Review of Audiobook Femme by Marshall Thornton and narration by Joel Leslie

by Marshall Thornton and narration by JoelLeslie

4 stars

Queeny cocktail waiter, Lionel, wakes up to find himself in bed with Dog, a straight-acting softball player and the two embark on a rocky road to romance. A journey that requires coming out of the closet, going into the closet, a pair of red high heels, many pairs of red high heels, a failed intervention, a couple of aborted dates, and homemade pom-poms. Mostly, Lionel and Dog learn what it means to be a man.

This is our first Marshall Thornton book, and in all honesty we kind of like to read a book before listening to the Audiobook, but Femme was so good, we don’t miss not reading the book first.

This is a story of Lionel, a queeny waitress in a gay bar, that is fine with who he is, take it or leave it. After a drunken night he finds himself in bed with family-closeted Dog, a softball player, who is fine living his life half-in-or-out of the closet.  These two men couldn’t be more different and although they keep finding themselves drawn back together. 

Femme is a hoot, so funny; we couldn’t help ourselves form laughing out loud! On the outside these men are so different, but when they start peeling back the layers they both realize that they struggle with the same things, and want to same things for their lives.  Through the laughter, Femme is a thought provoking book.  Lionel and Dog struggle with being true to who they really are, coming out, and standing up for what is right.

Now let’s talk about the audiobook – so good!  We love Joel Leslie, and he does an amazing job capturing Lionel and Dog.  The book switches points of view, and Joel creates very distinct voices that keep both characters and others in the book, very easy to recognize.  This isn’t your typical flowery romance, there are no grandiose declarations of love, but the relationship between Dog and Lionel is so real.  With everyday struggles, and falling in love when you don’t even realize.  And listening to Joel brings life to Femme makes you feel like it is a friend telling you a story. 

Femme by Marshall Thornton is a fantastic book, but with Joel Leslie’s narration brings this story to one of the best audiobooks we have listen to this year!

Review of Audiobook: The Innocent Auction by Victoria Sue and Narrated by Joel Leslie

 by Victoria Sue and Narrated by Joel Leslie

Book: 4 stars Narration: 5 stars

London 1810.

Their love was a death sentence.

Deacon, Viscount Carlisle, was aware of the slums and gin-lanes of London. Just as he was aware of the underground traffic that furnished the brothels and bath houses with human innocents. He was also aware that the so-called justice system would hang the accused without much of an attempt at a defense, unless the unfortunate had deep pockets to pay for it.

He just hadn't expected to be directly involved in any of it.

It started with a plea for help and ended with forbidden love, the love between a Viscount and a stable-boy. An impossible love and a guarantee of the hangman's noose.

Will Deacon fight for Tom? Will he risk the death sentence and take that fight from the stately halls of his English mansion to the horrors of Newgate Prison and the slums of London?

Or will he realize that if he doesn't, death will be a welcome end to the loneliness of the sentence he is already living?

This is actually the first audiobook we have enjoyed without reading the book first, and it was a great listen!  Victoria Sue weaved a heart-aching love story and Joel Leslie adds so much to the story through his poignant narration.

Deacon, viscount Carlisle, lives his life in the upper echelon of society, but knows of the hardships of those less fortune than hm.  What he is surprised to find is the underground auction houses, places where humans are bought and sold, and one night when going to pull his cousin our of one such place his find himself drawn to a young man on the auction block.  Against his better judgement he purchases the young man, and sets him on a life on his country estate.  5 years later when the death of his father bring Deacon back to the country estate, he find himself meeting a very different person than the young youth he saved; Tom has grown up to be a man. 

This book is great – we always like a historical romance, but the idea of the story is what makes it special.  How Deacon and Tom have a relationship spanning over a years, but are re-introduced as adults is wonderful.  The attraction they feel jumps off the page, and even with the trauma in Tom’s past life he sees Deacon only wants the best for him, even if it isn’t a life together.  Life during this period is hard as well, sodomy is against the law, and life is treated as a commodity and The Innocent Auction heart-breaking shows what happens to those accused of the crime. 

Victoria Sue creates characters that we fell in love with, that we rooted for and we cried with, but the real gem is the narration by Joel Leslie.  Joel brings Deacon and Tom alive, gives voice to their heart-break and lets you fall in love along with them.  Sometimes in m/m romance the characters all start to sound the same, but somehow Joel finds a way to keep everyone spate, and consistent through the whole narration.

Review of Audiobook Cronin's Key by NR Walker, narrated by Joel Leslie

 

Review of Audiobook Cronin's Key by NR Walker, narrated by Joel Leslie

5 stars

NYPD Detective Alec MacAidan has always been good with weird. After all, his life has been a string of the unexplainable. But when an injured man gives him cryptic clues, then turns to dust in front of him, Alec's view on weird is changed forever.

Cronin, a vampire Elder, has spent the last thousand years waiting for Alec. He'd been told his fated one would be a man wielding a shield, but he didn't expect him to be human, and he certainly didn't expect that shield to be a police badge.

Both men, strong-willed and stubborn, are still learning how to cope with the push and pull of being fated, when fate throws them another curveball.

Rumors have spread quickly of turmoil in Egypt. Covens are fleeing with news of a vampire who has a talent like no other, hell-bent on unleashing the wrath of Death.

Alec and Cronin are thrown into a world of weird Alec cannot imagine. What he learned in school of ancient pharaohs and Egyptian gods was far from the truth. Instead, he finds out firsthand that history isn't always what it seems.

We don’t need to start by saying how much we love anything and everything but NR Walker, and the Cronin’s Key series is right up there.  But, there is something that Joel Leslie creates, that brings this fantastic book to life.  One of the best audio narrations we have heard in a while, so much we are downloading everything else Joel has recorded!

Cronin is a thousand year old vampire who has been waiting for his fated one, his mate, who shows up in the form of Alec, a NYPD detective that has always attracted the weird.  There is other vampires, and a newly born one wanted to take over the world, and happiness of finding each other and the sad thoughts that they might not have forever together. 

But, we love this story, so let’s talk about the narration.  Joel has this husky quality to his voice that creates each individual voice for the characters.  And his accents are out of this world.  Reading this book, you feel the sexual tension between Cronin and Alec, but hearing it voices brings the tension, but the sweet heat they are both feeling for finding each other.  Joel finds that caring between these two strong men, and their whispered words of love are so endearing.  Our favourite scene in when Cronin first takes Alec to the Scottish fields, we could feel he love and tenderness between them.

So much good, but one sad thing, we have to wait for the other 2 installments in the Cronin’s Key series!!!  But really, it is a great book, and a fantastic narration, we will patiently wait if the rest are a good as this one.