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The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen
- The Doomsday Books, Book 1
- Narrated by: Martyn Swain
- Length: 11 hrs and 16 mins
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The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen
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Summary
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.
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What listeners say about The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Hemmel M.
- 12-03-23
The story is good enough to overlook the narration
Who thought to employ a narrator who pauses after every three words was a good idea? I tried a few chapters and then the story grasped me. It is doable. I loved the action, the side characters, the villains and the rival smuggling gang. The Marsh in my head turned from grey and desolate to lively, colorful and social the longer I listened. It brought to mind Daphne de Maurier's work, which makes it not original but breathtaking none the less.
1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 04-06-23
Wonderful
A fantastic story of two men from different sides of the track. Wonderful writing with amazing story building, character development and descriptions. The audio narrator was outstanding! Warmly recommend!
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 08-05-23
Great story as always
Totally let down by a narrator that might as well have been the text to speach. The character voices were fine but the text! Such a shame to ruin a great story.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Stefanie Hesse
- 25-04-23
Great story, awful performance
Why would you even consider another narrator than Cornell Collins? Unfortunately, it seems there is a new publishing house involved..
I started with the audiobook but had to switch to the ebook after a couple of minutes as the performance was chipping away the fun (and my nerves).
The sorry is amazing (as always) with a fair bit of mystery, wild goose chases across the moor and complex entanglements. KJ Charles writes realistic, relatable, and unpredictable stories, and I can heartily recommend her novels to anyone who loves a good story, including the naughty bits (:
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Saoirse
- 13-04-23
KJ CHARLES IS INCREDIBLE BUT THE NARRATION SUCKS
KJ Charles has had some rough luck with narrators. Some like Cornell Collins are great and clearly understand the tone of the material. But this guy is the complete opposite! He's so stiff and stilted, and seems replied to be reading the sex scenes. Ruined the vibe of the book. Would have returned it but I wanna support my girl KJ. Definitely recommend the book, but buy the paperback or the ebook. Don't waste your time on the audio.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Sarah
- 21-03-23
Stick with it through the narration
I love KJ Charles and this story is exactly what I hoped; full on swashbuckling, complicated and interesting characters and a wonderful love story.
The narrator was terrible and the story deserved so much better. I’m not sure why he felt the need to pause after ever other word, or somehow managed monotone for an entire novel.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Flora
- 09-03-23
Great story as usual, sadly not great narration
This book is the kind of well written, engaging and original work I love from KJ Charles, and but for the narrator, I'd have no complaints! The odd word emphasis, speaking rhythm and slightly stilted intonation is just distracting enough to really throw my listening experience off. It may not be an issue for everyone, but if that kind of thing is important to you, you're forewarned. My solution was to speed up the narration slightly, which helped a bit to even out the overall experience.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Nichola F
- 08-03-23
Another absolute gem from Charles
Not for nothing is KJ Charles my favourite living writer, and this is another banger - engaging characters, meticulously researched world building, thrilling plotty shenanigans and a satisfying denouement. I’m already champing at the bit for the sequel.
Martyn Swain’s narration is confident and well-judged throughout, with good work on the character voices (…okay, with maybe a slight quibble on his vocalisation for Cecelia, but male narrators very rarely do a great job with voicing women, let alone teenage girls: with most men that tends to be the point where their capacity for empathy collapses). However, the rest of the characters are grand, and Cecelia isn’t jarring.
A thoroughly enjoyable listen, all in all!
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Little J
- 10-03-23
Narrator pauses every few words, near unlistenable
Wish I could rate 5 stars for the story, but the narration is unlistenable! The narrator pauses every few words mid-sentence, creating disjointed fragments that don't make sense. I listened to the whole audiobook with the hope I'd get used to it. I never did, even when sped up to 1.5x speed to try to ignore the pauses--it doesn't work because the rhythm of speech is unnatural. Way too many stops and starts! Odd thing is, the narrator does a notably impressive job with a few short bits of dialogue, but these are random outliers only lightly sprinkled throughout the story. It infuriated me because it revealed a certain skill that's not being used correctly. 100% of the time, the narration is a painful stilted mess that completely destroys the flow of the story and emotional impact of every scene.
The story that KJ Charles wrote is fantastic, and I thoroughly enjoyed that. (I had a better time reading it than listening to the audiobook for obvious reasons.) The story is 5 stars, with an incredibly likeable couple at the center: London and Kent, otherwise known as Sir Gareth and Joss. The way they meet is so sweet that I don't want to spoil it. Gareth is a nervous sort with abandonment issues (understandably), and Joss is a charming, overworked leader of a smuggling gang. They both just need someone on their side, and they become that for each other. I love how they are with each other, whether it's fighting or fcking. They set each other free, as corny as that sounds. Gareth set free from insecurity and fear, Joss set free from obligation and worry. Also, I love that Gareth, a skinny gentle type, is several inches taller than his bulky smuggler boyfriend Joss. Just a cute image.
