Surprise Groom Audiobook By D.J. Jamison cover art

Surprise Groom

Marital Bliss, Book 1

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Surprise Groom

By: D.J. Jamison
Narrated by: Kenneth Obi
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Can two men fake their way to marital bliss?

Caleb Taylor is shocked to learn his family could lose Bliss Island Resort - their home and livelihood - unless he makes use of a clause to marry the child of investor Louis Chastain. Sofia Chastain is more like a sister than a love interest. And Caleb isn’t ready to sign over his future. But Sofia has a brother, and Caleb has a plan.

Julien Chastain was disowned at 15 and has made a life as a go-go dancer in Miami, but he lives paycheck to paycheck. When his childhood friend proposes an outlandish marriage contract, he thinks he’s crazy. But it’s a chance at a future that’s tough to pass up.

Caleb and Julien must present themselves as an authentic couple for the legal loophole to work, but the lines between “fake” and “real” keep shifting as they navigate intimacy, public scrutiny, and sabotage.

Love isn't part of the plan, but plans change. If they can outsmart Julien's father and prove that their love is worth more than a transaction, they just might find a true happily ever after.

©2019 D.J. Jamison (P)2019 D.J. Jamison Contemporary Romance
Engaging Storyline • Sweet Romance • Distinctive Character Voices • Interesting Plot • Enjoyable Fake Marriage
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Listener received this title free

I thoroughly enjoyed Surprise Groom! Kenneth Obi narrated it perfectly. I loved how Caleb and Julian came together as friends after so many years apart. I had read the book and absolutely loved the audio version as well. Highly recommend it!!

Loved it!!

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I appreciated the reviews I read prior, though I didn't have a problem with the narration it was good not to expect folks from New England would sound like they were from New England. I liked both the MCs. Enjoyed watching the shift from go-go dancer to photographer, and the workaholic finding his way to being present for his life. The evil father figure was rather two dimensional, but otherwise, it was a lovely romance.

A fake turns real romance that works

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Listener received this title free

This is a wonderfully written story about Caleb and Julien, two childhood friends. In order to save his home, Bliss Island, Caleb propositioned Julien into marrying him. What started out as a fake romance turned into so much more. Caleb and Julien really are so good for each other. I'm glad they got their happy ending. I can see them happily working together on the island for years to come, Caleb as a wedding planner and Julien as the photographer.
Narrator Kenneth Obi does a fabulous job.

Love finds a way

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although the book left you with a questions at the end that I did not like and I do felt like the altar did. Review and research contract law and Financial laws in Maine very well. it was the narrator that took the most away from the story. the main character Caleb sounded more like a mixture between Jimmy Stewart in Forrest Gump. the only reason I didn't return the audible was because I was traveling and didn't have time to buy another story

the book was good the narration was horrible

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Listener received this title free

Julian and Caleb’s story: add some good friends, some good family, a devious father, some hot and bothered sexy moments and a whole lot of Love and you’ve got a recipe for a great read!!! Love does have a way of conquering all!

All the feels you could possibly want!

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Is love worth the hassle or loosing an island retreat?
Can two people find their HEA amidst the lying, overbearing, deceitful, and contract wheeling father?
Yes they can by following Louis father's example of how to get out of certain contracts and situations, Caleb and Louise were able to get their HEA.

I enjoyed this book immensely, great storyline, the author and Narrator did an excellent job.....
oking forward to read ok ng book 0

Love story to surpass all others.

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Listener received this title free

Caleb is in shock when he finds out he and his mom is about to lose the family resort. His dad has left them with a pile of debts. His best friend is a paralegal and after looking at the contract of the man calling in the debt finds the loophole The debt holder told them about had yet another loophole. So Caleb sets out to find Julienne his childhood best friend and son of the debt holder. He finds Julienne in Florida dancing as a gogo dancer.
Julienne is getting a bit old for gogo dancing and his boss keeps hiring younger men giving them the best hours. He would love to find something else but can't afford it. Then out of the blue, his friend from his past shows up. with an offer hard to refuse, not only the money and chance for a new lifestyle but to play house with his first crush.

I love fake relationships when they are believable enough and this one is perfect. I loved both characters and the setting. The storyline was also fun and I liked the kind of gay for you thrown in the process.

