Once a Rogue

Roaring Twenties Magic, Book 2

De: Allie Therin

Narrado por: Joel Froomkin

Two reformed scoundrels have renounced the battlefields and scandals for one another, but their troubled pasts could destroy everything they hold dear…

New York, 1925

Cranky and jaded Lord Fine—Wesley, now, to the kind-hearted lover he cynically doubts life will let him keep—arrives in Manhattan with one goal: find the American paranormals and get their help with the relic burdening Sebastian. His plans are upended when the other paranormals seem to have vanished, and a mysterious letter warns Wesley that he’s in danger.

Sebastian has no doubts when it comes to his feelings for Wesley, but he’s still haunted by the time he spent enthralled by blood magic right here in New York. And now, his magic is unstable, bolstered by a relic that seems to drain energy from his very blood. But there is a threat to Wesley, and Sebastian needs control of his magic to protect him—even if former Great War captain Wesley wants Sebastian to rely on him for a change.

Chasing a trail that leads from Fifth Avenue’s bootleggers to a Halloween masquerade at a Tarrytown mansion, they must race to find their friends before devastation is unleashed on New York—and on magic everywhere.

Roaring Twenties Magic

Book 1: Proper Scoundrels

Book 2: Once a Rogue

©2023 Allie Therin (P)2023 Harlequin Enterprises, Limited

Made me so happy

I waited for this book for a year and a half and listened to it in one go yesterday. I will definitely listen to it several times in the coming weeks. I absolutely love Wesley and Sebastian. They love each other so much and I think they could just spend the whole book sitting in one room talking and I would still adore it.

It was great to see them with Arthur and Rory (though it was super weird to hear Rory talk here. I'm so used to his voice in the Magic in Manhattan and here he had a much manlier voice).

Plot could have been better

Narration was just as good in this book as the previous one. Good accents. Good female voices.

There were two elements to the story: 1) the relationship development between Wes and Sebastian, and 2) the nefarious plot that needed to be thwarted. The nefarious plot was boring and frustrating. The previous book was based around a murder mystery, which was interesting, but this was a missing persons case, which was less so. Also, why must the characters always get captured before they win? Is this a James Bond movie?
Pro-tip: If a drink tastes off, then DON’T drink it! Especially if you think the situation may be a setup. *face palm*
If not for the fascinating development of the main characters via the deepening of their relationship, I would have been totally bored by halfway through.
The characters are witty and interesting with lots of good dialogue, but I was looking forward to more interactions with Ace, Rory, Jade, and Zhang than this book delivered. Hopefully, we get more of them (with a return of Gwen and Ellis) in the next book.

So funny!!!

Loved it more than the first book of the spinoff because of how funny they are together. I love how straight up they are and can be while being cute at the same time. Wesley with his bluntness is totally my vibe and again , HILARIOUS. I busted out laughing multiple times. 10/10

The hangover I will never recover from

I binged this series in 3 days and have zero regrets. Can’t wait for the third book. And this narration is a 10 Star performance.

Great narrator!

Very impressed with the narrator’s ability to believably perform different accents and voices. Enjoyed the story too, but he really brought it to life.

I kept waiting for the plot

Having read Allie Therin's Magic in Manhattan series, I was very much looking forward to its sequel series: Roaring Twenties Magic. I thought it to be a terrific letdown. The characters spent most of the time thinking about having sex with each other and when they finally stopped thinking and started doing, it seemed more attention was paid to that aspect than the plotline.

Instead of being an improvement on the first book, Proper Scoundrels, this sequel was even duller. The 'heroes' spent most of the book looking for the heroes from the Magic in Manhattan series and worrying about who had what relics and thinking about/having sex. I never could figure out how the various types of magic worked or who had what type of magic and how it did/did not affect mundanes. I got the vague impression that there was a set up for a third book, but I'm not really sure. In any case I won't be buying it.

The ONLY positive thing I have to say is the narrator was superb. I was particularly impressed with the way he switched voices/accents during dialog scenes involving multiple characters.