The mystery plot is rather predictable and uninspired, and every bad guy is one-note and obvious from the start. Yet I enjoyed the story all the same. The journey is what makes the story stand out. The way the smuggler gangs struggle to keep their tense peace, all the complicated family issues, the culture clash of Marshmen and outmarsh folk, etc. The story takes place in the Marsh, and that alone is wildly fascinating. KJ Charles's impressive historical knowledge and research shine through. The Marsh is far more than set dressing. It's alive with bugs and mist and people and culture. Even the political turmoil of the time is subtly present as a building pressure under the surface. As we follow a lively tale of smugglers, family, and love, our lovely leads deal with the pain of expectations, disappointing family, bad fathers, selfish men, and being an outsider. And they kiss a lot. It's a good time.
9 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Jackson Theofore Keys
- 08-03-23
Fantastic book
I am a big fan of KJ Charles. I especially like the mystery M/M books. This one was remarkably good. I loved the juxtaposition between the baronet and the smuggler. Both came from very different lives, but through adversity and communication, they melded their lives together. I'm sorry to say the narration was not great, although I was able to listen to it. The narrator paused for a long time nearly constantly throughout the book.
7 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Stephanie Leary
- 13-03-23
Wonderful book, intolerable narration
This book is lovely and I can’t recommend it highly enough… just not in audio. The narrator has a wonderful range of voices, and this could have been excellent, but he inserts. random. pauses. into the second half. of every. paragraph. regardless. of where emphasis. should. fall. It’s as if he was asked to slow down and didn’t know how to do that smoothly, so he starts out each sentence normally, then pauses and pronounces each word individually instead of letting them flow naturally. The effect is bizarre. It undercuts the emotional weight of the dialogue—which was delightful when I read it in print. All the sparkling wit falls flat in these stilted tones. I suspect this is less the narrator’s fault than the production team’s; he does an admirable job with the characters and accents, and a few better choices of direction could have saved this. The book is a keeper, but I’m not likely to listen to it in audio again.
5 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- downtown
- 10-03-23
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.
5 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Silup
- 10-03-23
A delightful listen
I have long since learned that I should always just read novels by KJ Charles regardless of the summery; somehow the plot always steps elegantly around my pet peeve pitfalls!
The atmosphere is sublime, the world just feels very textural to me; the excellent narration definitely supports this. Both the language and local flair feel authentic. It is just a delight to be immersed in a world with people very different from me yet recognisable.
Aside from world building and characters, the story is interesting and engaging. It moves fast and stays interesting without spinning out of control.
I loved this book and can't wait for the sequel (the plot of which I am already speculating about)
3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Andrea R
- 23-03-23
Kj Charles never disappoints
I loved this story - like all the others! It did take a second to get used to an unfamiliar-to-me narrator, but really hardly any time at all & I thought it was very well narrated overall & fit the setting.
2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mickie B. Ashling, Author
- 21-03-23
Loved it!
This author never disappoints. I think the narrator did a fine job with the different voices and accents. Don't understand the negative reviews.. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.
2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Kimberley Stafford
- 15-03-23
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.
2 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Cranky Reader
- 14-03-23
Great story, painful narration
The newly minted Baron & the long time smuggler get off to a good start, then blow their second chance. But they try to do right by their families, which includes consequences for those who aren’t behaving well. In doing so, they learn who they are as adults, individuals, and as a team. It’s nicely done.
There’s also murder and mayhem, abuse, threats of outing, and mob justice, for all it’s a feel good romance at the end. I’m hoping for a sequel. Fans of the author will enjoy that the pub from “Wanted, A Gentleman” gets more custom.
Steam: Med. A few detailed adventures on page. M/M met with varied reactions in their nearest & dearest but with enough colluders that things work out.
Narration: It pains me to say this but the narration was almost impossible to listen to. The cadence. Was. A. CombinationOfFast, Normal, and. a. slow. staccato thatWasHard to predict and didn’t match the text well enough to make sense. This is not something fixable by changing playback speed. If I didn’t like this author, and could comfortably read text, I would have returned it. Also, this was produced in a pandemic - so while not getting an A for effort, I am going to keep it. It was a bit easier to listen to on a second go, but the phrasing still drove me spare. Edit out the too long gaps, please. They many. many. gaps. are worse than the few speedy bits. The attempts to change voices by character were welcome although there were a few places it was mixed up. Seriously, if someone re-paced this, leaving only a few slow bits where the text may demand it, it would be reasonably good. The book deserves better audio production value.
2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Jackson
- 14-03-23
Lovely
This is one of my new favorite books. It’s very sweet without being saccharine. Mostly it’s a good story, and also I like how she does diverse inclusion. Not like she’s trying to get a merit badge but like there was more than one kind of person in history. It’s subtle and realistic.
Disagreements between the MCs are handled like adults, not like angsty 15 year olds thank god. Plenty of drama in the rest of the plot to keep me “turning pages”.
The narration was more like being read to than a story being acted, I found it soothing. A very pleasant day spent gardening and listening to this book.
2 people found this helpful