The Green Countess

way too weird and unexpectedly extreme

Revisado: 12-10-24

a very bad play on religious good and evil... not sure what. the gayness part seems to take a back seat to the good gods vs bad gods issue.
but the story is not well enough written to be sure if this is a parody of the good/evil trope, or just an unconvincing proud/ashamed gay coming out story... despite the very intriguing twist at the end.
the erotica part is quite extreme - don't want to write any spoilers - but not in any BDSM way.
not at all as the "bodyguard" trilogy standard.
only chris patton's narration is just as professional, just as dramatic, and just as convincing as ever.
would I recommend it to others? anybody's guess who would like it and who wouldn't
are you brave enough to try?

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funny, romantic curse

Revisado: 12-10-24

if all curses would end up like this one, we would all get in line to be cursed.
funnier than the usual megan derr; just as original as the usual megan derr; less dark and heavy than the usual megan derr.
the dectective part of the story is well explained and paul morey's narration is professional and very pleasant.
seeing that this is a second installment in a trilogy, the story is unexpectedly well balanced, and features characters from both the first and the last installment.
very good listen

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the value of mellow

Revisado: 12-10-24

very good continuation of "spirited situation"
the ghosts keep doing their thing, and keeping everyone on their toes,
the human visitors are weirder than ever,
the vortex gives away more of it's mystery, as new paranormal characters come on the scene
and our friends at mannix estate get paired out in funny and mellow adventures.
looking forward to the next installment

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not nuts for this story

Revisado: 12-10-24

the story is only an excuse for the erotica scenes. it's not special, not coherent, and sounds like whole bits are edited out.
john solo is professional as always, but not even he can make the story enjoyable and flowing.
if you don't have anything better on your wish list, you may go for this one

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the trifecta of an amazing listen!

Revisado: 12-09-24

maybe the best buy this year!! and that includes louisa masters' the whole CSG quartet for only 7 something dollars!
there are 3 wonderful stories, all taking place in the same city, around the same institutions and the same society, with the same mentality.
they are each written by a different author, none of which I ever heard about before; and narrated by 3 of the best in the field: tristan james, john solo and kirt graves.
they each tell a different couple's story, and yet they are cohesive, well matched and original, all in one. it's amazing how they seem to be written by the same author, and also be different enough to be interesting, and not give the impression of "same annette, different hair-do".
totally surprizing for this type of thing (an anthology) the stories are all in the same league, written with the same amount of talent and creativity, and narrated with the same high level of professionalism. usually there is a dud story and (another) dud narrator, but in this trio, you'd be hard pressed to find a favorite.
and the idea of having each story narrated by a different voice, only makes the whole thing more enjoyable - since the "background" and characters sound familiar, the different voices make each story original enough.
absolutely perfect!

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good value for money

Revisado: 01-16-24

this is a trilogy set, so an overall review and score is hard to give. but there are a few common traits, not including the same author and same narrator, so lets give it a try.
first, the narrator is professional enough and his only fall from perfection is that sometimes he switches up the voices of different characters in a dialog. his voice is good and intonation expressive and pleasant enough. just short of going "oh! this narrator does it for me! I'll remember his name".
the author is professional enough, the story lines credible and interesting and mild, the style coherent and funny enough, the overall message to the readers enlightened and progressive enough. the characters building is a bit lacking.
first story, "hearts ablaze", is funny and attractive. The characters just flawed enough, and just strong enough to create an interesting, life-can-get-better story that will make you want more from the author.
the second story "hearts afire" is the bad apple in the barrel: the characters are so weak and wishy-washy, the actions of both main and secondary characters so out of line with their mental processes (which the author insists on explaining more than once) that the story is really bad - I listen to it maybe a tenth of what I listen to the others.
however the last story, "hearts aflame" is again funny and interesting, with a bit more drama, and lot more human interest. undoubtedly the best in the bunch.
all in all, not sorry I bought this, and not adverse to hearing more from this the author.

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sweet surprize

Revisado: 12-13-23

only purchased this title because it's a MM romance in the amazingly addictive voice of Erik Bloomquist.
got a wonderfully creative and unexpectedly sweet retelling of the Cinderella story. sorry if this spoils it for anyone - I won't go into details of what was creative and what specific part of the story makes it cinderlla-like.
the story line is clean and believable; the characters deep and very modern-thinking; the rhythm fast enough to make the story hard to pause.
this is a writer I would definitely purchase more from - her "Adventures in Aguillon" series is already on my wish list ;-)

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sweet little sparklie

Revisado: 12-13-23

as usual, a well written, unpredictable mellow little gem from the wordsmith herself!
and the familiar, talented narration of kale williams only makes it more desirable. too bad there isn't more of it. probably not more of this particular story, but definitely more of the adventures of the protagonists.
the atmosphere of the post-WWII america is so attractive somehow. and the main pair or characters somehow more likeable than the holmes and moriarty pair. though they are as different from one another as holmes and moriarty are, these two seem stronger, more true-to-themselves, more committed to be happy, rather than acceptable to others.
and as usual, the whole story line is quite refreshingly original and clever.
this is one smart writer that hasn't disappointed yet! still my favorite, since 2018, when I first heard of her - and adrian english, of course ;-)

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not fulfilling the potential

Revisado: 12-13-23

disappointing, in comparison with the first 2 installments...
the phrasing is just as good, alex kydd's voice is just as enthralling, and his storytelling just as professional.
however, the story line is diluted and inclined towards soap-opera tropes. the characters are also starting to get stagnant.
can't be more precise, trying not to write spoilers for anyone. the story started original, interesting and fast paced. now it's spreading on too many characters to be fast pace, filling up with clichees and becoming too predictable. either continue to concentrate on casius and morgan's story, and invest in their characters and story line development, or move to another pair, and invest all of your genius on developing their story. both ways are acceptable in the series-of-novels world. not even j.r.r. tolkien managed to do both - not that that would be a reason not to try. but this writer didn't even come close to tolkien's levels.
pity

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short and sweet... and a bit dirty! (yeap! TP)

Revisado: 12-20-22

haven't yet met a book by louisa masters that I didn't like! paranormal, magical or plain human, her story lines are clean and likeable, the writing funny and smart, the characters flawed and so, so loveable!
and there's always a little price to pay for being able to do amazing stuff: yes the hellhounds can't open their own phones (and no, there is no need for explanations as to why: it's magic!) but they can open any locks, and pass through any doors, no matter how well locked and barred.
and no, there is no special bond between sam and another character (who's aiden? the vampire is andrew and the hellhound alistair). I like that their relationship starts with lust and turns into caring and respect and love - sounds very human. I also like that none of the characters is perfect: everyone has something special only they can do and something so annoying you sometimes wonder why you put up with it: it's human!
as for joel leslie's narration: again, I haven't heard something of his that I didn't like :-D
he's professional, has awesome intonation, and acts the words with pathos. his accent is british, so it may not be so clear to all non-brits? he did gave gideon a silly foreign accent, but he never messed up the different voices and it's always clear which character sais what. and I haven't yet heard him mis-pronounce any latin or foreign-originating word.
be warned: louisa masters in joel leslie's voice is addictive!
listen to this where you can make faces and lough out loud without people looking at you funny ;-)

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