustrating because it was almost fantastic. He had a clear voice and did great voices to differentiate between characters. But he frequently spoke with a halting speech. Pausing between words. Occasionally it worked for the tension in the story. Mostly it was distracting and took a lot to get used to and overlook. If you’re a picky listener this one may not be for you.

Love the story tho! Vivid. Clever. With a great adventure in the marshes of Kent. A sweet romance.

A refreshingly unexpected caper

After listening, I felt like I had been on an aventure to a very different kind of scenery and society. And the progression of the relationship was not as predictable as it is in many books.

A Favorite

I truly loved this book. The story was interesting and I loved the characters. The descriptions of the marsh made it come alive. The love story was tender and sweet. I appreciated that as their relationship grew they were able to see when they were in the wrong and fixed things immediately - no drawn out misunderstandings. Against the slow growth of the relationship was true danger from different directions and that created tension and suspense. I appreciated how the author handled the very real danger to people in same sex relationships.

Several reviews were unhappy with the narration. For me it was perfect, especially the two main characters. They sounded the way I thought they should. I was also impressed that even though you don’t know the grandfather's backstory right away, I wondered why he sounded like he came from the American south - nicely subtle.

I hope this turns into a long, long series.

Solid 4

It was a toss up but I'd say it definitely is a solid 4. The performance was not bad it was engaging in some spots and you can tell the difference between the characters. However I'm not sure if it was the way the book was written but it sounded blocky in some places. Now I have read many books in this time period so that can't be the reason.
Now to the story, the character development was great very linear (I hate when characters regress). It was a great story with not many predictable turns. All of it made sense and made me fall for it. not a 5 star but a book I could read multiple times and still enjoy.
The spicy amazingly written and just enough not to much to take away the story but just enough to feel how the characters felt about each other.
definitely worth the points lol

Great book, great narration

Oh, this is so good. So, so good. I have yet to read a KJ Charles book that did not leave me with both a satisfied brain and a satisfied heart. The story of London and Kent is heartfelt and layered and very hot. The story of the smugglers is a page-turner. Also who knew beetles could play a pivotal role in a love story? (Well, other than KJ Charles).

I listened to the audiobook with narration by Martyn Swain. It is very well done. The interpretation is great, and I had no problem distinguishing who was speaking at any time.

In short, I loved this book. I am looking forward to the next. It is already pre-ordered.

One Of My Favorite Books So Far This Year

KJ Charles is one of my favorite authors. I was really looking forward to this book and I was not disappointed. I highly recomend reading or listening to it. The plot is fun with some intresting twiats and turns. The characters were well-developed and I enjoyed getting to know them.

The narrator is good. He has a pleasant voice and he gives the character distinct voices. However, the pace of the narration is odd. It's weirdly slow with long pauses. At first i found it unlistenable. I'm not sure what happened but I think it might be a production issue. ThankfullyI read other reviews and followed their advice. Speeding up the narration to 1.35x fixed the problem for me and made the narratation sound normal except for the occassional misplaced pause, I was able to listen and enjoy the story.

Good Love Story

Great story. KJ Charles is a wonderful story teller. Always a lot of interesting details that enrich the story