I listened to the audio and Kenth Obi did such a great job with the narration. I love his voices for each character and his acting of the story pulls you right in.

A great fake relationship

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I really enjoyed this story overall. The storyline was good and kept me engaged, I liked the narration a lot and I really couldn’t stop listening once I started. I do wish there had been a bit more comeuppance for the two separate thorns in Julien and Caleb’s sides but I still was happy with the journey and ending. I will probably check out the rest of the series.

Overall Great Story

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First, the not-my-taste portion, since I rated it the lowest and if you like it then you might enjoy the experience of this audiobook far more than I did. The worst bit for me was the narration:

I knew going in that I wouldn't love the narration, so I wasn't tricked into it by listening to a sample or anything. Kenneth Obi narrates a lot of books I take an interest in, and each time I see he's the narrator I put the book in my wish list and decide to come back when I'm desperate for any new book, because I know I don't like his narrating style. I have listened to at least five books he's narrated, and I've never liked his style, but a lot of people like him, that's all fine. I found his narration itself less challenging in this book than usual, but his accents were grating. Until the narrative spelled it out, I couldn't place what he was aiming for: "is that supposed to be... British? No wait, that line was more maybe - Australian? Oh, no, it's South Carolinian? ...Bostonian?" and indeed, nearly all of the characters are meant to have a New England accent, apparently. It was incredibly distracting, especially Julian's voice as his kept dipping more southern to me, I was left really wishing the narrator used his normal accent.

Now, to the story:

I have been feeling that trope-craving, seeking out that comfort-blanket warmth of the familiar with just enough difference to hold interest. I always base my ratings off of what could be expected given the summary and the genre, I don't think it's fair to judge every book as if it was aiming to be a deeply thought-provoking, poetic read. That's not even what we want all the time, is it? Sometimes we need the story that just brings us in enough to pull us along with the plot, but not any of the rest. A light popcorn read.

Even so, this book was not great. It wasn't awful by any stretch, but it was on the lower end of what I'd hope for given the fake-dating/fake marrying trope, and I've read pretty extensively from the trope.

I liked some of the side characters for the little glimpses we got, I look for characters who aren't complete copies of genre stereotypes within the trope-y stories, I figure since the plot writes itself to a great extent in these cases then a good author can give us some interesting characters to stand out in the mix. I appreciated that Diego and Sophia, a prior hook up and the potential alternative spouse, were not characterized as awful people, and that though there were few female characters with speaking lines in the story, none were particularly demonized (though we did get the ex-who-is-a-gold-digger).

I also appreciated the element of 'continuous consent is the only consent' that went on, especially given the discussion of what one of the characters had gone through in past. I liked the trust that developed, keeping misunderstandings from being that particularly obnoxious sort that the genre can lean on starting about the 75% through the story.

There was a lot of missed opportunity in this book, so much that was superficially interesting just didn't come together, it felt unpolished. I didn't love either of the main characters, I didn't care much about their relationship, I didn't love the setting, There is something of a side-story about another couple who lived on the island years prior that seemed to take up story time without committing to it in a way that brought the audience in, it felt like a way to keep Julian busy more than anything. It felt a bit like a story of "Caleb is going to have an important job and do things and lead the plot, and then Julian needs to not get in his way, bring the issues, and feel like he has a life here too" rather than actually tying disparate bits of story together and weaving something immersive, intriguing, or heartwarming together.

Some elements of the story also challenged my ability to suspend disbelief, mostly the evil-villain levels and host of people who are not bright enough to see what is happening sorts of characters.

Overall, I won't listen again. I think if you like Kenneth Obi, and are okay with the attempted accent, then this isn't a bad read, but there are better out there. If you want a fake marriage story, I'd give a higher rating to The Husband Gambit by LA Witt, bonus because the amazing Greg Boudreaux is one of the narrators (and Michael Ferraiuolo is the other).

Fake Relationship Trope - A Bit Below Average

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Listener received this title free

Did the story keep me engaged: yes
Were there any parts I found annoying: no
Did I feel an emotional connection to the characters: yes
Would I listen to it again: yes

• Friends to lovers with a fake marriage = pure entertainment.
• Good pace, well written and likeable characters.
• Kenneth Obi does a fantastic job at bringing the characters to life and adds to the audio experience.

Great series start and I look forward to the next one.

entertaining

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